First NY Team to Ever Earn the Title
SUNY Brockport claimed the NCBA World Series title with a 4-3 victory over the tournament’s top-seeded team, Grand Canyon University.
“The feeling of winning was surreal,” said Club Baseball President Hunter Byrne. “Not because we didn’t believe that we could win, but because everyone was just trying to win one game at a time to have another night together.”
After qualifying through the New England Regional Tournament in Cortland, Brockport advanced to the NCBA World Series, held May 15–19, 2026, in Alton, Illinois. Brockport entered the tournament as the fifth seed and dropped to the losers’ bracket early after a devastating 9-2 loss to Grand Canyon.
Battling through a grueling bracket to reach the finals, the team faced a defining moment in an elimination game against Penn State. Brockport trailed by one run entering the sixth inning before rallying to force extra innings.
“We were able to rally and score four runs to overcome Penn State, powered by Steven Ciancio’s two-run home run,” Byrne said. “When Ciancio hit the home run, it almost felt like it meant more to our whole team because everyone knew how much he wanted to make an impact.”
Reflecting on the team’s success, Byrne pointed to the team’s culture that extended beyond the starting lineup and offered advice for future students looking to get involved in club sports.
“Don’t give up or stop showing up to practice just because you don’t make the game squad,” Byrne said. “For a majority of the tournament, we played a lot of the same guys, but the biggest reason we were winning was the will to win from the bench.”
The championship marks the first NCBA national title in program history and the first won by a New York-based club baseball program. Brockport’s Cody Costello was named the World Series Most Valuable Player, batting .611 with a 1.404 OPS.
While winning the World Series is an impressive milestone for the University, it was a significant moment for many of the players, particularly a handful of seniors who missed graduation to play in the tournament.
“We weren’t trying to win the World Series for Brockport; as weird as it might sound, we were trying to win it for each other,” Byrne said. “This wasn’t just a team; it was a family that believed in each other and picked each other up when we were down. It truly was a storybook ending to an incredible season.”
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