By John Connolly, Boston Herald

Soon, longtime Mass. Maritime coach Bob Corradi will place the finishing touches on a remarkable 43-year stint with the Buccaneers. But the only baseball coach MMA has ever known isn't quite ready to hang up his cap and uniform just yet.

First, the Buccaneers have some unfinished work in the upcoming ECAC Division 3 baseball tournament that gets underway this weekend. The third-seeded Buccaneers (17-12) travel to No. 2 seed Salve Regina (24-16) for an 11 a.m. game Saturday. The winner of today's quarterfinal between No. 5 WPI (21-15) and No. 4 Western New England (15-15) will face top-seed Framingham State (26-18) at 2:30 p.m. in the other semifinal, also on Saturday. The semifinal winners will meet Sunday at noon for the title.

Mass. Maritime is seeking its first ECAC crown since 1982, and being on the road hasn't hindered the Buccaneers, who are a solid 10-5 in non-home games.

"We had a really great (regular) season. It was nice for our seniors. We had a nice mix of veterans and what I like to call are our 'puppies' or rookies,'' said Corradi, who also serves as athletic director (26 years) at the Buzzards Bay college. The Buccaneers finished the MASCAC campaign with a 10-4 record.

Key performers include freshmen Logan Sullo of Acushnet and Bishop Stang High School, named MASCAC Player and Rookie of the Year after hitting a team-best .471 with eight doubles, two homers and 18 RBI, and Connor Kennedy of West Barnstable and Pope John II High, who chipped in with a .318 batting average and 11 RBI.

"The last two years we struggled from the left side because we were predominantly a right-side lineup, and that hurts the strike zone. We needed to make adjustments, and Connor and Logan have really helped us because they are both lefty swingers,'' Corradi said.

Junior pitchers Kevin Kwedor (6-3, 3.69 ERA) of Marshfield, and Kyle Kennedy (3-1, 1.80) have been mainstays. Junior Alex Rozak of Plymouth and sophomore Dan Avery of Milton have added support, while senior Zac Cooney of East Bridegwater tied the league lead in saves (six) with 49 strikeouts.

With the playoffs in high gear, Corradi, who spent 38 years as a football assistant to MMA coaches Don Ruggeri, Joe Domingos and Jeremy Cameron, has happily avoided retirement talk.

"I'll be honest. I've tried to ignore it,'' said Corradi, 71, a Bourne native and current Sandwich resident whose been at the helm for 579 victories.

"I never thought this day would come. I enjoy coming to work every day, and it's been a privilege to be athletic director and baseball coach. I love the practices as much as the games. Hopefully, after Sunday, if we win the championship, I'll reflect on it.

"But I haven't thought a lot about it. I'm an emotional guy, and I haven't shed any tears. My job is to get our team ready to play until the last out of the last inning of the last game. It sounds corny, but really, that's the truth."