Rowan baseball makes Division III College World Series for first time since 2005

Zach Listro watched the game-tying run trot home after plunking the first batter he faced, then fell behind 3-0 to his second hitter.

The Rowan University baseball team had just lost a three-run lead as it fought for its first trip to the Division III College World Series since 2005, and Listro was a ball away from giving Marietta (Ohio) a one-run advantage in the bottom of the eighth inning.

It was the loudest crowd the 2016 Kingsway Regional High School graduate had ever pitched in front of, but a singular voice reached his ears in that moment Sunday.

A Marietta fan in the first row shouted, “We want you, no one else,” insinuating the right-hander was going to give the game away.

More: South Jersey Baseball Mean 15 Rankings for May 30

Listro wasn’t even supposed to be on the hill. He wasn’t supposed to be a Prof at all this season. He was supposed to graduate in 2020 and take a job selling medical and dental supplies, but COVID wiped out his senior year, and after the NCAA granted an additional year of eligibility, he was talked into returning for one more campaign.

As soon as Listro heard the barb, he saw the heckler and smiled.

“I nodded at him,” Listro said. “I thought, you shouldn’t have said that.”

Listro got a grounder to end the threat, then after Victor Cruz had a go-ahead RBI in the top of 10th, Listro shut the door on Marietta as the Profs brought home the Marietta Regional championship.

More: Remembering legendary Cherry Hill West baseball coach Tom Trotman

“It’s awesome, it’s been the time of my life,” said Listro, who was named Most Valuable Player of regionals after recording two saves as well as the victory in the title game. “… I don’t know if this is the most talented Rowan team I’ve played with, but it’s definitely the best team.”

Listro’s voice perked up with the comment, and he quickly detailed why.

“At the beginning of the year, we started 2-2 … alumni said we’re not as good as (previous years). We don’t have the dogs on this team,” he recalled of comments he’d heard. “I told our team right away. We knew we had something special this year.”

That starts with three seniors that decided to put off their lives for one more go around with the program – left-hander and Clearview grad Drew Ryback, second baseman and Wayne Valley alumnus Alex Kokos and Listro.

More: Baseball: South Jersey Group 3 playoff preview

Ryback was named the New Jersey Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year, picked up two wins in the NJAC Tournament and one in regionals.

Kokos broke the school’s all-time hits record (Mike Rucci, 228) during the regional final, which dates back to 2005.

Listro, in addition to the regional MVP honor, was the NJAC Fireman of the Year, which goes to the conference’s top reliever.

“They’re the most competitive people I’ve ever played with,” said D3baseball.com Honorable Mention All-American Ryan McIsaac, a 2017 Millville grad who led the team in hits (61), doubles (16), runs (45) and on-base percentage (.480) this season. “Day in and day out they put in the work, they don’t (do anything 50 percent). … I’ve never been around anyone that loves baseball more.”

More: Memorable title: Eastern baseball beats odds, tops Cherokee to win Olympic American

Ryback and Kokos knew early on they were going to come back for the extra year. Listro wasn’t sure.

He had a job lined up at Henry Schein, but both his father and the company itself, which held a position for him, told him he’d regret not playing one more season.

“They even said I have my whole life to work,” Listro said of Henry Schein. “I’m like wow, OK, everything’s telling me to go back and play. It’s the best decision I ever made.”

The extra season looked in peril for much of the school year though as Rowan canceled both fall and winter sports.

More: Sweet revenge: Triton baseball gets hint of payback, ousts Cherry Hill West from playoffs

“We did not know we were going to have a season until the third week of February,” head coach Mike Dickson said.

Then COVID hit the team four games in and shut the program down for more than a week.

“We weren’t sure if the season was going to continue,” said McIsaac, who came to Rowan after winning the NJCAA Division III World Series with Rowan College of South Jersey in 2019. “We weren’t sure of anything.”

Thankfully, the Profs were able to get back on the field, and the scare only heightened their focus. The team’s lost just two games since.

More: Baseball: South Jersey Group 4 playoff preview

“Every day we say this season can end at any point,” said Eli Atiya, a 2019 Cherry Hill West alum, former Courier Post Pitcher of the Year and Honorable Mention All-American. “We have to play every game like it’s our last game.”

That mindset shows up in every facet of the game.

The pitching staff is deep with Ryback (8-1, 3.39 ERA, 66 strikeouts), Atiya (9-1, 1.73 ERA, 66 K’s), and Donald Zellman (Lacey Township) at the top and Listro (4-0, 1.53 ERA, 7 saves) closing.

The lineup has been equally impressive with McIsaac, Kokos, Third Team All-American Ryan Murphy (Wilson High School, Pa.), Ryan Mostrangeli (Steinert) and Nick Schooley (Cherokee) among those leading the way.

More: Fear the beard: Danny Robeson has breakout year, leads Highland baseball into playoffs

“We can interchange them batting,” Atiya said. “Our No. 9 hitter can be our leadoff hitter or No. 2 hitter.”

As Dickson added, “We can beat teams multiple ways.”

It’s a big reason the Profs are so confident heading into the World Series, which starts Thursday against Wheaton (Mass.) in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

“Every game, before we get on the field, we say no one in this country can play nine (innings) with us,” Atiya said. “If we play all nine, we can’t lose.”

Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Rowan baseball overcomes adversity, reaches Division III World Series