DePaul University’s club baseball team is heading into uncharted territory: its first playoff appearance since the club was revived just a few years ago.
The team, which competes in the Division III bracket of the National Club Baseball Association (NCBA), traveled to Wisconsin this Friday to face off against No. 1 seed Winona State in hopes of clinching a spot at regionals — and eventually, the NCBA World Series in Pennsylvania.
“At the beginning of the year, we didn’t expect this,” said Luke Sullivan, club baseball team president.
Oliver King, the club’s vice president, agreed. “At the beginning of the year, the goal was just to keep improving. But things clicked, and now here we are.”
The club team ended the regular season with an 8-7 record, making them the #4 seeded team in the District IV playoff bracket.
The club’s journey hasn’t been easy. Sullivan, a supply chain management major, recalls that when he first joined, the program barely existed.
“My freshman year, they were trying to start it up, but it didn’t really manifest,” Sullivan said. “We had maybe three practices that whole year.”
The following year, around 10 players showed up and decided to make it work. That small but dedicated group laid the foundation for what is now a 17-player roster competing at a national level.
A lifelong baseball player with past college offers, King said he “was really disappointed coming to college not playing baseball.”
“When I found them at the club fair, it was the best thing ever. I became best friends with most of the guys on the team, and we’ve been progressively getting better,” King said.
The team is composed of DePaul students of all standings and different baseball knowledge and skills.
Alejandro Campos, freshman and starting pitcher, recalled that after playing competitive baseball, DePaul’s team and environment was “just perfect. Everyone loves the game and plays hard, but it’s also not that serious… you’re not going to get scolded by a coach. It’s a great feeling to play my favorite sport with a bunch of people who also want to do the same.”
One of the biggest challenges the team faces is finding places to play. DePaul doesn’t have a dedicated baseball facility nor an NCAA team, and most large fields in Chicago are owned by the Chicago Park District and prioritized for high school use.
While the team uses Cacciatore Stadium to practice, it’s a softball field so the team cannot play there.
“Realistically, we’ll never be able to play games there because of the dorms nearby and space issues,” Sullivan said.
Instead, the team travels to Loyola Academy in Glenview, about a 30-minute drive, for home games. They also play against nearby schools like Loyola, NIU, Bradley, Augustana and Drake University, all within their NCBA division.
With no official coach, the club is entirely student-led. Sullivan and King take on de facto managerial roles and Sullivan takes over coaching duties such as lineups. The rest of the team “basically coach ourselves,” King said.
“Everyone contributes. At practice, someone will say, ‘Hey, let’s work on this,’ and we just go with it,” King said.
Budget constraints also shape the team’s operations. DePaul allocates about $5,000 annually to the club, which must cover field rentals, umpires, equipment and travel. Each player also pays approximately $150 in dues.
“We’re trying to do fundraising now,” Sullivan said. “We want to open a team store so people can buy gear, and we’ll get a small commission.”
Despite limited resources, the team has built a tight-knit culture that welcomes all skill levels. Tryouts are held at the start of each academic year, and previous baseball experience isn’t required.
“Some of our guys didn’t even play in high school,” Sullivan said. “But if you show up and put in the work, you’re welcome.”
“It would be great to have a big group to try out in the fall, it doesn’t matter if you are a boy or a girl,” said King, who pitches for the team. “I came up in a really stressful baseball environment and I was stressed the whole time. I came here and I’m having the time of my life playing baseball.”
Their growing online presence helps rally support. The team’s Instagram account (@officialdepaulbaseball) keeps fans updated, and a GameChanger account streams games live so families from out of state can tune in.
This weekend’s playoff games fall during midterms, meaning the team will be missing some key players. Still, morale is high.
“If our pitchers perform well, we’ve got a shot,” King said. “This is already a win for us — now it’s just about having fun and seeing how far we can go.”
The Blue Demons lost to the Warriors 10-0 and will face Drake on Saturday in an elimination game at the Woodside Sports Complex in Mauston, Wisconsin.
Looking ahead, Campos believes a championship run could be within reach for next year.
“We made it to the playoffs this year,” he said. “I think next year we’ll be competitors for maybe a championship.”
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