With some updates, the following passage was authored by Jerry Milani, UMBC Assistant Sports Information Director in May of 1992. I even kept in the indents (SL)

The date was May 18, 1992. The time was 3:00. The place was the Retriever Club Room of the UMBC Fieldhouse (now where the upper reaches of the Michael Knapp Foundational Fitness Center is in use at the Retriever Activities Center.) The Club Room set was tuned to ESPN for the end of World Body Building Championships. UMBC Head Baseball Coach John Jancuska, flanked by several other coaches and administrators, sad idly by while, little by little, more coaches and administrators filed in. Soon there was a crowd of twenty-five or so huddled around the 19' screen, hoping that their prayers would be answered.

The bodybuilders finished their business, and Tim Brando and Lary Sorensen began revealing what the group in the club room and everyone else involved with college baseball had been waiting for – the 1992 NCAA Baseball Tournament selections.

The Retrievers had stormed through the regular season, winning 34 of 43 contests, but fell victim to two slim one-run defeats in the East Coast Conference Championship, thereby failing to snatch the automatic berth in the tournament they so coveted and felt they so richly deserved. The chances of getting an at-large berth seemed slim at best. For the two weeks since the debacle in West Windsor, UMBC faithful waited and hoped and prayed.

The Atlantic Region was read first "#1 Florida vs. #6 Rider."

"There is our spot," several onlookers thought out loud. "That should have been us."

Next was the East Region, in Coral Gables, Florida, home of the top-ranked Miami Hurricanes. "#1 Miami flashed in the bracket, followed by footage of All-American catcher Charles Johnson belting a pitch somewhere into the Miami skyline and pitcher Jeff Alkire blowing a fastball by a clearly overmatched batter. And then it happened.

Brando began, "And the team with the unenviable task of…"

On the screen appeared what the Retrievers had been dreaming about.

"# 6 Md-Balt. Co."  It sounds cliché, but, it IS hard to believe that 30 years have passed since that emotional spring for Retriever baseball. And not just baseball, the feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment permeated through the athletics department and the university. UMBC had spent four years as a Division I nomad, a.k.a., playing as an independent school, with little hope of reaching an NCAA Tournament and only scant opportunities for any post-season play or accolades.

UMBC joined the East Coast Conference in the fall of 1990 and the sighs of relief from Retriever Nation (okay, that was about 20 years before we referred to ourselves as Retriever Nation) were audible from the outermost points of "The Loop." But, weeks after UMBC joined the league, along with Central Connecticut State and LIU-Brooklyn, mainstays and premier travel partners Delaware and Drexel announced their departures and the league began its two-year "life support" status.

But that automatic bid did exist in 1992 and the baseball team was stacked, especially on offense. They took 2-of-3 from Old Dominion early in the season and also posted non-conference wins over Richmond, Maryland, Mason, and VCU. The Retrievers breezed through the winner's bracket of the ECC Tournament, scoring 25 runs in three victories. Host Rider emerged from the loser's bracket, but the UMBC bats were ablaze and they had amassed 27 runs in taking two-of-three from the Broncs in league play. Plus, the Rider pitching staff had to be gassed.

But Rider defeated UMBC, 2-1, to set up a winner-take-all final game. Again, the bats stayed relatively quiet and the Retrievers made some uncharacteristic errors in a heart-wrenching 5-4 defeat.

The season was over. The dream was dead. ***

I'm not sure if the Hurricane fans had any respect for UMBC coming in, but UM Head Coach Ron Fraser certainly did. He announced that his ace, southpaw All-American Jeff Alkire, would face the Retrievers on the evening of May 22.

Mark Light Stadium was packed on a warm night in Coral Gables. UMBC's lead-off hitter, Greg Elliott drilled one of Alkire's first deliveries well over the center fielder's head for an easy double. Before the 'Cane crowd could process that blow, first baseman Shawn Shugars lined a ball inside the bag at third, scoring Elliott and bringing shrieks of delight from the small band of Retriever fans.

Alkire would only allow two singles the rest of the way.

Senior right-hander Craig Grasser got the nod for UMBC. His last start in the black and gold was his best. He held the 1-0 lead through three innings before a botched pick-off play in the fourth led to a pair of UM runs. Future Orioles' catcher Charles Johnson, who had gone down swinging twice versus Grasser, managed an RBI single in the seventh to give the Canes a 3-1 lead.

Grasser went all eight innings and fanned a career-high 10 batters. UMBC brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth, but dropped a tough 3-1 decision to the nation's top-ranked team. 

It seemed like the Retrievers were back on the field only a few hours later, taking on Delaware on Saturday morning. Bob Mumma homered with a man aboard to give the Retrievers a first inning 2-0 lead, but the weary Retrievers made three errors, leading to four Delaware runs in the bottom of the inning. UMBC would battle back to take a 5-4 lead in the fourth, but another error allowed the Blue Hens to knot the score at 5-5 in the sixth.
In making connections with Coach Jancuska, Jerry Milani and players Greg Elliott, Craig Grasser, Brian Loewe, Kevin Loewe and Dan Sexton, it was pretty amazing how they shared many of the same vivid memories from that season.

Head Coach John Jancuska, Head Baseball Coach, 1978-2011

"Most of the key players came in the 1990 recruiting class. (The) 1991 team was 29-21 and was a great hitting team. But (they) walked 200 batters in 50 games. Almost the entire team returned in 1992. I knew we would be even better as a hitting team."

"But the walks had to be reduced. In the fall, I told the pitchers that in our intra-squad games they had to add an additional seven foul poles (pitchers' conditioning) for every walk they allowed.  I wanted to prove to them that if we didn't walk four batters per game like we did in 1991, the 1992 team would have a chance to be special.  We cut our walks in half during the 1992 season to 100 (two per game) and combined with our great hitting, we won 37 games and went to the NCAA tournament."

"(The) biggest letdown turned into the greatest blessing. Losing to Rider in the ECC Tournament and losing out on the automatic bid put UMBC's NCAA Tournament bid-chances in the hands of the national selection committee.  When ESPN announced that the number one team in the country (Miami) would host UMBC in the Coral Gables Regional, it let the NCAA Division I baseball world know that we were being recognized as one of the top 48 teams in the country."

"The game versus Miami was special as it was the featured game with the stands full of Miami fans. They were very loud, but silenced when we led off with back-to-back doubles to take the early lead. Craig Grasser was amazing and even though we lost, 3-1, the Miami fans knew we were the real deal."

"(The) 1992 team had Bob Mumma, John Burns, Greg Elliott, Shawn Shugars and Kevin Loewe - all future UMBC Athletics Hall of Fame Inductees. (Elliott, Mumma, Shugars, Loewe, Jay Witasick, Bryan Raino and Greg Deares all went on to play professional baseball.)

"A big shout out to Jerry Milani for keeping the NCAA selection committee updated weekly on the progress of UMBC Baseball. I can't remember but we beat so many teams that year that went to the tournament."

Jerry Milani, Assistant Sports Information Director, Baseball Contact, 1991-95

"The first thing I remember is turning to you (Steve Levy) in the Miami press box after we took a 1-0 lead and the place went dead silent ;)."

"Aside from the Miami press box (and doing 3-inning Retriever Sports Hotline updates*), I remember the enthusiasm and confidence of (the late) Coach (Dave) Warner (an underrated part of that team's success, the yin to Janc's yang...) and the steadying influence of Coach Jancuska no matter what was going on around him. I recall a trip to Brooklyn that wasn't going well, maybe a DH sweep, but him not wavering." 
 
"I seem to recall a late-inning win over George Washington (6-4), on the road, and of course the Retriever Club Room scene."
 
"One more thing... I'm pretty sure it was that Retriever Sports Hotline* recording announcing the selection that the whole row of offices, championed by Pete Caringi, played on a loop that day ;) "THANKS FOR CALLING...!"
 
Editor's note: The Retriever Sports Hotline was umbcretrievers.com in the pre-internet days. We would update it with every result as soon as possible after the game. The number was 410-455-1121. For the Miami game, Jerry updated every three innings.
 
Greg Elliott, outfielder, 1991-93
 
"I would say the best moment was hearing on the TV we got the at-large bid.  Some of the trip details are fading from my memory.  I remember Craig (Grasser) pitched a great game versus Miami. In that game, John (Burns) lined out to right field with bases loaded.  The right fielder made a diving play and saved three runs.

"The Delaware game was rough as I remember it."
 
Craig Grasser, pitcher, 1990-92
 
"'92 was a fun year! This team had good defense, very good hitters, good pitching and most of all, team chemistry.  It was fun to come to the park with the group of guys we had."

"About the NCAA Tournament, I remember watching the selections show with my mom and when I saw Miami as the number 1 seed, I said to her. 'if we are going to be in the tournament, this is who we will be playing.'  Then they revealed UMBC (and) I was excited to see how we would stack up with the big boys!"
 
Brian Loewe, IF/OF, 1990-93
 
"As for my thoughts and memories from the 1992 season, I remember watching the NCAA Selection Show as a team and our excitement as the announcer said something like "and with the unenviable task of traveling to Coral Cables, Fla. to take on the #1 seeded Miami Hurricanes…the UMBC Retrievers".  That quote may not accurate, since that was 30 years ago!" (Editor's Note: Spot on, Brian!)
 
"We were very fortunate to be selected as an at-large bid after finishing our season 37-13 and not winning our conference tournament championship.  We had a great season as a TEAM both offensively and defensively. Our pitching staff was made up of grinders, as witnessed by Craig Grasser's performance versus Miami that night on the turf in Coral Gables.  Trevor Buckley and Kevin Loewe battled against Delaware the next day after we almost upset Miami that night."
 
"I remember the entire stadium going quiet as our offense jumped out to an early lead and our dugout was fired up and loud!  What a great experience to play the game we all loved on a national level stage that weekend.  We represented our university and our baseball program as some very talented players and great guys."
 
"We caught lightning in a bottle during the spring of '92 and enjoyed the great moments we were fortunate enough to experience together as a TEAM."
 
"More importantly, during that 1992 UMBC baseball season, we developed some great chemistry between our coaches and teammates on and off the field.  The brotherhood and friendships still remain strong 30 years later."
 
Kevin Loewe, pitcher, 1991-95
 
"This was a veteran-laden team that could hit and hit well.  It gave our revamped pitching staff confidence to attack hitters. This combination gave our team an internal swagger that we knew we could play with anyone in the country, even being UMBC from the ECC."
.
"We proved this at the NCAA Regional in both games.  In the end, the outcome was obviously not what we wanted, but we fought against the No. 1 team in the nation in Miami and also a formidable local team in Delaware.  This team was a close-knit group that had great team chemistry and a great locker room full of talent – (a) special group of guys."
 
"Overall, a truly special season capped off with the Coral Gables Regional.  I will always thankful to be a part of this team and for these guys that showed me the ropes of how to compete as a winner.  Coach Jancuska truly got us to buy into believing in the team and allowing ourselves to be great."  
 
"Being a younger guy on this team, this truly was a building block for me personally- for success for the rest of my collegiate and minor league career.  Being selected in the MLB draft at the end of my collegiate career in '95 is directly attributed to this team and these guys.  I will always be indebted to this '92 team, they set the bar for me as the example of how to play the game the right way and how to compete at the highest level." 
 
  
Dan Sexton, second base, 1989-92
 
"We ran off a nice win streak, something like 12 out of 14 games which really boosted our confidence."
 
"We beat VCU on the road, while they were ranked in the top 25, I believe.  This made us realize we could be competitive with anybody in the country."
 
"Our 30th win of the season at home against Florida Atlantic. I remember Julio Aristy's younger brother was on the team.  Julio was a senior my freshman year.  We came back in the bottom of the ninth from something like four runs down (and won 10-9).
 
"We got beat by Rider to lose the conference championship (not a highlight but I think it made the 30th win that more important for selection)."
 
"I was not in the Conference Room for the ESPN Selection Show (not even sure I knew anybody was there).  I was up in the Hillside Apartments with a group of teammates, and I distinctly remember the announcer saying something like: "And the dubious honor of playing the number one team in the country, University of Miami, goes to the University of Maryland Balti..........................." and I couldn't hear anything else after that.  We were all screaming at the top of our lungs that we made it, and Andy Coleman ran outside and jumped on a bike (I don't even think he knew whose it was) and rode around the residential and academic area yelling to everybody that we were going to the NCAA Tournament."
 
"From the tournament itself, I just remember how hot (and a little embarrassed) we were, because we did not have practice uniforms back in those days and had to wear our gray UMBC Baseball t-shirts and black UMBC Baseball Sweatpants to practice in the 90-degree, 85-percent humidity weather."  
 
"Going over the ground rules and me handing our line-up card to Ron Fraser, who even then was already considered a college baseball icon."
 
"Grasser pitching the game of his life shutting out the number one team in the country for six or seven innings."  
 
***
 
Due to the UMBC Stadium Complex construction project, it was not possible to recognize the 1992 team on its 30th anniversary this spring. But, an on-field celebration will be held in the spring of 2023. After reading the player accounts and trying my best to recall the details of that team and season, I would have to concur that the 1992 Retriever baseball team has not gotten the respect and credit that it earned. They were the first team that put UMBC on a national stage and were certainly respected by their much higher-profile opponents that spring.
 
Unfortunately (for Retriever baseball), UMBC moved to the Big South Conference the following spring and programs like Coastal Carolinas and Winthrop possessed so many advantages over the Dawgs. Of course, there have been several years of diamond glory this century on Hilltop Circle, but Coach Jancuska and the 92'ers set the bar at a tremendous height 30 years ago.
 
Steve Levy, '85 (editing assistance by Jerry MIlani)