• 6 World Series Berths
  • 15 UAA Championships
  • 11 ABCA All-Americans
  • 4 D3Baseball.com All-Americans

2007 Baseball Season Recap

The Emory University Baseball Team's 2007 season raised the program to new heights, as the Eagles came just one game shy of a national championship, finishing second overall in the nation.  The second-place finish at the NCAA Division III National Championship is the best in the history of Emory's baseball program (which began during the 1991 season), along with the best finish by a University Athletic Association (UAA) baseball team, and the highest national finish by an Emory team in a team-based sport.

The Eagles finished the season with a 43-10 record, setting mark for the most wins in Emory baseball history.  More impressive than the actual win total, however, was the way in which the Eagles won their games.  Emory came back to win 21 games in which it trailed, and 14 of the Eagles' wins came in the team's final at bat.  The Eagles finished the season 35-2 when they held their opponents to less than five runs.

Emory's four wins in the Division III Championship Tournament are three more than the Eagles had in their previous two trips to the tournament.  After Emory dropped its first game of the championship bracket to the sixth-ranked University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, the Eagles shocked the field by going on a four-game winning run, which included wins over the top-ranked Chapman University (Calif.), the second-ranked Cortland State University (N.Y.), the fifth-ranked Eastern Connecticut State University and exacting revenge over Stevens Point to advance to the championship.  Emory battled all to the National Championship game, where they met Kean University (N.J.), and battled the better-rested team to 10 innings before dropping a 5-4 decision.  The Eagles' outscored their opponents 49-28 during the championship tournament.

Emory's games in the South Regional Tournament in Ferrum, Va. were equally as thrilling.  Playing for the right to compete for the NCAA Division III Championship, the top-seeded Eagles entered the regional championship game through the winner's bracket with wins over Bridgewater College (Va.), Methodist University (N.C.) and Ferrum College (Va.).  After suffering a 12-inning loss to Ferrum in the first championship game, the two teams met again the following day to decide the regional champion.  With the Eagles' trailing 5-3 in the ninth inning, senior Sam Cunningham hit what is unquestionably the most important home run in school history, a two-run shot to right field that sent the game into extra innings.  A 12th-inning game-winning RBI single for Tyler Short clinched the Regional Championship for Emory.

The Eagles claimed two other tournament titles during the season.  Emory won its eighth University Athletic Association (UAA) title, finishing 4-2 during the annual tournament.  The victory is the Eagles' fourth UAA win in the last five years, and the team's fourth-outright championship.  The Eagles also won the Rawlings Southern Classic during the second week of the season.

Emory's season included a 16-3 record against teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament, and a 9-4 record against teams that were ranked in the final American Baseball Coaches Association Poll.  The Eagles were 23-1 at their home this season, and improved their all-time winning percentage at Chappell Park to .773.

The Eagles' success during the season began with its top-two senior starting pitchers, Jason Glushon and Ian Ganzer.  Glushon worked harder than any other Emory pitcher in the school's history, throwing an Emory single-season record 125.1 innings (11th-most in Division III history), over a school-record 17 starts (10th-most in Division III history).  The wear and tear on the senior's arm didn't show in his performance however, as he set a school record with 13 wins during the season, while recording a 2.23 earned run average and striking out 112 batters, the fourth-most in school history.  For his performance during the season, Glushon was named a second-team All-American, and the South-Region pitcher of the year.  Meanwhile, Ganzer's 8-1 record with a 2.45 ERA were both the second-best on the team, as the senior held opponents to a team-low .219 batting average.  On just two days rest, the senior pitched nine-effective innings in the NCAA Championship Game.

The Eagles rotation was solidified in the middle of the season, when fifth-year senior Sam Cunningham became Emory's third starting pitcher, compiling a 4-0 record with a 4.01 ERA in five starts.  Closer Rich Babb set a school record with eight wins out of the bullpen (to go along with his 1.48 ERA and six saves), and senior Anthony Vidal, junior Julian Smith, and freshmen Adam Genn and Will Gumm provided consistent performances to solidify the Eagles' rotation and bullpen.

Juniors Frank Pfister and Joe Roth led the Emory position players with both their bats and gloves.  Pfister, who constantly contributed with his strong arm and great glove at third base, set an Emory record at the plate with a .387 batting average and 87 hits during the season, the 18th-highest total in Division III history.  Meanwhile, Roth's 58 runs batted in are the third-most in Emory history, and he was named the nation's gold-glove second baseman with a .987 fielding percentage during the year.  The pair of Pfister and Roth recorded 225 and 223 at bats respectively, the fifth- and sixth-most in Division III history.

Senior shortstop Brandon Custer, recorded his best season as an Eagle, batting .360 with 33 RBIs, including a .474 average with five runs batted in during the championship tournament.  Junior David Hissey's 29 stolen bases during the year are the fourth-most in school history and sophomore newcomer Steve Bralver finished second on the team with four home runs, to go along with 33 RBIs and a .354 average, despite missing six weeks due to injury.  Meanwhile, despite registering only four at bats in 2006, Tyler Short became the Eagles' everyday catcher in 2007, including starting all six games behind the plate over five days in the NCAA National Tournament.  Short hit .316 with 10 RBIs in Emory's 11 postseason games.

Seniors Sam Cunningham, Bo Schill, Zander Sotiriou, and Tim Cournoyer provided leadership and offensive prowess throughout the season for Emory, while freshmen Dan Molnar and Tommy Dugan provided consistency and defense in the Eagles outfield. 

The following Eagles received honors during the 2007 season:

All-America (American Baseball Coaches Association)

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

Second Team

All-America (d3baseball.com)

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

Third Team

Gold Glove (American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings)

Joe Roth

Niwot, CO (Holy Family)

Second Base

 

All-Tournament (NCAA Division III National Championship)

Steve Bralver

Honolulu, HI (Westlake)

Designated Hitter

 

Brandon Custer

Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley West)

Infield

 

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

 

Frank Pfister

Los Angeles, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Infield

 

South Region Pitcher of the Year (National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association)
Jason Glushon Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)    

South Region Pitcher of the Year (American Baseball Coaches Association)

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

 

 

All-South Region (American Baseball Coaches Association)

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

First Team

Joe Roth

Niwot, CO (Holy Family)

Second Base

First Team

Rich Babb

Ashland, MA (Ashland)

Pitcher

Second Team

NCAA South Regional Tournament Most Valuable Player

Frank Pfister

Los Angeles, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Third Base

 

All-South Regional Tournament

Ian Ganzer

Morgantown, WV (Wellington)

Pitcher

 

Frank Pfister

Los Angeles, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Third Base

 

Joe Roth

Niwot, CO (Holy Family)

Second Base

 

University Athletic Association Player of the Year

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

 

All-University Athletic Association

Steve Bralver

Honolulu, HI (Westlake)

Designated Hitter

First Team

Brandon Custer

Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley West)

Shortstop

First Team

Jason Glushon

Encino, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Pitcher

First Team

Frank Pfister

Los Angeles, CA (Harvard-Westlake)

Third base

First Team

Joe Roth

Niwot, CO (Holy Family)

Second Base

First Team

CoSIDA Academic All-District

Brandon Custer

Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley West)

Infield

First Team