by: Greg Diener

Last season while Matt Marotta had an injury that made him miss his entire junior season, the St. Thomas Aquinas Spartans made it to the 2011 ECC Baseball Championship without his contributions. In 2012, Marotta, now a senior, has returned from his injury and has been huge part of the Spartan’s unprecedented success this season. On the mound, Marotta has a 7-1 record with a pair of saves and a 1.72 earned run average in 12 games pitched. He has also helped the Spartans with the bat, hitting close to .300 with 10 RBIs on the season.

Early in the season in his second start coming back from injury, Marotta pitched a six inning no-hitter against Adelphi. Although he was made aware of the no-hitter during the game, it wasn’t the main focus on his mind. “We were trying to get a win because we had dropped the first game of a doubleheader.” Marotta was ecstatic though after performing a feat few have been able to accomplish. “It was great. You always dream about doing that and it feels good.”

Another moment that Marotta treasured this season was beating the No. 1 ranked team in NCAA Division-II at the time, Southern New Hampshire, on March 18. Marotta thought that was a huge confidence boost to the team saying, “I feel that we played our best team baseball that day.” He helped contribute to the “team baseball” throwing eight innings with seven strikeouts while only allowing three hits in the Spartans 4-3 victory over the Penmen that afternoon.

Entering this season, Marotta wanted to make sure he started the season off right after coming back from his injury. “It was big for me to get going early because of how our team started the year (going 10-1 after an 0-3 start).” He feels the strong start for the team in the early stretch was a huge boost for the team. “We were very happy with our start in the conference. We let a couple of games slip away but we control our own destiny right now.”

Since the hot start, the Spartans have maintained their strong play which Marotta feels is going to be a big advantage for the team going into the ECC tournament. “Right now we’re playing well, but I think our best baseball is still ahead of us.” Marotta cites fellow Spartans Frank Salerno, Nicholas Barbalato and George Wargo as big reasons for the team success, while also praising the lineup from the top of the order to the bottom. He went on to cite his battery mate at catcher Wargo as “someone who knows exactly what he’s doing and is great leader.”

The Spartans currently are locked in a race with Dowling and C.W. Post for the top seed in the tournament and Marotta believes having the No. 1 seed would be big for the team. “At the beginning of the season, you set a goal to be the number one team in the conference and if we can do it that will be great.”  

As a graduating senior, Marotta wants to leave the underclassmen an ECC championship thinking it could be the start of something special. “I definitely want to get them an ECC championship. I would really like them to start a legacy here at STAC.” As for what’s in store at the end of his collegiate career, Marotta says he wants to stay with the game in some capacity after he graduates this month, possibly in a coaching role down the road.

Marotta has returned from his injury of a year ago to become one of the top pitchers in the ECC, ranking in the conference’s top-five in wins, strikeouts, and ERA. A big reason why the Spartans are ranked in the NCAA East Region’s top-five for Division II, Marotta hopes he can end the season on a high note trying to get the Spartans a conference title and a potential spot in the NCAA Division II College World Series.