CARY, N.C. (June 1, 2025) – East Region champion Felician University, an at-large representative from the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, was defeated by South Region champion University of Tampa, 20-3, in the opening round of the 2025 NCAA Division II Baseball Championship finals on Saturday evening. The event is being hosted by the University of Mount Olive at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.
Felician (43-21), the No. 8 seed for the finals, will play No. 4 seed University of Texas at Tyler in an elimination game on Monday at 1:30 p.m. The contest can be viewed at https://www.ncaa.com/game/6449826.
On Saturday, Tampa (51-8), the 2024 Division II national champion, led, 5-0, after three innings before pulling away with a nine-run fourth. The Spartans had five home runs among their 16 hits. Bryan Santana was 2 for 4 with an RBI for the Golden Falcons. Tampa, the Sunshine State Conference champion, is the No. 1 seed for the finals and ranked No. 1 nationally in this week’s Division II coaches’ poll.
Felician is the first CACC team in 10 years to play in the Division II Baseball Championship finals. The Golden Falcons are ranked No. 15 in this week’s national coaches’ poll. UT Tyler is ranked fourth in the same poll.
The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its affiliation with NCAA Division II. Conference institutions compete for championships in 18 sports – eight for men, nine for women, and one co-ed. The CACC contains 12 members in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Membership includes Bloomfield College of Montclair State University, the University of Bridgeport, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Dominican University New York, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Post University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Wilmington University.