By Cody Swartz, GoMessiah.com reporter
Annville, PA — Dictionary.com defines the word clutch as “done or accomplished in a critical situation; dependable in clutch situations.”
How about this for a new definition: Taking three straight must-win conference games in the final weekend of baseball to qualify for the upcoming Commonwealth Conference Tournament, as Messiah did against Lebanon Valley College Saturday afternoon.
Webster's Dictionary may be seeking a photo of the Messiah baseball team for inclusion next to the word, as the Falcons came up with 11-3 and 4-1 wins Saturday at LVC's McGill Field, complementing a 4-1 victory Friday to secure the improbable: Thanks to winning their final six league games of the season, Messiah will compete in next weekend's four-team Commonwealth Conference Tournament as the four seed.
“We played ourselves into this,” said Bryan Engle, Messiah head coach. “Two weeks ago, we had our backs against the wall, but we clawed, scratched and we made it.”
The Falcons utilized a potent offensive attack and strong pitching performances from juniors Travis Thome and Eric Spring to win Saturday's double-header, stunning the Flying Dutchmen in the process: Needing just one win over Messiah to advance to the post-season, Lebanon Valley (22-14, 10-8) saw its season end behind the three-game doughnut.
Meanwhile it was Messiah (21-16, 10-8) — a team which appeared to be on the outside looking in just two weeks ago after dropping both games of a critical home doubleheader with Albright College — that did the unthinkable, qualifying for the program's second league playoffs under third-year head coach Engle.
“You need three things to win baseball games,” Engle said. “Good pitching, clutch hitting and solid defense. We got all three of those today.”
Thome was as reliable as ever on the mound for the Falcons in Game One of this pivotal double-header, throwing a complete game in biggest start of the year for the right-hander. Thome (5-3) allowed just two earned runs on eight hits and one walk, picking up his team-leading fifth win of the season.
“Travis came to play,” Engle said. “He was very good. He had a lot of confidence out there on the mound, he was extremely focused and he was everything I could have asked for.”
Meanwhile, the Falcons' offense wasted no time in getting on the board early, putting up four runs in the first inning against Lebanon Valley starter Nate Blough (6-2) — a comfortable lead attained before Thome ever set foot on the mound. Messiah then tacked on three more runs in the second frame and two more in their next turn at-bat for an overwhelming 9-0 lead through just three innings of play.
“Our offense just came through today,” Engle said. “The energy and excitement from the whole team as a result of that was just awesome. We played loose, played easy and we had fun. Getting those early runs made them play catch-up. The whole team got into it and putting up that many runs so early on is just demoralizing to the other team.”
When sophomore Sam Tajiri popped out to shortstop and classmate John Brubaker struck out swinging to begin the game, it appeared as if the Falcons weren't destined to score early. However, sophomore Wes Hollenbach worked a walk, setting the stage for an unprecedented trio of events: Three consecutive triples by seniors Sheldon Witmer, Jordan Zimmerman and Dan Etter gave the Falcons a 3-0 lead.
“I've watched a lot of baseball over my years, and I got the opportunity today to see something I had never seen before,” Engle said, in reference to his team's three straight triples. “And they were all legit triples. We really swung the bats well.”
When classmate Adam Ranck followed with an RBI single to close out the scoring for the inning, it gave Thome a four-run lead to work with in the pitching circle.
In the second inning, Brubaker's single to left field with two outs and no one on base set the stage for another big inning by the Falcons. Brubaker took second base on a wild pitch and scored on Hollenbach's RBI single. Witmer followed with a home run to right field, his team-high third of the year, giving the Falcons a 7-0 lead through just two innings of play.
Even more impressive was that the Falcons scored all seven runs in the first two frames after having two outs and no one on base.
“We really hit their ace well today,” Engle said. “It's just that whole mentality of not giving up. We made them throw a lot of pitches to get us out. We kept the innings going when we needed to. I would be a rich man if I knew how to teach clutch hitting, so our guys get all the credit for that.”
When Ranck singled in the third inning, sophomore catcher Ryan Brown followed with the first home run of his NCAA career to give the Falcons a commanding, 9-0 lead.
Two more runs scored in the top of the seventh inning, when Hollenbach, Witmer and Etter walked, and Ranck plated two with a base hit to right field.
Thome was able to finish the game strong in the bottom of the seventh inning, getting LVC number three hitter Jacob Rhody, a .341 batter, to foul out to first base with two on and two out to end the game.
Thome held the Flying Dutchmen, who had been averaging about 7.5 runs per game for the season, to just three runs (two earned) in Game One.
“(Lebanon Valley) is a really good offensive team, and to hold them to just five runs in three games is amazing,” Engle said. “Our pitchers really came through for us.”
With Game Two being a must-win for both teams, Spring (4-3) was fantastic for the Falcons. The lefty hurled a complete game, allowing just one run on four hits and two walks.
“Eric was just dominant,” Engle said. “He made them hit his fastball, and they just couldn't do it. I also credit Ryan Brown for a great job behind the plate, especially in terms of pitch location.”
Messiah's bats again aided their starting pitcher with early runs, pouncing on LVC's Shane Specht (4-2) for three runs in the second inning to take an early 3-0 lead.
“Getting that early three-run lead for Spring was huge,” Engle said. “When you go up by one or even two runs, the other team can often play small ball and try to work their way back into the game. When you go up by three — especially in a seven-inning game — it really limits their opportunities to play one base at a time.”
Zimmerman began the inning with a single and scored on Etter's RBI double. Shenk tripled later in the inning, scoring Brown, while Tajiri's two-out RBI single gave Spring a three-run lead.
Engle's squad, which seems to have an uncanny ability to hit in the clutch, scored nine of its 15 runs on the day with two men out.
Meanwhile, the Flying Dutchmen couldn't buy a hit off of Spring, as the junior held the usually hot-hitting Flying Dutchmen to a .174 batting average on the day. In fact, there was a period from the second inning until the start of the seventh frame in which Spring did not give up a single hit, pitching four and two-thirds hitless innings during the stretch.
An insurance run for the Messiah Falcons came in the seventh inning when Shenk tripled and scored on Brubaker's RBI single.
The Dutchmen tacked on a harmless run against Spring in their last licks in the bottom of the seventh inning, but when LVC's Derek Brosseau flied out to Tajiri in left field to end the game, it completed an improbable sweep for the Falcons.
For Messiah and LVC, it was the third straight year the series between the two teams was a sweep: The Falcons took the series in '08, the Flying Dutchmen swept in '09. This year it was all Messiah, as Engle's squad became the first team all year to sweep Lebanon Valley in a three-game series.
The seniors for Messiah — Witmer, Zimmerman, Etter, Ranck, and Shenk — were again incredible, batting.451 (14-for-31) on the day.
“I couldn't ask for better from my seniors, as they near the end of their college careers,” Engle said. “You want the seniors to lead, and they did just that. They all came together, and they just showed us how it is done.”
Just as impressive was the starting pitching for the Falcons. The three starters for the Falcons combined to pitch 22 of a possible 23 innings in the series, registering a phenomenal 1.64 ERA.
“When your starting pitchers go that deep in the games, it is just tremendous,” Engle said. “It keeps us in the game, and it helped us take the series.”
Messiah now prepares for its surprising — if not shocking — move to the post-season, as the team will travel to Owls Field in West Lawn, Pa. to begin the double-elimination tournament Thursday afternoon. The fourth-seeded Falcons will face top-seeded Widener University at 4 p.m. Game times after that game are dependent on whether or not the team wins or loses. Complete details can be found at the official site of the Commonwealth Conference Baseball Tournament.
“The guys are ecstatic, I'm ecstatic,” Engle said. “I told them after the game that no one got us here but ourselves. We did it. The fact that we are still getting to play at this point in the year is just great. We are in it and we have a chance.”
