KEYSER, W.V., May 3, 2023 – The Monroe College Mustangs baseball team's journey to get back to the East District Championship for the eighth straight season begins this weekend when the Mustangs look to advance through the Region 20 Championship tournament, which will be hosted by WVU Potomac State College at Golden Park in Keyser, W.V., beginning this Friday, May 5. The Top 2 teams coming out of the four-team, double-elimination tournament will both qualify for this year's East District Championship.
 
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
2023 Region 20 Division I Baseball Championship
Golden Park – Keyser, W.V. (WVU Potomac State College)
Friday, May 5 – Sunday, May 7
 
Tournament Seeding:

1. Harford Community College (31-16-1)
2. Monroe College (26-15)
3. WVU Potomac State College (28-14)
4. Hagerstown Community College (21-23)

Tournament seeding based on head-to-head results between all four competing teams
*Monroe vs. Harford decided by results of Game 1 of doubleheaders hosted by each team
 
Tournament Coverage:
Potomac State will provide live video and live statistics for each game of the Region 20 Championship
Live Video: Potomac State Gameday Video
Live Stats: MonroeCollegeMustangs.com/BASELiveStats
 
Tournament Schedule:
Friday, May 5, 2023
Game 1: #2 Monroe vs. #3 Potomac State – Time: 12:00 p.m.
Game 2: #1 Harford vs. #4 Hagerstown – Time: 4:00 p.m.
 
Saturday, May 6, 2023
Game 3: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 – Time: 10:00 a.m.
Game 4: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 – Time: 1:00 p.m.
Game 5: Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 – Time: 4:00 p.m.
 
Sunday, May 7, 2023
Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5 – Time: 11:00 a.m.
Game 7: If Necessary – Time: 30 minutes after Game 6
ALL GAMES WILL START AT ABOVE TIMES OR 30 MINUTES AFTER CONCLUSION OF PREVIOUS GAME.
 
What's at Stake?
The Region 20 Tournament Champion and the Region 20 Tournament Runner-Up will both advance to the 2023 NJCAA Div. I East District Championship, which will be hosted at the Region 10 Champion from May 12-14. The Region 10 Tournament Champion and Runner-Up will also both qualify for the East District Championship, with the tournament winner earning the right to host the tournament, and the tournament's top seed.

HOW WE GOT HERE
The Mustangs have enjoyed a lot of success in 2023, finishing the regular season with a 26-15 overall record despite a challenging schedule. The Mustangs started with their usual trip to Louisiana and Texas, coming home with a 2-7 record with victories over then-ranked No. 15 Alvin Community College and then-ranked No. 6 San Jacinto College, a team that Monroe defeated for the first time ever this year.
 
The Mustangs continued their February road stand with a trip to South Carolina to get a taste of what may be in store for them should they make it to the East District Championship. They took on then-No. 14 Florence-Darlington Technical College and USC Sumter, going 1-2 against the two Region 10 teams.
 
The Mustangs finally started played games in the northeast after the South Carolina trip. Doubleheaders against Mercer County Community College and Rockland Community College produced four wins for the Mustangs. A highly anticipated twinbill with Harford in New Rochelle then saw the Mustangs pick up a pair of one-run victories. The Mustangs then swept Lackawanna College before a couple wins over Citius Prep and SUNY Sullivan. The Mustangs beat Rowan College South Jersey-Cumberland on back-to-back days to run their winning streak to 12 games. The Mustangs then visited Hagerstown, splitting a doubleheader with the Hawks to end their winning streak at 13 games.
 
The Mustangs took out the frustration of seeing their winning streak halted by outscoring Rockland and Sullivan, 40-3, in back-to-back games just days later. Monroe then suffered a 19-7 at then-ranked Div. III No. 3 Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester. The Mustangs bounced back a few days later with a doubleheader sweep at Mercer County, and then a big comeback victory at Lackawanna.
 
The Mustangs then took a trip down to Region 20 territory for a big five-game weekend. The Mustangs started with a Friday doubleheader at Potomac State, coming away with a pair of big victories over the Catamounts. Monroe followed that up with a 14-6 win at Harford that Saturday, but lost both ends of a doubleheader to the Fighting Owls on Sunday.
 
The Mustangs struggled a bit down the final stretch of the season, taking a loss at County College of Morris and splitting a doubleheader at Erie Community College. The Mustangs' final game of the season was a momentum-changer, though. The Mustangs returned home for a rematch with RCSJ Gloucester, now ranked No. 2 at the Div. III level. Everything clicked for the Mustangs that day, as they avenged the earlier 19-7 defeat with a 12-2 run-rule victory over the Roadrunners to end their 23-game winning streak.
 
QUICK GLANCE AT REGION 20
The Mustangs are very familiar with each team they may potentially face off with this weekend. Monroe went 6-3 against Region 20 teams, though they were seeded with a 4-2 record against the three teams.
 
Among the three Region 20 teams, Harford tops the standings by going 4-0 against Potomac State and Hagerstown. Potomac State swept Hagerstown to finish 2-2 in-region, so Hagerstown comes in third after going 0-4 against the other two.
 
Region 20 Statistical Leaders
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 11 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).