HOOKSETT — Kevin Spatkowski says he saw the day coming when the Southern New Hampshire University baseball team would be good enough to go to the NCAA Division II World Series.

He just never imagined it would be when he was still playing.

Same goes for Brad Monroe.

Spatkowski and Monroe were part of SNHU coach Scott Loiseau's first recruiting class four years ago. The team was 7-32 the year before they came, 14-26-1 their freshman season.

That's what makes this season's run to the World Series — a trip the Penmen won by beating Le Moyne, 4-3, Sunday in the final game of the East Regional — so special.

“We went from underdogs to wonderdogs,” said Monroe, a senior pitcher from Hampton (Winnacunnet High).

“I didn't think this would happen until after I left,” admitted Spatkowski, a senior catcher who was named tournament MVP after going 2-for-3 and forcing in the winning run with a bases-loaded walk in the sixth inning. “I was just hoping to make a mark.”

Spatkowski, Monroe and AJ Dusablon are the three seniors left from Loiseau's first recruiting class. They helped build the foundation of a program that has risen to regional and national prominence.

“This is the first group that is all mine,” Loiseau said. “I was excited and nervous before the season because I was going to find out if I brought the right guys in.”

He did.

Loiseau said it was the leadership and work ethic of his seniors that has set the tone.

“It's less about the results on the field and more about their leadership,” Loiseau said. “I think that sometimes means more.”

Not that Spatkowski or Monroe didn't play critical roles on the field. Spatkowski led the team in average (.319) and runs scored (46), while Monroe went 8-3 with a 2.41 earned run average.

Monroe said he couldn't sleep Saturday night thinking about Sunday's winner-take-all final at Penmen Field against Le Moyne. He was the next man out of the pen if the game went any longer.

As it turned out, he wasn't needed. Instead, he joined the pig pile near the pitcher's mound as the Penmen celebrated their milestone accomplishment. It was a celebration neither thought they'd ever be part of.

“I'm so happy for those guys,” Loiseau said.