CARY, N.C. – For the second time in program history, the Augustana baseball team is set for the NCAA Division II College World Series. First pitch for Augustana is at 5 p.m. (CDT) on Sunday at the USA Baseball Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina.
 
Coverage from Cary, North Carolina, is presented exclusively by Hub International. Stay tuned to @AugieBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for coverage of the event or tune in at GoAugie.com/2023DIIWorldSeries.
 
A watch party will take place at Remedy at 611 on Sunday in a family friendly atmosphere. Remedy at 611 is located at 611 N West Ave. For more information on the watch party, click here.
 
In addition to the coverage on social media and the watch party, live stats and live video can be found at GoAugie.com/Live or on the GoAugie Fan App presented by The Original Pancake House. Search the app store for GoAugie.
 
About North Greenville
The defending national champions are the No. 2 seed in the 2023 championship while holding a 49-9 record. The Crusaders have been nearly unstoppable on their home turf while holding a 31-1 record at Ray and Bea Dillard Field. In neutral-site games, they are 4-2.
 
Amongst the fire power behind an offense that bats .330 as a team is John Michael Faile who is the NCAA Division II record holder in home runs and RBI. For his career, he has belted 81 home runs and recorded 337 RBI. In 2023, he has 20 home runs and 84 RBI. Faile is far from a one-man show as Pat Monteith has 19 home runs and David Lewis owns 18 home runs. Respectfully, they own .377 and .373 batting averages ranking No. 1 and No. 2 on the Crusaders.
 
In addition to the trio, Carter Dierdorf is the Conference Carolina Freshman of the year after batting .341 with 47 hits, 30 RBI and seven doubles.
 
On the pitching mound, Reece Fields is 13-3 with a 4.84 ERA. He owns one complete game, a shutout, while being part of two combined shutouts. Brody Fowler ranks second on the team in total wins with an 8-0 record while holding a 5.13 ERA. As a team, the Crusaders own a 4.12 ERA while striking out 531 batters in 491 innings.
 
We also need to mention that the Crusaders head coach, Landon Powell, is a former big league catcher that has his spot in history. He was the catcher for the Oakland A's when Dallas Braden tossed a perfect game on Mother's Day in 2010.
 
About the Vikings
Augustana is at the championship site in Cary, North Carolina for the second time with a 47-19 record. Having played a large chunk of the early-season schedule in neutral-site affairs, the Vikings are 13-6 in those contests.
 
The two-time defending NSIC Champions are led in the batter's box by Jack Hines and his .358 batting average. He has totaled 82 hits with 16 doubles, six home runs and five triples. Nick Banowetz is just behind with his .350 average while ranking second on the team with 36 stolen bases.
 
Drey Dirksen is the top power hitter for AU as he hits at a .345 clip with 16 home runs and 17 doubles. He leads AU with 61 RBI having played in 65 games. Dirksen is one home run shy of tying the school record for home runs in a season, currently at 17 held by San Francisco Giants prospect, Carter Howell.
 
On the rubber, Seth Miller is the Vikings' ace with an 11-1 record and 2.96 ERA. Freshly minted as an honorable mention to the D2CCA All-America Team, Miller owns three complete games and a save in 2023. Not to be left behind is Caleb Saari and his 2.84 ERA in 13 appearances while striking out 82 batters in 76 innings.
 
At the end of the game, Augustana turns to Adam Diedrich who leads NCAA Division II with 14 saves while allowing just eight runs in 24 appearances.
 
One Last Thing
Augustana can be called a patient team. The Vikings have gained 332 bases via the walk on the season, a mark that ranks fourth in NCAA Division II. In contrast, Augustana's pitching staff has issued just 220 walks on the season, creating a spread of 112 extra bases AU has received.