For the first time in UCAA history, the Red Hawks did not finish the regular season in first place. However, the change of venue and seed did not change the outcome of the tournament. RPI took the UCAA Championship title again this season, beating Clarkson in the final game.
As the winner of the UCAA, the Red Hawks earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament, continuing a now 13-year streak of NCAA appearances—the longest streak of its kind in the nation. Unfortunately for RPI, the team lost to Ithaca and Cortland, ending their season with a record of 27-17.
The conference tournament was held May 7-9 at Clarkson. The Red Hawks got 17 hits in their first game, with senior Brian Marine leading the way, going 5-for-5 with three RBI as RPI defeated Rochester 11-3 to move into the winners’ bracket. Chris Sullivan pitched a complete game for RPI, allowing only seven hits and striking out six.
RPI got 17 more hits the following day, while holding Clarkson to just four. Pitcher Rich Mundy earned a win as the Red Hawks defeated the Golden Knights 12-4. Nick Parenteau went 4-for-4 with four RBI to help the Red Hawks get to the championship game.
Clarkson defeated Union to advance to the championship, but the RPI offense once again held them off as the Red Hawks grabbed the victory and the championship, winning 9-2. Joe Ihnatoyla went 3-for-5 with a home run in the game. Brian Brzek got the win for RPI, only allowing five hits striking out eight in a nine-inning effort.
Marine went 8-for-15 during the tournament and was named Most Outstanding Player. He was also named to the UCAA All-Tournament team, along with Ihnatoyla, Parenteau, Mike Passante, and Dan Quinn.
The NCAA New York Regional Tournament was held May 20-22 on the Hudson Valley Community College campus, featuring the Ithaca Bombers, SUNY-Brockport Golden Eagles, and SUNY-Cortland Red Dragons, along with RPI.
The tournament started with a game between Cortland and Brockport. Brockport, the second seed, defeated Cortland 9-4 in a game full of errors.
RPI faced Ithaca in the second game of the day. The Bombers notched 18 hits on the day and won the game 18-6. Marine homered in the third inning to get RPI on the board. Ryan Meron pitched in as well, going 4-for-5 with an RBI, but the Red Hawks were not able to stop the Bombers from scoring.
The Red Hawks faced the Cortland Red Dragons in an elimination game on the second day of the tournament. Cortland started quickly, scoring five runs in both the second and third innings. RPI was not able to mount a comeback, and lost the game 11-2.
Brockport advanced to the championship game by beating Ithaca 8-3. Ithaca won the losers’ bracket to face Brockport again in the championship game, with much the same result: The Golden Eagles were victorious 8-2. Brockport advanced to its first NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament, held in Appleton, Wisc., on May 28-June 1. George Fox University won that tournament, its first national championship, beating Eastern Connecticut State University in the championship game.
Many Red Hawks have been honored this season for their play on the field as well as their academics. Six players—Brzek, Cochran, Ihnatoyla, Passante, Sullivan, and Charles Yarnold—have been named to the 2004 UCAA Spring All-Academic Team.
Brzek and Cochran were both named to the 2004 District 1 College Division Baseball All-Academic First Team. Brzek has also been named to the 2004 National Academic All-America College Division Baseball First Team. The All-UCAA Baseball First Team includes Ihnatoyla and Quinn, and Cochran, Meron, Parenteau, and Sullivan were named to the Second Team.
Seven RPI players were named to the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-New York Regional Baseball teams. Cochran, Ihnatoyla, and Quinn were named to the First Team, Parenteau and Sullivan were named to the Second Team, and the Third Team includes Marine and Meron.
Ihnatoyla set a new single season school record with his 12 home runs and Marine now is the team’s leader in doubles, with 47 over his career.
The team will be losing a lot of talent before next season. Brzek, Max Miller, Brian Rickert, and Erik Thunell—all pitchers—will be leaving the team. Middle infielders Cochran and Marc Shumsker and catcher Marine also graduated in May. The remaining players and new recruits will all have to chip in to fill the spaces these players have left.
The Red Hawks continue to be one of RPI’s strongest athletic teams. The team won the UCAA Tournament title, continued its amazing streak of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, and posted a 27-17 record to finish out a great season.
