by Cody Swartz, GoMessiah.com reporter
Grantham, PA - Beginning this Thursday, the Messiah Falcons are set to defend their Commonwealth Conference title from last season, the fourth such in the program's history. Messiah entered last season as preseason favorites to finish fourth out of seven teams, but surprised all with a three-game sweep of Widener University and Elizabethtown College twice in the playoffs, securing a championship in head coach Steve DeRiggs' first season at the helm of the program.
Messiah returns to the playoffs in 2012, once again as underdogs, as the Falcons were seemingly left for dead following a letdown series against Albright in late March that left Messiah at just 2-7 in the conference. The Falcons proceeded to rattle off seven straight conference wins, including sweeps of Widener University and Arcadia University, clinching the playoffs with a Friday win over Elizabethtown College.
With an opportunity to earn the second seed in the playoffs, Messiah came up short, dropping both games in a Saturday doubleheader to the Blue Jays that leaves the Falcons playing at number-one seeded Alvernia in the first game of the playoffs. The Crusaders will be no easy task, as they
swept the Falcons in a three-game series during the regular season, outscoring Messiah 17-8. Two of the games were by just one run though and one came down to the final play of the game.
The Falcons have proven they can play with Alvernia; in fact, this team can play with anyone, as evidenced by wins over nationally-ranked schools such as
Johns Hopkins University and
Salisbury University.
Messiah is led by a potent offense that has scored runs in bunches as of late. The Falcons have scored double-digit runs eight separate times this season, and the team is averaging over six runs per contest. Seniors
Ryan Brown and
Wes Hollenbach have led the unit. Brown's seven home runs lead the entire conference, and he is hitting at a .333 clip with a team-high 14 doubles, 78 total bases, .605 slugging percentage, and 39 free passes. Hollenbach is hitting .367 with 12 doubles, and he has played flawless defense at first base.
Derek Drake has been arguably the league's top freshman, as he brings a .336 batting average and a team-best 48 into the contest. Junior
Paul Mellinger and senior
John Brubaker give Messiah one of the league's best middle infield combinations, and senior
Sam Tajiri is a perennial .300 hitter and a dangerous man on the basepaths (18 of 19 stealing bases).
The pitching staff has struggled at times throughout the season, but has stepped it up down the stretch for Messiah. Sophomore
Jon Lapp has emerged as the team's ace, and his gem of an outing
against E-Town last Friday clinched a playoff spot for Messiah. Senior
Zach Adams has filled in admirably from both the rotation and the bullpen, and he has a 2.95 ERA to go with a .240 opponents' batting average.
Messiah will play Alvernia at 4 p.m. on Thursday in the three-day double-elimination conference tournament. Depending on how they do on Thursday affects when the Falcons play next, but the championship game is on Saturday, and Messiah will be looking for a second conference title in as many seasons.
Commonwealth Conference Baseball Championships
At Owls Field - Ted Palka Park (Hosted by Albright)
Directions to Owls Field
Thursday, May 3
|
Game #1 |
#4 Messiah vs. #1 Alvernia |
4:00 PM |
|
Game #2 |
#3 Elizabethtown vs. #2 Lebanon Valley |
7:30 PM |
Friday, May 4
|
Game #3 |
Loser Game #1 vs. Loser Game #2 |
11:00 AM |
|
Game #4 |
Winner Game #1 vs. Winner Game #2 |
3:00 PM |
|
Game #5 |
Winner Game #3 vs. Loser Game #4 |
7:30 PM |
Saturday, May 5
|
Game #6 |
Winner Game #4 vs. Winner Game #5 |
12:00 PM |
|
Game #7 |
Repeat Game #6, if necessary |
3:00 PM |
