Alec DeMartino helped put an exclamation point on a statement win for UNC Wilmington when, on March 28, the redshirt freshman blasted a solo homer in the ninth inning of a romp over then-No. 8-ranked East Carolina. 

Bryan Arendt tacked on another solo shot to cap a 9-3 win, closing out multiple-hit games for both UNCW batters. The victory ranks among the more emphatic cases made for the Colonial Athletic Association to send multiple teams to the 2023 NCAA Tournament team. 

UNCW is fast inserting itself into that mix, going 14-4 since March 4. The Seahawks have won each of their four CAA series and climbed into the nation's top 100 of the RPI. They are the fourth Colonial representatives ranked in the top 100, meaning the conference schedule is full of opportunities to build an impressive at-large resume — including with an in-state trip to square off against Elon. 

UNCW heads to Elon for a marquee matchup, fresh off the Phoenix's impressive win over second-ranked Wake Forest. Elon sits in the RPI top 20 thanks to a combination of savvy hitting and dominant pitching. 

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The Phoenix win over Wake combines with William & Mary's defeat of No. 15-ranked and future CAA counterpart Campbell and UNCW's victories against both East Carolina and Charlotte to truly plant the conference's flag on the 2023 season. 

"All I know is, everyone can compete with everyone," DeMartino said of the Colonial. "And we've seen that with Elon losing to Towson; you don't take anyone for granted. You take everyone like it's the best team in the country. This is a good conference." 

For the Seahawks, those marquee non-conference matchups are also a springboard into the thick of what promises to be a wildly competitive league race. 

"These big, midweek wins have shown us we really can compete with the best in the country, and honestly, that's what's been driving us hopefully for the rest of the season," DeMartino said. 

UNCW's signature victories have come after a rocky start in which the Seahawks opened just 4-6, including dropping three straight heading into March. DeMartino said UNCW was "trying to find out who we were as a team" early on, a byproduct of youth up and down the roster. 

But the maturation process has been quick and consistent, resulting in six of the primary Seahawks hitters sporting batting averages of .305 or better. DeMartino is part of that corps at .333, sporting eight multiple-hit outings and carrying a four-game hit streak into the Elon series. 

Jac Croom, UNCW's versatile fourth-year infielder, is hitting a team-high .369, tied for seventh-best in the Colonial and in 111 at-bats — more than all but Northeastern's Danny Crossen among the CAA's top 10 hitters. 

John Newton and Trevor Marsh join the hit parade with batting averages of .366 and .330, and both join Croom in producing OPS above 1.000 at 1.055 for Newton (a team-high) and 1.013 for Marsh. Croom's is 1.022. 

DeMartino shouted out the pitching staff's play over the past month, as well. Starters Jacob Shafer and Zane Taylor have sub-4.00 ERAs, Matt Gaither has been solid both as a starter and coming out of the bullpen. The Seahawks are putting the pieces together at a pivotal juncture, promising to intensify what should be one of the most exciting conference championship chases in the country.