DAYTON – In a season plagued with restrictions and COVID-19 pauses, the University of Dayton baseball team managed to embark on a thrilling postseason run down the stretch, playing its best baseball when it mattered, in the Atlantic 10 Championship.
 
The Flyers started their season with a trip south to Columbia, S.C. to visit perennial powerhouse South Carolina. Following that series, the Flyers would go on to take one of three games from Campbell University in N.C. Throughout the non-conference slate, the Flyers would take at least one win in each series, excluding the North Dakota State series, while taking three out of four from MAC giant Kent State.
 
Beginning Atlantic 10 play on Apr. 9, the Flyers would be victorious in eight of the first 12 conference tilts, including a sweep of Richmond (May 7-9) and taking three of four from George Mason (Apr. 16-18). After having eight conference games canceled due to COVID-19, the Flyers would play just one more four-game series to close the season, with a berth to the Atlantic 10 Championship on the line. The Colonials of George Washington were no match for the Flyers in this series, as Dayton would sweep the four-game series and earn a spot in the A-10 Championship.
 
After falling to Rhode Island in the opening round of the tournament, the Flyers would rally to win two straight games, qualifying for the Atlantic 10 Championship final for the second straight season. On a rainy Saturday night in Richmond, Va., Dayton would come up just short in the first game of the championship series, surrendering the title to VCU 7-6.
 
The Dayton offense was paced for much of the season by third baseman Riley Tirotta. Tirotta led the Flyers in almost every major offensive category, including runs (53), home runs (16), total bases (126), and slugging percentage (.696). His monster season allowed him to be chosen by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 12^th round of the Major League Baseball Draft in July.
 
Mariano Ricciardi was a spark plug for the Dayton offense for most of the season from the lead-off spot, garnering a team-leading .352 batting average for the season. He also led the team in walks (39), and on-base percentage (.469). On July 13, Ricciardi was selected in the 18^th round of the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft by the Oakland Athletics.
 
Hunter Wolfe was a dominating force for the Flyers on the mound throughout the 2021 season. Wolfe pitched almost 20 more innings (74.2) than anyone else on the staff in his 13 starts, and he led the team with 90 strikeouts on the year. Opponents hit just .245 off Wolfe this season, and his two complete games also led the team.