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Augusta, NJ -- Circling the waters all weekend, the Sharks saved their most powerful attack for last as top-seeded LIU captured the 2026 NEC Baseball Championship crown with a commanding 22-8 victory in seven innings over second-seeded FDU at Skyland Stadium in Augusta, NJ.

LIU (30-20) hoisted the trophy for the fourth time in program history and the third time in the past five seasons. With a perfect 3-0 tournament record, the Sharks became the first team to not drop a single NEC Tournament postseason game since their 2018 title run.

The Sharks scored 43 runs over three NEC Tournament games, finishing just two shy of the conference record set by CCSU in 2026 over four games.

Needing just one win today to clinch the title, LIU never let up, turning traffic into runs all game with 13 walks, six hit-by-pitches and five stolen bases, scoring 22 runs on just seven hits. NEC Tournament MVP Joe Durso and Elijah Fairchild led the offensive charge, with Fairchild also named to the All-Tournament Team.

LIU ended the first inning with a six-run advantage as the Sharks scored seven runs with a single hit, taking full advantage of five walks, two hit by pitches and a wild pitch to make it a 7-1 lead after the Knights got on the board with a Diego Urreta RBI single in top of the first.

FDU slugger Hunter Ray went yard twice on the day for FDU (34-20-1) with a solo shot in the second and a three-run blast in the fourth. Trailing 10-2, the NEC Player of the Year jumpstarted a four-run fourth inning for the Knights that cut the lead to 10-6.

After that, it was all Sharks as LIU went onto score 12 runs across the final three innings.

Saving their best hitting performances for last, LIU put up a six-run sixth frame. Fairchild broke it open with an RBI single to right field, while Ryan Rivera took his chance and stole home. Rivera totaled three stolen bases in the win.  

Capping things off was Durso, who blasted a grand slam over the left-field wall to boost the Sharks’ lead to 22-8 heading into the seventh as LIU looked to end the game via the run rule. Durso shined in the tournament final with four runs scored, five RBIs and a pair of walks.

LIU received a workmanlike combined effort on the mound from Torrin Kassebaum and Dale Fry with Kassebaum earning the decision after pitching 3.2 innings of relief. The junior lefty surrendered just three hits and two runs. Fry, who started, rifled off 3.1 innings and struck out three.

Fairchild finished a 3-for-4 with five RBIs and two runs scored in LIU’s championship win.

FDU's Travis Stroh added a bomb that collided with the scoreboard in left-center in the fifth.

FDU's season come to an end in its first NEC title game appearance since 2016. The Knights set program records in overall wins (34) and conference victories (25).

Ray capped off his NEC Player of the Year campaign with an All-Tournament Team nod and the NEC single-season home run record (32). He went 2-for-4 with four RBIs on the day and launched four home runs during the Knights’ run to the final, tying the NEC Tournament record shared by LIU’s Lou Deaman (1995) and the Mount’s Josh Vittek (2008).

The Sharks are swimming into their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance and will find out who their next opponent is on Monday, May 25 at 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN2 during the 2026 NCAA Division I Baseball Championship Selection Show.

NEC All-Tournament Team
Joe Durso, LIU (MVP)
Elijah Fairchild, LIU
Justin DeCastro, LIU
Nicholas Finarelli, LIU
Johnathan Gomez, FDU
Nick Noble, FDU
Hunter Ray, FDU
Jack Cannon, LEM
Colin Trizuto, WAG