Commonwealth Conference Baseball Championship Tournament
[3] Elizabethtown (19-20, 9-9 CC) vs. [2] Lebanon Valley (24-16, 10-8 CC)
Thursday, May 3 at 7:30 p.m. – Owls Field at Ted Palka Park - Reading, Pa.
Live Stats:
AlbrightAthletics.com
Regular-Season Meetings: Lebanon Valley 9, Elizabethtown 0 (
Recap); Lebanon Valley 10, Elizabethtown 1 (
Recap); Lebanon Valley 10, Elizabethtown 0 (
Recap)
Admission
|
Adults |
Seniors |
Students |
| Day 1 |
$6 |
$5 |
$3 |
| Day 2 |
$6 |
$5 |
$3 |
| Day 3 |
$6 |
$5 |
$3 |
| All-Sessions |
$10 |
$8 |
$5 |
| Children Under 6 are FREE |
Driving directions can be found on
here.
During The Regular Season
LVC brought a perfect storm of sharp pitching and ruthless hitting into its three regular-season games with Elizabethtown.
Caleb Fick pitched a four-hit, complete game shutout in the opener;
Derek Brousseau and
Corey Cinicola each pitched complete games in a Saturday doubleheader to complete the sweep. Led by
Jordan Witmer's .583 (7 for 12) batting, he Dutchmen hit a collective .412 (40 for 97) in the series. Witmer scored seven runs, drove in seven RBIs, and hit a homerun and a triple in the series.
The Playoffs
Four teams play in a double-elimination tournament for a single automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Championship tournament. Seeding for this season's postseason is set as follows: #1 Alvernia (28-10-1, 16-2); #2 Lebanon Valley (24-16, 10-8); #3 Elizabethtown (19-20, 9-9); #4 Messiah (16-23, 9-9).
Schedule
| Thursday, May 3 |
| #4 Messiah vs. #1 Alvernia |
4:00 p.m. |
Game #1 |
| #3 Elizabethtown vs. #2 Lebanon Valley |
7:30 p.m. |
Game #2 |
|
| Friday, May 4 |
| Loser Game #1 vs. Loser Game #2 |
11:00 a.m. |
Game #3 |
| Winner Game #1 vs. Winner Game #2 |
3:00 p.m. |
Game #4 |
| Winner Game #3 vs. Loser Game #4 |
7:30 p.m. |
Game #5 |
|
| Saturday, May 5 |
| Winner Game #4 vs. Winner Game #5 |
Noon |
Game #6 |
| If necessary |
3:00 p.m. |
Game #7 |
Scouting LVC
LVC has won six of its last seven games, including the three conference wins against Albright that helped clinch the two-seed. The Dutchmen are 3-0 vs. #3 Elizabethtown, 2-1 vs. #4 Messiah, and 1-2 vs. #1 Alvernia this season.
Outfielder
Aaron Mills leads the Dutchmen in a number of offensive statistics, including batting (.374), hits (52), homeruns (6), RBIs (41), doubles (9), and total bases (85). He's one of two players to have started all 40 games this season. The other is infielder
Ryan Schwartz, who's hitting .345 with 51 hits, 35 runs, and a team-high 35 walks. Witmer is hitting .349 in 39 starts between catcher and first base with 51 hits, 28 runs, and 27 RBIs. LVC is hitting .284 collectively with a .375 on-base and .389 slugging percentage.
Brousseau and Fick lead a rotation on which seven different pitchers have made starts. Brousseau has pitched to the tune of a 2.04 ERA with a 4-3 record and a team-leading 32 strikeouts. With that, he has five complete games and has given up just nine walks in 53 innings of work. Fick enters the tournament with a 3.24 ERA and a 4-1 record. He's pitched a team-high 66.2 innings, allowing 73 hits but just 10 walks.
Scouting Elizabethtown
The Blue Jays had to sweep #4 Messiah on the road Saturday to earn a playoff spot behind strong starts by pitchers Matt Ruth and Jeff Hoffstein. Hoffstein leads the pitching staff with a 3.33 ERA through 46 innings but has been hit with a 2-3 record over nine appearances. Taras Letnaunchyn holds a 3.91 ERA with a team-best 6-2 record. The Blue Jays have six different pitchers who have made four starts or more.
Dillon Tagle has been a Commonwealth Conference standout on offense. In 38 starts, the catcher is averaging .405 with 53 hits, 17 runs, 23 RBIs, and 16 doubles. Three other Blue Jays are hitting over .300, including shortstop Kyle Gable, who sits at .301 through 35 starts with 37 hits and a team-high 26 runs. He's been a threat on the bases with 17 steals in 22 tries - second only to the 19 steals posted by second baseman Tyler Weary. The Blue Jays are hitting .277 with a .348 on-base and .333 slugging - anchored down by the fact that the team has just one homerun this season.
Series History
LVC is 44-61-1 all-time against Elizabethtown in a series that dates back to 1941. The Dutchmen have had to play the Blue Jays in two of their last three playoff appearances (2006 and 2009) and lost in both games, so there's something of a revenge scenario in place for most of the team's current seniors.
