UTICA, NY - Spring is right around the corner, which means it's almost time for Pioneer Baseball. The 2026 campaign will officially get underway this weekend when the Pioneers head down to Dunmore, PA, to face Penn State Scranton in a weekend series. Coming off an early Empire 8 Tournament defeat at the hands of Houghton University in 2025, the Pioneers will look to bounce back and build upon their consistent success of the last half-decade. After returning a majority of their starting lineup and pitching staff, Utica looks primed to make a deep run towards an Empire 8 Championship.

This Weekend's Series: More information about this weekend's four-game series will be released closer to the weekend. Please keep an eye on our baseball schedule tab for any streaming and statistics links. Also, be sure to check back following each day's action to view our game recap. 

Playoff Primer: The Pioneers have had a wealth of late-season success since the turn of the decade. Despite an Empire 8 Tournament Play-In loss last season, Utica has been a model of consistent success since 2020. The Pioneers reached the Empire 8 Tournament title game in 2021, 2022, and 2024. 2023 was also a major success, as even though they failed to make the championship series, the team underwent its winningest regular season since 1991. In 2025, the squad continued its winning ways, reaching the Empire 8 Tournament for the fifth straight time since the COVID-19-abbreviated 2020 season. With all this prior success, the Pioneers will look to keep it rolling, as they are returning 32 players from last year's roster to pair with 22 incoming freshmen and four transfer students.

At the Helm: Leading the Pioneers into battle for the 13th consecutive season will be head coach Joe Milazzo. Coach Milazzo has found incredible success with the Pioneers, guiding them to 184 wins and the aforementioned five playoff appearances in the last five years. Milazzo is the program's all-time winningest head coach, a feat he achieved midway through the 2025 season. Alongside Coach Milazzo will be Assistant Coaches Dan Bollana, Cory Haggerty, Rich Diliberto, and Jack Bono, along with a group of talented former players-turned-athletic assistants, including Luke Schulte, Josh Duval, and Tom Roefaro. Coach Milazzo gave some insight into what he, the coaching staff, and the players are looking forward to ahead of this season:

What's your message heading into the year?
"Our team has been working incredibly hard, and hopefully the hard work will pay off when we get onto the field."

What do you think our biggest strength is?
"Our pitching staff is the deepest it's ever been. We're going to rely heavily on a couple of young kids, and if a few of the younger kids do their job, we will achieve our goals."

What do you think we need to work on? 
"Offensively, we need to make more contact and move runners. That will be the key to our success at the plate."

What are you personally looking forward to?
"Same thing we do every year, get in the conference tournament and hopefully have some success and go on a run."

Raucous Rotation: As Coach Milazzo stated, the Utica pitching staff is the deepest it has ever been. The pitching staff will need to overcome the losses of Austin Rhodes (Wappingers Falls, NY/Kennedy Catholic), Jack Krug (Rotterdam Junction, NY/Canajoharie), and Peyton Newton (Weedsport, NY/Weedsport), who combined for over 55 innings of production. However, 30 Pioneers will look to get innings this season, and with such a big staff, here are some standouts who look to separate themselves from the rest of the conference's pitching prospects: 

Returning for his senior season is ace Kooper Knabe (Cortland, NY/Cortland). After missing most of his sophomore season, Knabe returned to ace form in 2025 and was awarded All-Empire 8 Second team honors. Knabe went 6-1 in 10 starts and 46.1 innings pitched, where he recorded 30 strikeouts. Knabe is five wins away from the all-time Pioneer record for career wins. He is also 11 strikeouts away from 100 in his career. 

Returning for another year is Swedesboro native Connor Ford (Swedesboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional), who gets to play his last year alongside his brother, incoming freshman Nate Ford (Swedesboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional High School). Connor threw 36 innings in 2025, mainly in long relief, where he recorded 25 strikeouts and got a lot of big outs for the Pioneers. 

Jordan Henkel (Melville, NY/Walt Whitman) returns for his senior season, and after an injury ended his 2025 season prematurely, the Long Island native will be a key part of the rotation for the Pioneers. Henkel threw 18 innings in 2025, where he recorded 11 strikeouts. 

Other returning arms for the Pioneers include Justin Notargiacomo (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa), Dean Ennis (Middle Island, NY/Longwood), Tim Martin (Honeoye Falls, NY/Honeoye Falls Lima), and Matthew Tusiani-Eng (Garden City, NY/Garden City). Some new faces that will see the mound in 2026 include Herkimer transfer Matthew Prestopnik (Little Falls, NY/Little Falls High School), and rookies Wyatt Beadle (Little Falls, NY/Little Falls), Henry LeHane (Rhinebeck, NY/Rhinebeck High School), Tyler Brown (Sayville, NY/Sayville High School), Brady Leichtman (Bay Shore, NY/St. John the Baptist Diocesan), Charlie Vasquez (New Hyde Park, NY/New Hyde Park Memorial High School), among many others.

Leading the Lineup: The Pioneers experienced quite a bit of lineup turnover heading into last season. However, those new bats adapted well to playing in starring roles, and look to continue their success this season as the orange and blue bring a bit more consistency to the program as opposed to prior years. The trio of Kody Czternastek (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro), Ty Montrose (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro), and Mike Rockwell (Liverpool, NY/Cicero) will look to continue to churn the engines of the Pioneer offense. 

Czternastek saw a massive transition last season, going from an Empire 8 All-Conference pitching talent in 2024, to the Pioneers' leader in batting average during the 2025 season. The all-around star looks to keep it rolling in his senior season, hoping to once again rank at or near the top of many Empire 8 statistical categories. The Whitesboro native hit a blistering .371 with a .976 on-base plus slugging (OPS) in 30 games played. He tallied 33 hits and 21 runs batted in for the Pioneers, and was a solid defender up the middle, posting a .939 fielding percentage. 

Alongside Czternastek, rookie Ty Montrose (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) burst onto the scene as a two-way player in 2025, playing in 34 of the team's 35 games, batting .330 with a .906 OPS alongside 17 strikeouts in 13.2 innings pitched with two victories on the mound. Montrose also won three Empire 8 Rookie of the Week awards last year, and will be a key part of the starting lineup for the Pioneers in his second season, all while bringing some power and explosiveness to a fundamentally-focused Pioneer offense. 

Finally, after transferring from Division I side LeMoyne, Mike Rockwell (Liverpool, NY/Cicero) was just as advertised in 2025. The Liverpool native batted .313 with a .881 OPS in 31 games played, and was a ballhawk in right field, posting a .915 fielding percentage with two assists from the corner outfield. 

The Pioneers' trio of .300+ hitters will want to repeat their success in 2026, as they will all be vital to the success of Utica's offense.

Backstop Breakouts: Behind the plate for the Pioneers will once again be the duo of Jacob Scalise (Utica, NY/Whitesboro) and Micah Fiorello (Brooktondale, NY/Ithaca). 

Scalise, the 2024 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year, will return for Utica after batting .267 with 27 hits in 27 games played in 2025. On the defensive side of the ball, the Whitesboro native threw out 10 baserunners. The Pioneers' main backstop will look to improve on both sides of the ball, and looks to provide consistency and clutch hitting towards the top of the lineup. 

Fiorello will also return as the primary running mate with Scalise, as the Brooktondale native hit .267 with 12 hits in 13 games played during his junior campaign.

The Pioneers will have plenty of support at the catcher position beyond those top two players, as joining Scalise and Fiorello will be Jackson Peacock (Cinnaminson, NJ/Cinnaminson High School), Ethan Johnson (Cortland, NY/Cortland), Alex Renner (Schuylerville, NY/Schuylerville High School), and Logan Clarey (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford). The underclassmen quartet will back up Scalise and Fiorello and will look to come up big when called upon.

Diamond Dawgs: The consistency around the horn for the Pioneers will be a major asset this season, as the team will trot out a very similar starting infield to the 2025 campaign. Alongside Czternastek returning at shortstop, Lance Berger (Lindenhurst, NY/Saint Anthony's) will man second base for his senior season, pairing up with Czternastek for the second straight year as both players will look to continue playing solid defense up the middle. Berger has been a model of consistent success for Utica, as after appearing in 14 games in his freshman 2023 campaign, Berger broke out in 2024 and was awarded an All-Empire 8 Second Team Selection. In 2025, the Lindenhurst native batted .270 and recorded 24 hits in 29 games played, while playing stout defense with a .966 fielding percentage. Berger will also bolster the leadership of the program, as one of the spectacular senior leaders for a Pioneer team with a bustling array of prospects. 

Returning to third base for the Pioneers will be Michael Flint (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy), as the 2025 All-Empire 8 Third Team selection will look to improve upon his impressive freshman campaign. In 2025, Flint batted .283 with 17 hits in 24 games played, alongside throwing 12 innings with five strikeouts on the mound.

Alongside Flint, Brendan Berry (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) will see game action at third base. The Cranford, NJ native recorded a hit and a .333 on-base percentage in the 3 games he played in 2025. 

At first base, the Pioneers will be looking for stability from the rotation of Montrose, St. Thomas Aquinas College transfer Matthew Paolucci (Toronto, Ontario/Silverthorn Collegiate Institute), Joshua Gross (Port St. Lucie, FL/Proctor), Eric Corey (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa), Angelo Podagrossi, and John Sibiski (Jefferson Valley, NY/Lakeland). Should the team find someone who is able to step up in the starting first baseman role, the Pioneer infield will be a massive source of strength for the team, hopefully seeing the same orientation for a majority of the 2026 run. 

Pasture Playmakers: Contrary to the infield, the outfield for the Pioneers in 2026 will look different from 2025. After graduating many solidified starters such as Justin Mazovec (Lake Grove, NY/Centereach), Max Gambitta (Cortland, NY/Cortland), and Josh Duval, a contingent of new faces will look to step up into a starting role. Returning to the outfield is the aforementioned Rockwell. He will man right field for the second straight season and will want to continue the success he found in 2025. 

Moving from the infield to the outfield this year is Tanner Warren (Mohawk, NY/Central Valley Academy). After playing third base for the majority of 2025, Warren will look to use his record-breaking speed to be a ballhawk in some now-open outfield spots. The Mohawk native batted .296 with 16 hits in 16 games played last season. The junior prospect currently holds indoor track and field records in three short-distance events, and will look to use his speed on the basepaths to wreak havoc for opposing teams. 

The last outfield spot is up for grabs, as players such as Jake Ogata (Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt), Eric Schulteisz (North Babylon, NY/North Babylon), Eastern Connecticut transfer Spencer Freer (Wallkill, NY/Wallkill Senior High School), Bryant Pereira (Woodbridge, NJ/Woodbridge), Trent Marinelli (Norwich, NY/Unadilla Valley), and more attempt to make an immediate impact in the role.

Outstanding Additions: The Pioneers will have 26 total new players this season. With plenty of new faces comes an array of new opportunities for Utica. The incoming class of athletes will attempt to break into an experienced and familiar group of returners. A large group of incoming pitchers will help bolster an exciting rotation which brings back tons of star power, while the incoming batsmen aim to provide sparks off the bench. Here are a couple of young players to watch heading into the 2026 campaign.

Tyler Brown (Sayville, NY/Sayville High School) will look to contribute on both sides of the ball for the Pioneers, as the Long Island Class A Champion and Section XI Tournament MVP will try to continue his tremendous success. 

Henry LeHane (Rhinebeck, NY/Rhinebeck High School), the hard-throwing righty, will look to eat innings this year, as the Rhinebeck High School multisport athlete will make his name known. 

Logan Clarey (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) will begin his first year with Utica baseball, as the dual-sport Pioneer joins the squad after playing tight end for the Utica football team this fall. 

Other notable freshmen include Anthony Cerretto (Chili, NY/Churchville-Chili High School), Charlie Vasquez (New Hyde Park, NY/New Hyde Park Memorial High School), Garrett Greaney (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood), Brady Leichtman (Bay Shore, NY/St. John the Baptist Diocesan), Luke Barrett (Mansfield, NJ/Warren Hills Regional), and Ryan Smith (Wappingers Falls, NY/Beacon High School).

First up - Penn State Scranton: The Pioneers will head down to Dunmore, PA, for a weekend series against Penn State Scranton. Utica begins its season with a doubleheader Saturday, February 28th, with the first pitch scheduled for 1:00 pm, with game two to follow right after (approximately 3:00 pm). Both games on Saturday will be seven innings. The Pioneers will then come back the next day, Sunday, March 1st, for yet another doubleheader, this time beginning at 12:00 PM. That two-game set will also be seven innings. The Pioneers will be ready to go, looking to complete 28 innings before heading down to Florida for their annual spring training games. 

Scouting Penn State Scranton: Penn State Scranton comes into the 2026 campaign after a solid 2025 season. The Lions went 17-21 and went 9-11 in conference play in 2025. Leading the way offensively for the Lions is Alex Brinkman. Brinkman led the team in batting average, RBIs, home runs, and stolen bases. He batted .356 with 22 RBIs, three home runs, and 12 stolen bases. On the mound for the Lions, they are led by Loannis Stout. In 37.1 innings pitched, he recorded 18 strikeouts and averaged 4.34 strikeouts per game.

Following the Penn State Scranton Series: the Pioneers will travel down to Florida for the annual RussMatt Invitational. Utica will play seven games down south over spring break, with the first game being scheduled for Saturday, March 7th, at 10:15 am against Concordia College of Minnesota. To see who else the Pioneers will face down in Florida, and the rest of the 2026 campaign, view the team schedule HERE.

Tune in this weekend as the Pioneers open up their 2026 campaign!