With 13 games completed for the 2025 season, Emory University’s baseball team is eager to make their mark.
The team finished the 2024 season — their 12th consecutive winning year — second in the University Athletic Association (UAA) standings with a 5.34 ERA and third in the UAA with a 3.19 batting average. The Eagles ended 2024 with a 23-15-1 overall record and finished with a conference record of 10-6-1. However, because the NCAA did not grant automatic qualification to the top UAA teams in 2024, the Eagles missed out on the NCAA postseason. So, with 17 underclassmen and 19 upperclassmen on the roster, the team is looking to make it to the national tournament this season.
Head coach Bobby Perez is leading the team this year after taking over for the now-retired Mike Twardoski in May 2024. Alongside Perez are pitching coach Sam Carpenter and assistant coach Trace Twardoski. Carpenter has been with the team for the past three seasons, receiving two UAA Coaching Staff of the Year honors in that time. Trace Twardoski, Mike Twardoski’s son, joined the coaching staff prior to the 2024 season.
Senior outfielder Matthew Sicoli, who earned UAA All-Academic honors last season, said his coaches have been important to his development as a player over his four seasons at Emory.
“They’ve helped me much more mentally than I ever could’ve thought was possible,” Sicoli said. “Baseball is a game of failure — so you fail every [seven] out of 10 times, and you're still considered a very good player. And a lot of people get super frustrated really easily with the results, especially myself, and having good coaches that are able to keep you levelheaded was definitely super important for me.”
As the season progresses, Perez said he has both daily and long-term goals for the team.
“Our ultimate goal is to get back to the NCAA tournament and compete for a national championship,” Perez said. “We’re looking for guys to compete every day in practice and in games, play hard and put our best foot forward and continue to improve and get better as the season goes along.”
With 18 returning upperclassmen and one transfer, the Eagles are more motivated than ever. Sicoli is determined to help the team get a regional bid before he graduates. Junior infielder Zach Wasserlauf shared that goal, saying that the top UAA team will get an automatic NCAA tournament bid under a new rule. He noted that this could help boost the team’s postseason odds.
“This year, we have an auto bid for our conference, and I think that can help us immensely,” Wasserlauf said. “Our only goal as a team is to win and continue to grow as a team and win that conference bid and then get into the regional and compete for a national championship.”
The upperclassmen-heavy team has many strengths, including notable leadership and experience, Perez explained.
“A lot of our seniors have stepped up and really done a nice job,” Perez said. “All 10 of our seniors have taken an active leadership role and have done a good job of helping steer and mentor and lead the younger guys.”
In addition to the upperclassmen, the new members of the team are also making their mark this season. Wasserlauf said he is eager to see how the freshmen step up this season.
“All of our guys are great, so I’m just excited to see who steps up for us in big spots,” Wasserlauf said. “There’s … four that are healthy right now that are gonna be impact guys for us.”
Not only is the team talented and ambitious, but they have strong chemistry that will aid members in communicating with one another during challenging situations, Sicoli said, adding that every player is driven to win for each other, not just themselves. Wasserlauf expressed a similar sentiment, specifically between the infielders.
“The chemistry among the infielders is fun,” Wasserlauf said. “We have a great dynamic. We’re all a little bit more mature, a little bit older this year. Last year was a younger infield, and now we have a couple years under our belt each, so it’s great.”
The team officially opened this season on Feb. 7 with a win against Berry College (Ga.), during which the Eagles came back from trailing 7-0 to win the game 12-11. They ultimately dropped the series 2-1. Most recently, the team secured three wins against Middlebury College (Vt.) on March 1 and March 2, including two mercy-rule victories.
Looking ahead to the team’s upcoming matchups, Sicoli recognized Case Western Reserve University (Ohio) as notable competition. However, Sicoli said he feels more confident going into the series against the Spartans on April 4 than he did last season.
“We’ve had a lot of back and forth between them, so those are always chippy games,” Sicoli said. “They came down here last year and took three out of four and that was pretty embarrassing and I’m excited to bring it back on when we go to them up in Cleveland.”
The Eagles hope to add more wins to their 9-4 overall record this weekend when they take on Covenant College (Ga.), starting with a home game before traveling to Lookout Mountain, Ga. for two away games.
