Top Games No. 5: Harrisburg at Cumberland Valley

The last two years these teams have put on quite a show. Both encounters were at Severance Field. This time around the battle will at Chapman Field on Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.

While this still might be a thrilling game, we're doubtful that it will have Commonwealth Division title implications.

CV (12-3 in 2010) lost most of its starters to graduation and Harrisburg (9-3), which was also hit hard in June, is replacing legendary coach George Chaump, who bolted for the greener grass at Central Dauphin East.

Still, we're excited for this game.

Harrisburg, the defending division champion, looked good in the second half of its scrimmage Friday against J.W. Robinson, Va., and always has speed.

CV won't beat itself and will play fundamentally-sound football. Whether a division crown is on the line or the only thing to play for is a better spot in the 16-team District 3 Class AAAA playoffs, this is one game to see.

Pennsylvania Football News preseason rankings

Late last night, the Pennsylvania Football News released its preseason rankings.

The only area team to crack the top 10 in any of the four classes was Trinity, which checks in at No. 5. The Shamrocks open the season next Friday at 7 p.m. against No. 2 Lancaster Catholic at COBO Field.

Cumberland Valley is listed in the Others to Watch category in Class AAAA.

Pittsburgh Central Catholic (AAAA), Allentown Central Catholic (AAA), West Catholic (AA) and Clairton (A) are the top-ranked teams.

Top Games No. 6: Red Land at Cedar Cliff

Really, what else is there to say?

It's a game between Red Land and Cedar Cliff. Maybe not as heated as some other sports, the annual football game is not one of miss. The rivalry returns to West Shore Stadium on Sept. 30.

On the surface, this one looks like it could be a blowout. Cedar Cliff, literally, has everyone back on offense. The defense won't be too shabby either.

Red Land, on the other hand, is in a transition period. The Patriots are coming off back-to-back losing seasons and are under the guidance of first-year coach Chad Weaver. Hopefully by the time this game rolls around, the Patriots have worked out the kinks because we expect Cedar Cliff to be firing on all cylinders from the start.

The good news for Red Land and junior quarterback Kyle Biddle, above, is that it does boast veteran offensive and defensive lines. Those guys could keep Cedar Cliff's offense off-balance and, if the running game clicks, Red Land could keep the ball away from the Colts' powerful offense.

Don't sleep on Red Land for a minute. The Patriots are a tough bunch who could pull the upset. Whether they do or not is yet to be seen.

Thumbs up to Mifflin County

It will be years until we know whether the addition of District 6 schools State College and Mifflin County as full-time Mid-Penn Conference members works or not.

And, at least in terms of Mifflin County, it will be quite some time until it's clear whether or not the Huskies can compete in the difficult Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division.

But the school is OK in our book because it went above and beyond to design its own logo. And, the school's football helmet looks amazing.

We haven't seen photos of the football team's uniforms so we have no opinion on them. If you've read this blog over the last few years, you know we love to discuss uniforms, helmets and game hats. Mifflin County's helmet is one of the most unique and creative that we've come across.

We absolutely love the fact that the school didn't go down the generic path and slap a big white or purple paw on the helmet, an interlocked MC or just leave it plain white or purple.

Good job, Mifflin County, and welcome to the Mid-Penn.

Top Games No. 7: Boiling Springs at Milton Hershey

Last year was a little bit different than what we're used to when the Bubblers and Spartans tangle.

For the first time since 2004, the annual meeting between these teams was decided by more than seven points. Boiling Springs won at home, 20-7, it snap its four-game losing streak against Milton Hershey.

Expect things to tighten back up this fall when the rivals meet Sept. 16 at Spartan Stadium.

Milton Hershey, always an athletic bunch, figures to be improved from last year's 3-7 record. It's not often that a team coached by Jeff Boger suffers through a losing season and it's very hard to imagine that happening again.

But, the Capital is expected to be a very balanced league this year. The common opinion is that Trinity is the favorite, but beyond the Shamrocks whoever comes in second is any one's guess.

That's why this early-season game is so important.

Boiling Springs and running back Drew Hunter, above, dropped its season opener last year before running off seven straight wins. The Bubblers staged a huge rally in Week 2 to upend Palmyra before taking out the Spartans. Don't think for a second that win over Milton Hershey didn't do wonders for that the team's confidence.

USA Today high school football rankings

Much like the season-ending baseball polls, Pennsylvania is without a team in the USA Today Super 25 preseason high school football poll.

But, there is hope.

Normally, the Pennsylvania Class AAAA champion cracks the rankings by season's end. We'll see if that's the case this year.

If you're looking for the favorite to win that title, check out Pittsburgh Central Catholic. It appears that the Vikings are going to be very good this year. Now, whether they escape the WPIAL is something else altogether.

And, here's a really cool story about Delaware private school Red Lion Christian and it's hopes of building a national football power.

Top Games No. 8: Lampeter-Strasburg at Cedar Cliff

Last season, this game was a measuring stick for the up-and-coming Colts.

This year, it's a game Cedar Cliff and senior quarterback Tyler Orris, left, will be expected to win. The teams meet Sept. 16 at West Shore Stadium.

The Colts were on a roll last season after winning their first two games by an average of 33-14 before being blasted by Lampeter-Strasburg, 28-7, at Pioneer Field.

Lampeter-Strasburg, mind you, was no slouch last season. The Pioneers finished 11-2 and advanced to the District 3 Class AAA semifinals before falling to Bishop McDevitt.

But there's no hiding the fact that Cedar Cliff has a ton of talent returning and will be expected to challenge for the Keystone Division title and make some noise in the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs.

Colts coach Jim Cantafio hasn't won a playoff game in two trips to the postseason at Cedar Cliff. He's worked wonders by building this program into a respectable one, but until if the Colts want respect across the board, they'll need to beat Lampeter-Strasburg and then win at least one 3-AAAA playoff game.

If anyone can help a team reach its expectations, it's Cantafio. We expect big things out of the Colts and would be surprised if they fail to deliver.

Top Games No. 9: Trinity at Camp Hill

In recent years, this backyard rivalry, which returns Sept. 9 at Camp Hill's Seibert Memorial Park, hasn't been much of a game.

When Camp Hill has solid teams, the Lions compete with Trinity, but when they experience lean years, this game is usually one-sided.

Last season, Trinity and quarterback Patrick Dill, right, ran roughshod over Camp Hill in a 49-0 rout. That was the first of 12 straight wins for the Shamrocks on their way to a second District 3 Class AA title. Trinity, which lost to Lewisburg in the PIAA Class AA quarterfinals, finished with a 12-2 record last season.

In the offseason, veteran Camp Hill coach Frank Kindler resigned after an ugly 1-9 season. Frank Gay, the former Red Land coach, stepped in to lead the Lions.

How Gay fares with the small numbers at Camp Hill is yet to be seen, but remember that Gay's Red Land teams were always a hard-nosed bunch. If he brings that mentality to Camp Hill, the Lions will definitely compete.

Now, for Trinity. The Shamrocks are still on the short list of 3-AA favorites despite the lingering cloud stemming from an alleged hazing incident during the team's visit to Lebanon Valley College for a team camp in July.

The outcome of the police and the school's investigation could determine how far this talented team goes.

Top Games No. 10: Big Spring at Shippensburg

The annual battle for the Little Brown Jug returns to Shippensburg on Sept. 23.

The Greyhounds are no doubt seeking some revenge from last year when Big Spring stole a 20-19 victory in Newville.

Shippensburg scored with 1:54 remaining on Branson Allen's 3-yard run and coach Eric Foust elected to go for two and the win. On the play, Big Spring defensive lineman Dakota Matthews stopped Shippensburg quarterback Marshal Witmer short of the goal line to preserve the victory.

It was Big Spring's first win over Shippensburg since 2004 and helped the Bulldogs reach the District 3 Class AAA playoffs for the first time.

"One of our goals was the win back the Little Brown Jug," Big Spring coach Brent Stroh said in the days following last year's game. "For the community, it's a pride thing, but it's still just one game. The bottom line was, win or lose, this game wouldn't determine the fate of our season."

Big Spring went on to finish the regular season with a 5-5 record. The Bulldogs then lost to Lampeter-Strasburg, 41-13, in the 3-AAA first round. Shippensburg ended with an 8-2 regular-season record and lost to Hershey, 15-6, in the 3-AAA first round.

Top Football Games 2011 coming soon

We're putting the finishing touches on our list of what we expect to be the most meaningful football games of the upcoming season.

Please check back over the next two weeks of the preseason (camps open tomorrow) morning as we go through the 10 games -- we're planning to post one or two each day.

By the middle of the season, some games we're talking about in August probably won't look as good by Halloween while some that missed the cut will surprise us.

Please stay tuned.

Baltimore captures AAABA crown

If you've never been to the All-American Amateur Baseball Association national tournament in Johnstown, you're missing out.

This season, the Baltimore franchise won its second title in a row and 28th overall by beating Livonia and New Orleans on Saturday to finish the double-elimination tournament with a 6-0 record.

Now for the reason we're talking AAABA baseball today: we would love to see the Harrisburg area at the very least apply for a franchise.

A team comprised of former and current Mid-Penn Conference players would no doubt compete for a national championship and we would like nothing more than to see that happen.

An ideal setup would have the Harrisburg franchise competing in either the East Shore Twilight League or the West Shore Twilight League in the regular season before partaking in the AAABA postseason.

Hopefully one day, we'll see this happen.

Gateway Kickoff Classic's date changed

Bishop McDevitt's season-opening return trip to Gateway High School in suburban Pittsburgh will now take place Sunday, Sept. 4 at noon, according to Easternpafootball.com blogger Joshua Funk.

McDevitt and the host Gators are the first game of a doubleheader in the Gateway Kickoff Classic. The other matchup features Philadelphia Catholic League power Archbishop Wood against WPIAL heavyweight Pittsburgh Central Catholic. That game begins at 3:30.

Now, if only we could find a way to get a season-opening event like this at Hersheypark Stadium.

Top football games this fall (honorable mention)

Here is our list of the top football games this year. These are the honorable mention games. The Top 10 Games of the Year will be announced next week right here. These games are listed by week.

Cumberland Valley at Red Lion, Sept. 2 (Week 1) -- Eagles won two games vs. Lions last year by a combined count of 80-13, including a 35-7 rout in the District 3 Class AAAA final in December (left). We figure this season opener might be a little closer. Note: This game could be moved to Chapman Field if the new artificial surface at Horn Field isn't ready in time.

Bishop McDevitt at Cedar Cliff, Oct. 7 (Week 6) -- We think the Colts could have a big season and this game will tell us more. If they want to win the Keystone Division, the Colts must beat McDevitt.

Chambersburg at Carlisle, Oct. 14 (Week 7) -- Recently, there hasn't been anything on the line when these rivals play. That probably won't change this year, but it's usually fun when these two get together.

East Pennsboro at Boiling Springs, Oct. 28 (Week 9) -- A nice rivalry game near the end of the season. East Penn got its mojo back by beating the Bubblers, 35-7, late last season. Revenge could be in order.

Trinity at Milton Hershey, Oct. 28 (Week 9) -- As long as former Trinity coach Jeff Boger is coaching the Spartans, this game will make the list. Trust us, Boger will have Milton Hershey among the district's best before long.

Carlisle at Cumberland Valley, Nov. 4 (Week 10) -- Former CV player Josh Oswalt's first test as Carlisle head coach against his former team was ugly. The Eagles cruised to a 48-7 win last November at Ken Millen Stadium. By the time this game rolls around, the slew of new faces at CV should be finding their rhythm. Carlisle better be ready.

Crazy schedule for Mifflin County

It won't be easy for Mifflin County when the new, merged high school enters the Mid-Penn as a full-time, varsity-only member.

But, in terms of scheduling, the Commonwealth Division might offer some relief for the Huskies.

This year, Mifflin County starts with five road games before hosting Ohio powerhouse Cardinal Mooney on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m.

The Huskies do close with five straight home games, but they have two more odd-ball opponents in Maryland Christian and Blue Mountain.

At least next year, the fans of Mifflin County will start to see a more balanced schedule filled with opponents who will become familiar.

Livingston resigns at Carlisle

Carlisle High School varsity baseball coach Brett Livingston recently resigned from his post, he told The Sentinel on Monday night.

Livingston said it was time for a change, both for him and the players on the team.

Livingston leaves the program in stable condition. The Thundering Herd finished the last two seasons with idential 10-10 records and qualified for the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs both years.

In six years as the head coach, Livingston went 42-74. It must be noted that in three of his six years, Livingston guided the Herd to the 3-AAAA playoffs.

Livingston, who was named The Sentinel's Coach of the Year following the 2010 season, will remain a health and physical education teacher at Carlisle's Lamberton Middle School.

For more on this story, visit www.cumberlink.com or pick up a copy of The Sentinel on Wednesday.

Local connections in Sports Illustrated

This week's edition of Sports Illustrated is worth picking up.

Tom Verducci wrote an interesting feature story about Harrisburg Senators left fielder Bryce Harper, who the Washington Nationals took with the first overall pick in last year's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Also mentioned in the magainze is Devin Mesoraco. Mesoraco is from Punxsutawney and helped lead the Chucks to the 2007 PIAA Class AAA baseball title. Mesoraco, who plays for Class AAA Louisville in the Cincinnati Reds' farm system, is said to be potential trade bait for the club.

American Legion baseball scores, schedule

Final day of action in West Lawn. Blackhawk plays host West Lawn for Pennsylvania's final bid into next week's Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament at Boyertown's Bear Stadium.

Friday
Bristol 5, Boyertown 2 (Bristol clinches berth in Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament)
Boyertown 13, West Lawn 5 (West Lawn eliminated)
Bristol 10, Blackhawk 5 (Blackhawk eliminated)

Saturday
Blackhawk 9, West Lawn 6 (Mid-Atlantic Regional Play-in Game)
Boyertown 5, Bristol 1
Bristol 11, Boyertown 3

Football: Bad news keeps coming

Suddenly, a dark cloud is hanging over the area high school football scene.

Coming off one of the best years in recent memory for area teams -- Cumberland Valley and Trinity won district titles -- two shocking events were reported over the span of four days.

First, Boiling Springs senior two-way lineman Sam Gitt tragically died after a football practice at Albright College's camp Friday night. No one will know how or why Gitt died until lab tests come back in several weeks, Berks County chief deputy coroner Charles Sweitzer told The Sentinel on Tuesday.

Heat has not been ruled out as a contributing factor, Sweitzer said.

Also on Tuesday, news broke that a hazing incident involving the Trinity High School football team took place at Lebanon Valley College's camp, which ended July 20.

Trinity's administration has been rather quiet about the situation as the Annville Township Police Department are continuing their investigation.

Depending on what the police find, there could be suspensions and/or expulsions from the team. Remember, the Shamrocks open the season against perennial district and state power Lancaster Catholic at COBO Field on Sept. 2 at 7 p.m.

And, if you've forgotten, Trinity will already be shorthanded. Running back-linebacker Jack Miller was thrown out of Trinity's PIAA Class AA quarterfinal game against Lewisburg for throwing a punch and is suspended for the first game of the season.

Boiling Springs, which went 7-4 last year and qualified for the 3-AA playoffs where it lost to Trinity, opens the season at home Sept. 2 against Littlestown at 7 p.m. The Thunder Bolts finished the regular season 10-0 last year before losing their 3-AA opener.

Trinity, the defending district champion, is coming off a 12-2 season.

American Legion baseball scores, schedule

All games at Owls Field, West Lawn.

Wenesday
Red Land 13, Plains 12 (Plains eliminated)
Millcreek 10, West Hempfield 3 (West Hempfield eliminated)
Boyertown 4, Blackhawk 3 (10)
Bristol 8, West Lawn 1

Thursday
Millcreek vs. Blackhawk, noon (elimination game)
West Lawn vs. Red Land, 3 (elimination game)
Bristol vs. Boyertown, 7

Red Land erasing bad memories

The night is probably still fresh in their minds.

In the first round of the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs third-seeded Red Land tried to win via the comeback route again. This time, the Patriots fell short in an 8-7 loss to upstart No. 14 seed Spring Grove at Memorial Field in Hershey.

Red Land trailed, 8-3, entering the seventh inning before rallying within one run. But, the Patriots stranded the tying run on third when Ben Dunmire struck out.

These days, that loss seems like a distant memory.

In the Pennsylvania American Legion State Tournament on Wednesday morning, Red Land Post 974 staged a huge rally at Owls Field in West Lawn to dump Plains Post 558, 13-12, in a wild elimination game.

Red Land Post 974, which has many of the same players that went 16-5 in the high school season, won the Cumberland County and Section 4 titles to earn a bid in the double-elimination state tournament.

The team, which has a 21-6 record, took another step Wednesday morning to erase the bad memories from that night in late May and they have a chance to make more noise Thursday. Red Land meets host West Lawn at 3 p.m. in an elimination game. West Lawn fell to Bristol, 8-1, Wednesday night.

A win Thursday and Red Land will be one of the final four American Legion baseball teams still playing in Pennsylvania. That's not a bad way to rebound from the sudden end of the high school season.

Iowa baseball team sets mark

The Martensdale-St. Marys baseball team set the record for most consecutive wins last night when the Blue Devils thumped Twin Cedars, 10-0, in an Iowa Class 1-A substate final.

Martensdale-St. Marys broke the previous record of 83 straight wins set earlier this year by the Portsmouth (N.H.) squad.

The Blue Devils, who haven't lost since 2009, advance to next week's Iowa state tournament.

Baseball team going for record

File this under the hard-to-believe category.

The Martensdale-St. Marys baseball team is gunning for its 84th straight win tonight when the Blue Devils meet Twin Cedars in the Iowa Substate 6 Finals at 7 p.m.

But, that's not what's so hard to believe.

The strange thing is, earlier this year, Portsmouth (N.H.) set the national record of 83 straight wins.

If Martensdale-St. Marys wins tonight, Portsmouth's record would have stood for less than two months.

Big-name QB selects Penn State

Skyler Mornhinweg, a senior at Philadelphia's St. Joseph's Prep, has announced his intention to continue his football career at Penn State, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported Tuesday afternoon.

According to the report, Mornhinweg originally verbally committed to Stanford, but soured on the Cardinal when former coach Jim Harbaugh left for the San Francisco 49ers.

Mornhinweg's father, Marty, is the offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The buzz is beginning

Already, the season-opening game between Lancaster Catholic and defending District 3 Class AA champion Trinity is starting to draw attention.

Recently, former Lancaster Newspapers writer Jeff Reinhart, who owns and operates Lancaster-Lebanon League News, broke down his Top 10 Games to Watch for the upcoming L-L football season.

Checking in at No. 9 is Lancaster Catholic at Trinity.

The two private schools have quite a history and each has something to prove when they butt heads in Week 1 at COBO Field. Last year, Lancaster Catholic pounded Trinity, 35-7, and took an 11-0 record in the 3-AA semifinals. That's where the season ended with a 21-14 loss to Wyomissing.

Meanwhile, Trinity cruised to the 3-AA title and played Lewisburg, a team we thought was the second-best Class AA team in Pennsylvania last year, tough before falling in the state quarterfinals, 35-21.

This season-opening game could very easily be a preview of the 3-AA final.

First tests for new coaches

When preseason practice kicks off for high school football in a little over a month, two area teams will be under new leadership.

Former Red Land coach Frank Gay took over the reigns at Camp Hill for Frank Kindler and was replaced in Lewisberry by rookie head coach Chad Weaver.

The first time both coaches face live competition with their new teams will be in scrimmages Aug. 20. Red Land will meet Northeastern in a 9 a.m. start while Camp Hill ventures to perennially dreadful York Vo-Tech.

Six days later, the Lions go back on the road for a 6 p.m. start against Newport while Red Land travels to Hanover for a 6 p.m. date with South Western. Both of those scrimmages should give both coaches a better understanding of the teams they'll have.

The Patriots open the season Sept. 2 at home against East Pennsboro; Camp Hill hosts Biglerville the same night. Both games kick off at 7 p.m.

Football coaching changes

There's a ton of new high school football across Pennsylvania this year.

The Pennsylvania Football News has a complete list for your enjoyment.

Star quarterback heading to South Carolina

The Easton Express-Times is reporting that highly-touted Allentown Central Catholic quarterback Brendan Nosovitch has verbally committed to continue his football career under legendary coach Steve Spurrier at South Carolina.

The Gamecocks won the SEC East Division a season ago.

According to two recruiting services, eight NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision programs verbally offered Nosovitch a scholarship.

Last December, Nosovitch and the Vikings defeated Bishop McDevitt, 28-27, in the PIAA Class AAA championship game at Hersheypark Stadium to cap a 16-0 season.

Chances for a repeat

We've given you our Four for 2012 and the returning all-stars (both Mid-Penn and All-Sentinel), so now it's time to look at the chances the four state champions have of repeating next year.

The teams are graded on a percentage scale (0-100), with the higher the number constituting a better chance of winner back-to-back gold medals at Penn State's Medlar Field next June.

Class AAAA
Conestoga (35 percent) -- The Pioneers lose six players who started the state final including pitcher Austin Little, who went 5 1/3 innings against Spring Ford. Conestoga welcomes back only one of the three pitchers who went to the mound against the Rams.

Class AAA
Northern (75 percent) -- Yes, a few big names are gone. It's not going to be easy replacing Joe Tuschak and Andrew Keirn, but if coach Brian Robison can find a reliable No. 2 pitcher to backup Vince Apicella, look out. The Polar Bears, who beat Tunkhannock for their first state baseball title, will return almost entirely intact next year.

Class AA
Riverside (20 percent) -- One of the most consistent program in the Pittsburgh area has a rebuilding effort in front of it. The Panthers return only three players that started the state final. How will coach Dan Oliastro replace Ryan Finnegan and Nick Pollio?

Class A
Serra Catholic (95 percent) -- These guys were supposed to be a year away. That's a scary thought, isn't it? Ace left-handed pitcher Alain Girman and his perfect varsity record (24-0) returns for his senior year. We will be shocked if a program in the west knocks Serra out before it arrives at Medlar Field. But, a team from the east that's played big schools all year and taken it's lumps (Camp Hill, anyone?) could prevent a repeat.

Returning All-Sentinel baseball players

The following players were selected to this year's All-Sentinel Baseball Team and will be returning to area diamonds next spring (player's listed year is what he will be in 2012).

First Team
Vince Apicella, sr., pitcher, Northern

Alex Bates, jr., outfielder, Trinity

Alex Card, sr., pitcher, East Pennsboro

Jon Mayer, sr., catcher, Northern

Aaron Rahn, sr., outfielder, West Perry

Second Team
Brian Goodling, jr., second baseman, Carlisle

Josh Kimmel, sr., outfielder, Carlisle

Hunter Kotzmoyer, jr., outfielder, Big Spring

Jordan Lawson, sr., pitcher Cedar Cliff

Cody McLaughlin, sr., designated hitter, Northern

Tyler Orris, sr., shortstop, Cedar Cliff

Four for 2012 Part II

Here are the other two baseball teams we expect to make long playoff runs next May. This will be the final blog post for over a week. Today is the first day of our much-needed vacation and where we're going, we don't have Internet. So enjoy this post and we'll talk again July 11.

Carlisle (10-10 in 2011; lost in District 3-AAAA preliminary round) – This team was still young in 2011, but the players won’t be next spring.

A large group of the young men who won the Little League State Championship in the summer of 2009 will be juniors in high school this fall. That means the varsity team will be expected to, at the very least, finish above .500 and make some noise in the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs.

The last two years, Carlisle has compiled an overall record of 20-20, but the Herd haven't won either of its 3-AAAA playoff games.

Standout pitchers Kyler Brown (1.67 ERA, 26 strikeouts, 16 walks) and Brian Goodling (3.36 ERA, 40 strikeouts, 19 walks) will anchor a rotation that should be feeling comfortable at the varsity level by now. But, pitching hasn’t been the problem for coach Brett Livingston’s team.

The Herd hasn’t been able to muster much offense. The team scored two runs or fewer eight times and finished 4-6 in one-run games this year.

If Carlisle doesn’t improve at the plate, this team will again struggle to finish above .500. The Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division is a big-boy league and if a team wants to compete, it has to pitch, hit and play defense. Last year, the Herd failed to do all three consistently enough to keep their heads above water.

East Pennsboro (14-7 in 2011; lost in District 3-AAA first round) – The Panthers continue to improve under coach John Frantz and could be poised to be playing after Memorial Day next year.

Sure, the Panthers lose some pop in Chance Smith (.410), Greg Wasikowski (.385) and Justin Dolan (.340), but their pitching will be difficult to beat.

First-team All-Sentinel selection Alex Card (1.58 ERA, 48 strikeouts, 16 walks), a left-handed pitcher, returns for his senior year. Solid No. 2 options also return in Brandon Lehman (4.32 ERA, 11 strikeouts, 11 walks) and A.J. Wilson (3.50 ERA, 26 strikeouts, 6 walks), assuming he doesn’t give up baseball to focus on his duty as East Penn’s quarterback.

That said, this team needs to find some offense behind Jesse McAllister (.372) and Lehman (.350).

The Panthers struggled at times this year to score runs and if they envision a division title and deep playoff run, the offense will need to come around.

In the playoffs, this pitching staff gives the team a chance to make some serious noise.

The Panthers narrowly lost to eventual 3-AAA runner-up Twin Valley last month and will likely use that heart-breaking loss in Reading as motivation for 2012.

If nothing else, the Panthers are our pick to win the wide-open Capital Division next spring.

Four for 2012 Part I

Here is our annual look at the four teams we think we make deep runs in next year's postseason. Please check back tomorrow morning for the second half of our list.

Northern (23-5 in 2011; PIAA Class AAA champions) – Out of all of our selections, this one is clearly the easiest because the Polar Bears return most of their starters from this year’s state championship team.

Joe Tuschak (sixth-round pick of the New York Mets), Andrew Keirn (playing in college at Pitt-Johnstown) and Dom Apicella will leave sizeable voids, but if coach Brian Robison can find a solid pitcher to back up ace left-hander Vince Apicella, this team will be hard to beat again next spring.

Cody McLaughlin (.471), Jon Mayer (.423) and Dylan Tamekci (.423) will pace what is sure to be a scary offense next year.

Northern is also set at all but second base with Anthony Salomone (third), Tyler Betz (shortstop) and Tamecki (first) back.

Vince Apicella (right) was absolutely lights out this year with a 0.86 ERA in 81 1/3 innings. The junior struck out 126 and walked only 18 in compiling a 12-1 record. He has a little more eight months to get even batter. That’s hard to believe.

But, there is bad news.

Keirn, who also played second, was 7-1 this year with a 1.26 ERA in 49 2/3 innings pitched. If the Polar Bears can’t find someone to fill that role, they’ll have a difficult time escaping what is arguably the deepest Class AAA district in the state.

Camp Hill (2-18 in 2011; failed to qualify for District 3 Class A playoffs) – The Lions had a year to forget in 2011 with six losses via the 10-run mercy rule.

Camp Hill also failed to score a run in eight games.

So, why is coach Brad Shover’s team on this list again? Because his youngsters will make serious noise in the District 3 Class A playoffs if they qualify next May.

Consider: Reading Central Catholic grabbed the district’s 10th and final bid this year with a 4-13 record, won the district title and advanced to the PIAA Class A final before losing to Serra Catholic, 4-0.

Had the Lions gotten in, who’s to say it wouldn’t have been them at Medlar Field playing for another state title? Camp Hill’s schedule is that tough: Nothing the Lions would have seen in the playoffs would have been near the competition they annually face in the big-school Mid-Penn Conference.

It’s easy to forget that Camp Hill is awfully young and that Chad Bronson, despite an 0-10 record this year, finished ninth in the area with 55 strikeouts.

Plus, Robbie Thompson (he’s the younger brother of L.K., who plays at West Virginia University), will be back for his sophomore year after batting .220 in his first season of varsity baseball.

Bronson (.400), Kevin Chrenick (.380) and Ben Eppley (.290) will power the offense.

Plus, Cameron Resuta and Cameron Ward, two solid pitchers who suffered through a myriad of injures this year, are back. If the Lions stay healthy and cut down on the errors, they’ll be on the short list of district-title favorites next year.

Kyle Friend to Temple

Kyle Friend, who will be a senior this fall at Cumberland Valley High School, recently committed to continue his college football career as an offensive lineman at Temple University.

Friend was a first-team All-Sentinel selection as a defensive lineman last year. The 6-foot-1, 265-pounder recorded 95 total tackles and six sacks for the District 3 Class AAAA champions.

"That's been a goal of mine ever since I start playing high school football," Friend said about competiting at an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision school. "I'm glad I finally reached it. I'm ready to move on and keep working hard."

In the winter, Friend was one of the leaders of a young CV wrestling squad. The heavyweight, who was a first-team All-Sentinel pick, barely missed qualifying for the PIAA Class AAA Championships after he finished fourth in the District 3/Southcentral Region tournament.

Friend plans to wrestle as a senior.

"I think wrestling is one of the best things you can do to complement football with the conditioning and hands and feet," Friend said. "It's such a great sport to complement football."

For the complete story, see Wednesday's edition of The Sentinel.

2011 All-Sentinel Baseball stories

The high school baseball season is now complete.

We released the 17th Annual All-Sentinel Baseball team in today's edition of the newspaper. The complete team can be found on our Web site and on Inside the Red Zone.

Here are links to the stories that ran with the selections.

Joe Tuschak, player of the year

Brian Robision, coach of the year

East Pennsboro continues to improve on the diamond (opinion)

Continue to check Inside the Red Zone this week for our Four for 2012.

2011 All-Sentinel Baseball

The 17th Annual All-Sentinel High School Baseball Team will be available Sunday, June 26 in hard-copy form.

Before the team hits newsstands early tomorrow morning, we're offering a look at this year's first- and second-team players.

Congratulations to those who made the squad.

FIRST TEAM
Player of the Year: Joe Tuschak, sr., outfielder, Northern

Catcher: Jon Mayer, jr., Northern

Infielders: Blaine Bower, sr., Cedar Cliff; Mike Palkovitz, sr., Cumberland Valley; Jeff Scaramuzzino, sr., Red Land; Dakota Smith, sr., West Perry

Outfielders: Alex Bates, soph., Trinity; Quinn Bower, sr., Cedar Cliff; Aaron Rahn, jr., West Perry

Designated hitter: Jimmy Spanos, sr., Mechanicsburg

Pitchers: Vince Apicella, jr., Northern; Alex Card, jr., East Pennsboro; Taylor Nace, sr., Susquenita

SECOND TEAM
Catcher: Bobby Kohl, sr., Susquenita

Infielders: Brian Goodling, soph., Carlisle; Andrew Keirn, sr., Northern; Justin Malehorn, sr., Susquenita; Tyler Orris, jr., Cedar Cliff

Outfielders: Hunter Kotzmoyer, soph., Big Spring; Josh Kimmel, jr., Carlisle; Matt Luebbers, sr., Boiling Springs

Designated hitter: Cody McLaughlin, jr., Northern

Pitchers: Jordan Lawson, jr., Cedar Cliff; Eric Sawyer, sr., Cumberland Valley; Jade Wilson, sr., West Perry

National football rankings

They're starting to trickle out already.

MaxPreps recently released its Preseason Top 25 football early contenders.

Just like the final high school baseball national rankings, there isn't a Pennsylvania school to be found.

Don Bosco Prep, a private school in New Jersey, tops the list.

Sad news out of Pittsburgh

Gateway High School's football season will be out more than wins and losses this year.

Thursday night, one of coach Terry Smith's players was killed and another injured in a shooting in Durham, N.C.

The story from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is here.

Gateway opens the season at home against Bishop McDevitt on Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. Last year, McDevitt beat Gateway, 21-0, in the season opener on Market St.

All-Sentinel date finalized

This Sunday, we will release the 17th Annual All-Sentinel baseball team. The selections will officially be released on this blog tomorrow afternoon.

Included in the season-ending package is the following:

• Feature on our Player of the Year

• Feature on our Coach of the Year

• First and second team selections

• Past award winners

Nice story on Fisher

While scouring the Internet the other day for high school baseball stories, we came across a good one on Cedar Crest center fielder Derek Fisher.

The story is from ESPN Rise and was published in March, but it's worth reading.

Fisher was a sixth-round pick of the Texas Rangers earlier this month. He also holds a scholarship offer to play for the top-ranked Virginia Cavaliers.

Final national rankings

Thanks to Northern, there aren't any Pennsylvania teams in the final Powerade Fab 50 ESPN Rise baseball rankings.

Elizabeth Forward, the previously undefeated District 7 Class AAA champion, was ranked No. 48 in the last poll. The Warriors dropped out thanks to a 6-4 loss to Northern in the PIAA Class AAA semifinals last week.

Speaking of Northern, the Polar Bears (23-5) are one of three Pennsylvania teams listed as On The Bubble. Northern dumped Tunkhannock, 6-3, in the state final Friday morning at Penn State's Medlar Field.

PIAA Class AAAA champion Conestoga (22-4) and the team the Pioneers beat, Spring-Ford (25-5), are also On The Bubble.

Tuschak's plans

Now that the high school baseball season is complete, Northern center fielder Joe Tuschak is ready to focus on the next phase of his life: playing baseball for a career.

Tuschak, who was drafted by the New York Mets in the sixth round of this year's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, will sign with the Mets and report to the club's rookie-level Gulf Coast League team in Florida either the end of this month or early next month.

"One day, I hope to play in the big leagues with all those great players," Tuschak said. "I'm just really excited. I'm still kind of speechless about it."

Returning Mid-Penn All-Stars

The following players were named Mid-Penn Baseball All-Stars this spring and will be back for at least one more year. The player's year is what they will be for the 2011-12 school year.

Commonwealth Division
Carlisle - Brian Goodling, junior; Jed Thorson, junior

Cedar Cliff - Jordan Lawson, senior, Tyler Orris, senior

Cumberland Valley - Ben Eppley, senior

Red Land - Shawn Anderson, senior; Ben Snyder, sophomore; Sam Sorenson, senior

Keystone Division
Mechanicsburg - Matt Miller, senior; John Thompson, junior

Colonial Division
Big Spring - Hunter Kotzmoyer, junior; Tom Swartz, senior

Northern - Vince Apicella, senior; Jon Mayer, senior; Cody McLaughlin, senior; Dylan Tamecki, senior

Shippensburg - Marshal Witmer, senior

Capital Division
Boiling Springs - Derek Hart, junior, Jon McKain, junior

Camp Hill - Chad Bronson, junior

East Pennsboro - Alex Card, senior; Jesse McAllister, senior

Susquenita - Mike Weldon, junior

Trinity - Dan Resavy, senior; Mitch Weaver, senior

West Perry - Ryan McMillen, soph; Aaron Rahn, senior

History made Friday night

Not many people were on hand to witness history at Penn State's Medlar Field on Friday.

Conestoga and Spring-Ford, a pair of District 1 teams, played a 10-inning game in the PIAA Class AAAA final. Prior to that game, there had never been a PIAA baseball final go into double-digit innings.

Conestoga ultimately won the game, 6-3, when the Pioneers scored three runs in the top of the 10th and held the Rams scoreless in the bottom half. The official game time was 2 hours, 58 minutes.

It was Conestoga's first state baseball title. Earlier in the day, Northern (Class AAA) and Serra Catholic (A) won their first state baseball titles.

Extra story for Monday

In Monday's edition of The Sentinel will be a story wrapping up Northern's baseball season.

The Polar Bears capped an fantasic year by winning the PIAA Class AAA championship Friday morning at Penn State's Medlar Field with a 6-3 victory over District 2 champion Tunkhannock.

We'll also have a short notebook with interesting facts from the other three state championship games.

Signing off from Medlar Field

The PIAA Class A final is in the sixth inning and Serra Catholic leads Reading Central Catholic, 4-0.

After nearly three months of covering high school baseball, it's time to become a fan and head down to the stands to catch the Class AA and Class AAAA title games.

We'll have an extra story about Northern in Sunday's paper. Keep checking Inside the Red Zone over the next few weeks as the All-Sentinel Team is finalized.

We'll also be posting our Four for 2012 (hint: Northern will be one of those teams).

Once again, congratulations to the Northern Polar Bears, the new PIAA Class AAA baseball champions.

Polar Bears capture title

Joe Tuschak belted a grand slam in the fourth inning to give Northern a 6-2 lead and junior pitcher Vince Apicella was solid in a complete-game performance to lift the Polar Bears past pesky Tunkhannock, 6-3, Friday morning at Penn State's Medlar Field.

Northern's title is the school's first state baseball championship and the Polar Bears are the first team from The Sentinel's coverage area to win a big-school title since Red Land won the 1990 PIAA Class AAA tournament.

Apicella struck out eight, didn't issue a walk and scattered six hits to improve to 12-1.

Tuschak, Cody McLaughlin and Mark Stetts finished with two hits each for Northern (23-5).

Tunkhannock travels well

If there was a question whether the early start time for today's PIAA Class AAA final would affect the crowd, the answer is a resounding no.

Northern has a decent crowd but the orange-clad Tunkhannock faithful is packing the third-base side of the grandstand.

And yes, they are very vocal.

Unless a couple charter buses are on the way from Dillsburg, the Polar Bears will be playing in front of a pro-Tunkhannock crowd this morning.

Weather, field conditions

So far, so good in terms of rain today in State College.

The sky is filled with clouds and there are dark ones to the west, but we haven't seen rain yet.

The good news is that the field crew is putting the cover on the tarp on the right field.

The playing surface looks to be in great shape, so unless a steady shower moves through, the PIAA Class AAA final between Tunkhannock (the visitor) and Northern will be starting on time.

PIAA Baseball Picks

Despite the fact that we told Cedar Cliff's coaching staff we weren't publishing any more predictions, we're making one exception for Friday's PIAA finals at Medlar Field in State College.

Predictions are listed in the order the games will be played. If you don't like our picks, remember that we've been wrong more often than not since the start of the District 3 playoffs.

Class AAA (10:30 a.m.)
Tunkhannock 5, Northern 3 -- Do the Polar Bears have it in them to bring a state title back to Dillsburg? Absolutely. The fact that Tunkhannock pitcher Mike Healey has had nearly a week of rest will swing the result in favor of the District 2 champs.

Kurt Bopp's pick: Northern 3, Tunkhannock 2 -- Vince Apicella will be the difference in this one. If he can keep the Tigers at bay, Northern offense should be able to score just enough off Mike Healey for the win.

Class A (1 p.m.)
Serra Catholic 9, Reading Central Catholic 0 -- Pitcher Alain Girmin has a 23-0 career record and wants to erase last year's bad memories of the shocking loss to Christopher Dock. After two near misses, the Eagles get it done.

Class AA (3:30 p.m.)
Salisbury Township 7, Riverside 6 -- We picked Salisbury Township from the start. Don't ask us why, we just had a feeling. Riverside is strong and could be considered a slight favorite.

Class AAAA (6 p.m.)
Conestoga 6, Spring-Ford 4 -- Remember when these teams last met? Of course you don't. If you read this blog, you probably only follow District 3. Well, in the District 1-AAAA final, the Rams scored a 22-11 win in six innings. Conestoga hasn't forgetten and exacts revenge.

New way to follow the game

If you can't make the trip to State College on Friday, we'll be blogging live from Medlar Field during the PIAA Class AAA championship game between Northern (22-5) and Tunkhannock (19-2).

Kurt Bopp will be the man keeping you updated with the Cover it Live system, which is an improvement over how we've live blogged events in the past. If you've seen over news outlets use Cover it Live, you no doubt find it an enjoyable way to follow an event.

Kurt will start bloggin around 10:15 a.m. on our site.

Ugly weather is back

In a baseball season marred by a host of postponed and suspended games, it's only fitting that there's a good chance of ugly weather in State College on Friday for the four PIAA championship games.

The finals have not been interrupted since 2003 when they could not be played Friday or Saturday. All three games took place the following Monday at Harrisburg's Riverside Stadium.

There's good news and bad news for Northern fans. Because the Class AAA game is the first of the day (it's scheduled for a 10:30 a.m. start), it's unlikely that weather will wash the game out. If tomorrow is like today, there should be a window to get at least one game in.

Now for the bad news. Because Tunkhannock's commencement ceremony is scheduled for Friday night, the game probably cannot start any later than noon. Remember, the original start time for this game was 1 p.m.

That means there likely needs to be a 90-minute window of good weather in State College on Friday. If that doesn't happen, find a hotel and stick around until Saturday.

Reputation on the line

The winner of Friday morning's PIAA Class AAA championship game will wrap up bragging rights for its district.

Either District 2 or District 3 will stake its claim to being the most dominant in Class AAA.

Last year, a pair of District 3 teams, Hershey and Conrad Weiser, played for it all. If Northern beats Tunkhannock, it'll be two straight state titles for District 3.

On the other hand, if Tunkhannock emerges as the winner, it will be the third PIAA Class AAA title that District 2 has won in the last four years.

Berwick (2008) and Abington Heights (2009) easily won state gold in recent years for District 2.

ALERT: Time change official

The PIAA Class AAA baseball final will now begin at 10:30 a.m. Friday at State College's Medlar Field.

The change was officially announced by the PIAA this afternoon to accomodate Tunkhannock's commencement ceremony.

Northern (22-5) and Tunkhannock (19-2) are making their first appearance in a state baseball championship game.

The Class A final between Reading Central Catholic (11-13) and Serra Catholic (20-2) is now set to begin at 1 p.m. in State College.

ALERT: Time change possible for Northern game

Due to scheduled commencement ceremonies Friday night for the Tunkhannock seniors, the PIAA Class AAA final between Tunkhannock (19-2) and Northern (22-5) at Medlar Field in State Colleg could see a change in times.

Early indications are, if a switch is needed, the Class AAA final will be played at 10:30 a.m. with the Class A final to follow at 1 p.m.

As it stands, the Class A game is set to kickoff the quadruple header Friday at 10:30 a.m. with the Class AAA final set for 1.

Please continue to monitor the PIAA site for any updates regarding the time change.

Stories about Tunkhannock

Below a few game stories from Tunkhannock's 9-0 victory over Blue Mountain on Monday in a PIAA Class AAA final. In the game, Mike Papi and Chase Knott combined on a no-hitter.

On Friday at Medlar Field in State College, the Tigers (19-2) battle Northern (22-5) for the state championship at 1 p.m. Both teams are making their first appearance in the state baseball finals.

Game story from the Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice

Sidebar from the Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice

Blog from Blue Mountain-Tunkhannock game

Want to start reading about Tunkhannock?

If so, we offer a link to a live blog from the Wilkes-Barre Citizens Voice.

SPOILER ALERT: Tunkhannock slammed Blue Mountain, 9-0, in Monday's semifinal.

Questionable call by PIAA

In the end, it all worked out.

And we're still not sure how.

Thursday afternoon, Northern and Punxsutawney met at Replogle Field in New Enterprise for a PIAA Class AAA baseball quarterfinal at 4 p.m.

After three innings were played, the umpires spotted lightning on the horizon and pulled the players from the field at 4:32 p.m.

Rain didn't hit the area until after 5 p.m. and there was minimal lightning, if any, the rest of the day.

In our opinion, the game could have safely continued, but the umpires erred on the side of caution and stopped the game.

Luckily, the nasty weather system moved out of the area and play resumed at 6:17. The game was played in its entirety.

But, this could have turned into a mess for all involved.

Consider what would have happened if the game could not have been restarted: the two teams likely would have been summoned back to New Enterpriese -- a two-hour drive for each team and their fans -- the next day. A lot of time and money would have been wasted.

In our opinion, there are two things the PIAA could have done to prevent what looked like a sure disaster.

1 -- Play the game at a site with lights. Sure, Replogle Field was a great choice in terms of distance between schools, but the lack of lights meant the game needed to be over by 8 p.m. When a game involves teams that are traveling such a far distance to reach a field, the PIAA should put the game at a location that can wait out a lengthy delay.

2 -- Start the game earlier. Let's face it, summer weather is here and that means thunderstorms roll in during the late afternoon. Why not schedule first pitch for 2 p.m.? Look, everyone from Punxy and Northern likely missed a day of work anyway to get to the game, so there's no reason to start when potential storms could arrive and wreak havoc.

Don't take this the wrong way, we like the fact that some traditional east teams play through the west and vice versa to even things out, but when these matchups occur, the PIAA should do all it can to ensure that a game is played in its entirety when both teams are at a field.

That means finding a site best suited for such a game that's as close to equal distance between participating schools as possible.

We don't think Replogle Field fit that description. Not when there are two better choices in Altoona and two more in State College.

Read up on the powerful Warriors

At Inside the Red Zone, we are big proponents of summer reading.

So, in anticipation of Monday's PIAA Class AAA baseball semifinal between Northern (21-5) and Elizabeth Forward (23-0), we offer a few articles about the Warriors, who are trying to become the first WPIAL baseball team to finish as undefeated state champions.

Game stories from Elizabeth Forward's quarterfinal win over Grove City:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Note: We hoped to post the Sharon Herald's story but, unfortunately, the site requires a payment to read the entire article.

Here's another story on Elizabeth Forward:

Feature on the Warriors prior to the quarterfinals from the Post-Gazette

Unique field awaits Northern, EF

It seems every year, a high school football field replaces its grass with a synthetic arifical surface.

But, not many baseball do that.

Somerset did prior to the 2010 season and, for the first time, the completely renovated facility is hosting a PIAA playoff game.

Northern (21-5) meets Elizabeth Forward (23-0) at Somerset on Monday in a PIAA Class AAA semifinal at 4 p.m.

To read about upgraded baseball field, click here.

Polar Bears off to Somerset

Northern continues its quest for a PIAA Class AAA baseball championship Monday with a trip to Somerset Area Senior High School to meet District 7 champion Elizabeth Forward (23-0) at 4 p.m.

This run is the furthest for Northern baseball since 2006 when the Polar Bears dropped a 2-1 decision to Sun Valley in the state semifinals.

The winner of Monday's game in Somerset will play either Blue Mountain (20-4) or Tunkhannock (18-2) at Friday in the state championship at Medlar Field in State College at 1 p.m.

The keys to winning

There are certain things we feel the Mechanicsburg and Northern baseball teams must do Thursday if they hope to advance to the semifinal round of the PIAA Class AAA playoffs.

Here are the keys for each team.

Mechanicsburg (vs. Thunkhannock at Parkland High School, 6:30)
A return to the Sal of old: Mechanicsburg will score runs against the Tigers, but if senior right-hander Sal Purpura (the likely starter) isn't on his game, Mechanicsburg's season will end. Purpura wasn't sharp at all against Twin Valley in 3-AAA final last week, but his offense picked him up and Joey Bishop was efficient in relief. Plus, the Raiders helped by committing nine errors, something the District 2 champion Tigers probably won't do. If the Wildcats dig an early hole due to walks and hit batsmen, they might not crawl out of it this time.

Northern (vs. Punxsutawney at Replogle Field, New Enterprise, 4)
Everyone contributes: At one point in Monday's game against the Somerst, the bottom four batters in Northern's order were a combined 1 for 8. They finished the game 4 for 16. The first five batters in the order went 10 for 17 and had eight of the team's 10 RBIs. We know the Polar Bears have some youngsters down below and are dealing with injuries, but this is the time those players need to step up. To beat District 9 champion Punxsutawney, the Polar Bears need all nine of their batters to contribute.

Stories about Tigers, Chucks

Below are links to game stories from Monday's PIAA Class AAA playoffs involving Tunkhannock and Punxsutawney.

Mechanicsburg plays Tunkhannock in Allentown and Northern meets Punxsutawney in New Enterprise on Thursday in the quarterfinals.

Tunkhannock 11, Jersey Shore 7

Scranton Times-Tribune

Wilkes-Barre Citizen's Voice

Williamsport Sun Gazette

Punxsutawney 11, Hampton 1 (5)

Punxsutawney Spirit

Methacton displays District 1 power

The fifth-place team from District 1 is one of the final eight Class AAAA baseball teams alive in the state tournament.

And that team, Methacton, beat a District champion to get there.

Such is life in big-school Pennsylvania baseball.

Annually, District 1 flexes its collective muscle in June.

This year, four of the five qualifiers won their state opener and the other team, third-place Council Rock North, lost to a Nazareth team that has a legitimate chance to win it all.

Last season, the suburban Philadelphia district placed three teams in the state semifinals and two in the championship game. West Chester Henderson, the second-place team, beat third-place finisher Owen J. Roberts, 7-0, for state gold.

Something similar could happen this year.

Two quarterfinals are all-District 1 affairs, but the winners won't be guaranteed a spot in the state finals.

Then again, if history is any indication, at least one of those teams will make it to State College. In the six years of Class AAAA baseball, only two title games have been played without a District 1 team.

In 2009, North Penn won the state title as the district's fifth-place team.

We don't think Methacton has the tools to make a run quite that long, but one of the four remaining teams no doubt will.

Tuschak goes in sixth round

Northern outfielder Joe Tuschak was selected by the New York Mets in the sixth round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Tuesday.

Tuschak, a Coastal Carolina recruit, was taken with the 192nd overall pick.

Tuschak is batting .469 this year with six doubles, eight home runs and 30 RBIs. The four-year starter has a career average of .397 with 17 doubles, five triples, 15 home runs and 85 RBIs.

Look for Kurt Bopp's story in Wednesday's edition of The Sentinel.

Directions to Replogle Field

It took some research, but we tracked down detailed directions to Replogle Field in New Enterprise, where Northern plays Punxsutawney on Thursday in the PIAA Class AAA quarterfinals.

The directions, courtesy of Northern Bedford County High School, are below.

From Westbound on the Pennsylvania Turnpike:

Take the Breezewood exit

Follow Route 30 West for approxiately 8 miles

Turn onto Route 26 North for approximately 8 mles

Turn onto Route 36 North for approximately 4 miles

Turn onto Route 869 East

Make a left on Replogle School Road (look for a big stone church); field is on the right

If you're making the drive Thursday, have a safe trip.

PIAA baseball sites and times

Earlier today, the PIAA announced the sites and times for the quarterfinal round of the state baseball playoffs.

District 3 Class AAA champion Mechanicsburg (19-5) heads to suburban Allentown to meet District 2 champion Tunkhannock (17-2) at Parkland High School at 6:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, District 3 runner-up Northern (20-5) continues its trek through the western half of the Class AAA bracket with a game in New Enterprise at 4 p.m. against District 9 winner Punxsutawney (15-7).

Complete PIAA baseball brackets

Here are links to the complete state baseball brackets with sites and times. Area teams playing in each classification are listed after the link in parenthesis.

Class AAAA (Cedar Cliff)

Class AAA (Mechanicsburg and Northern)

Class AA

Class A

PIAA baseball trends

If history is any indication, the Cedar Cliff baseball team would have been better off losing to Manheim Township on Thursday in the District 3 Class AAAA championship game.

Why?

Well, in the expanded era (2005, when the PIAA adopted a fourth class for baseball, to present) the 3-AAAA champion has an underwhelming 1-5 record in PIAA first-round games.

The only team to win its state opener was Manheim Township in 2006 when the Blue Streaks pounded Methacton, 11-4, and eventually finished as state runner-up to Delaware Valley.

Other than that, the first round has a been a graveyard for 3-AAAA champions, who lost three of those five games by two runs or fewer.

On the other side of the coin, the 3-AAAA runner-up is a stellar 5-1 in first-round state playoff games. The lone loser over the last six years was Central Dauphin in 2008.

In Class AAA, both Mechanicsburg and Northern have a 50-50 chance to qualify for the quarterfinals. Since 2005, the 3-AAA champion and third-place team are both 3-3 in the first round.

In reality, Mechanicsburg clearly has the better draw. The Wildcats play close to home, at Northern, against a team, District 12 runner-up Franklin Towne Charter, that has as many wins (five) as Mechanicsburg has losses.

Northern is forced to make the long trip to Altoona's Blair County Ballpark to meet District 5-6 winner Somerset, which comes in with a solid 18-5 record.

Remember, historical numbers have absolutely no bearing on what happens Monday. The fact that 3-AAAA champions have been awful in state playoff openers will not affect how Cedar Cliff does against Methacton. If the Colts come out and play as well as they did in storming to the 3-AAAA title, there's a good chance we'll be seeing Cedar Cliff again on Thursday.

But, if they make mistakes and don't play well, it will be Methacton that beats them, not history.

PIAA sites announced

Two of the three area baseball teams will be close to home Monday afternoon in the first round of the PIAA playoffs. The third team is traveling a couple hours away.

Cedar Cliff and Mechanicsburg will play a doubleheader at Northern on Monday in Class AAAA and Class AAA action, respectively.

Northern will hit the road for its Class AAA game at Blair County Ballpark in Altoona.

Cedar Cliff (16-9), the 3-AAAA winner, meets District 1 fifth-place team Methacton (16-10) at 3:30 p.m.

Mechanicsburg (18-5), the 3-AAA champion, opens state play at 1 p.m. against District 12 runner-up Franklin Towne Charter (5-15).

Northern (19-5) defeated Palmyra on Thursday to qualify for the state tournament as the third-place team out of District 3. That's why the Polar Bears are heading more than two hours away for their game against District 5-6 winner Somerset (18-5).

Stories from around the state

Interested in reading about the teams Cedar Cliff, Mechanicsburg and Northern will play in next weekend's PIAA baseball playoffs?

Below are links to stories from each team's last game.

Methacton 7, West Chester East 3 (Cedar Cliff will play Methacton on Monday)

Neumann-Goretti 6, Franklin Towne Charter 1 (Mechanicsburg will play FTC on Monday)

Somerset 7, Indian Valley 3 (Northern will play Somerset on Monday)

Mechanicsburg vs. Twin Valley updates

Please check back here for inning-by-inning updates from the District 3 Class AAA championship game at Sovereign Bank Stadium in downtown York between fourth-seeded Mechanicsburg (17-5) and second-seeded Twin Valley (23-3).

UPDATE: Neumann-Goretti defeated Franklin Towne Charter, 6-1, today in the District 12 Class AAA championship in Philadelphia. That means the 3-AAA winner will stay close to home vs. Franklin Towne Charter while the runner-up heads to Philadelphia to meet N-G.

After one inning: Twin Valley 2, Mechanicsburg 0 (Northern, Palmyra 2-2 after one)

After two innings: Twin Valley 4, Mechanicsburg 1 (Northern leads Palmyra, 4-2, after three)

After three innings: Twin Valley 4, Mechanicsburg 3 (Northern leads Palmyra, 5-2, after four)

After four innings: Twin Valley 7, Mechanicsburg 5

After five innings: Twin Valley 8, Mechanicsburg 5 (Northern defeats Palmyra, 8-4, will play Somerset on Monday)

After six innings: Twin Valley 8, Mechanicsburg 8

After seven innings: Twin Valley 8, Mechanicsburg 8

Final score: Mechanicsburg 14, Twin Valley 8 (Mechanicsburg's first district baseball title)

Cedar Cliff vs. Manheim Township updates

We won't have rapid updates from today's District 3 Class AAAA final at Sovereign Bank Stadium in York between No. 16 Cedar Cliff (15-9) and No. 10 Manheim Township (16-6), but will provide the score after every inning.

Please check back here for updates.

After one inning: Cedar Cliff 3, Manheim Twp. 0

After two innings: Cedar Cliff 3, Manheim Twp. 2

After three innings: Cedar Cliff 3, Manheim Twp. 2

After four innings: Manheim Twp. 4, Cedar Cliff 3

After five innings: Cedar Cliff 6, Manheim Twp. 5

After six innings: Cedar Cliff 9, Manheim Twp. 5

Final score: Cedar Cliff 9, Manheim Twp. 5 (first baseball title in school history for Cedar Cliff)

3-AAAA final pushed back to 1:30

The field at Sovereign Bank Stadium in York wasn't completely ready for the start of today's District 3 Class AAAA, so the game will begin at 1:30 p.m.

The early start is due to Manheim Township's commencement ceremony tonight.

Mechanicsburg's potential opponents

It took some serious legwork, but early this morning, we finally tracked down which teams Mechanicsburg could see in the first round of the PIAA Class AAA playoffs Monday.

The Wildcats (17-5) meet Twin Valley (23-3) in the District 3-AAA final today at Sovereign Bank Stadium in York at 4 p.m.

If Mechanicsburg wins its first district title, it will play the District 12 runner-up, either Franklin Towne Charter or Neumann-Goretti at a District 3 site.

A loss and Mechanicsburg will head to Philadelphia to play the winner between the aforementioned teams.

Franklin Towne Charter and Neumann-Goretti play for the 12-AAA title at noon today in downtown Philadelphia.

Northern's potential opponent

If Northern is lucky enough to secure the district's third and final bid to the PIAA Class AAA tournament, it will meet District 5-6 champion Somerset on Monday at a District 6 site.

The Eagles (18-5) cruised to an easy 7-3 win over Indian Valley on Wednesday at Altoona's Blair County Ballpark in the district championship game.

Somerset was the PIAA Class AAA runner-up in 2008. Northern, which will play Palmyra on Thursday in Hershey for third place, hasn't been to the state tournament since 2006.

Cedar Cliff's potential opponents

There's some incentive to win the District 3 Class AAAA championship. If you're the district champion, you're playing close to home Monday in the first round of the PIAA Class AAAA tournament against the fifth-place team from District 1.

Lose, and it's likely a trip to Bowman Field in Williamsport to face a district champion.

Awaiting the loser of Thursday's 3-AAAA final between Cedar Cliff (15-9) and Manheim Twp. (16-6) is District 2/4 winner Williamsport (15-4). The Millionaires beat Scranton, 8-3, Tuesday night to win their first district title since 2008.

The 3-AAAA winner will play either Methacton or West Chester East. Those two teams will play for fifth place at 3 p.m. tomorrow at Devon Prep.

Game stories from Tuesday

As much as I'd like to, I can't cover all of our three remaining baseball teams where they're all at different sites. That was the case Tuesday, so two other staff members pitched in and helped to ensure that all three area teams were covered in the District 3 baseball semifinals.

Here are links to the stories

Class AAAA: Cedar Cliff 5, New Oxford 4

Class AAA: Twin Valley 4, Northern 3 (8)

Class AAA: Mechanicsburg 8, Palmyra 2

Wildcats aim for history

We've been wrapped up in this run Cedar Cliff is making as the No. 16 seed.

Lost in the shuffle is the fact that Mechanicsburg is gunning for its first district baseball title as well.

On Thursday at Sovereign Bank Stadium in York, the fourth-seeded Wildcats (17-5) meet second-seeded Twin Valley (22-2) at 4 p.m. in the District 3 Class AAA final.

Accoring to Ryan Hartman, the assistant athletic director at Mechanicsburg Area Senior High School, the school has played for three district titles and lost them all.

Prior to this year, the Wildcats, who also locked up a state tournament bid with Tuesday's 8-2 win over Palmyra, played for district gold in 1984 and 1999.

Early start time Thursday

Cedar Cliff will play for its first district baseball title in the afternoon sun.

Due to graduation ceremonies at Manheim Township High School on Thursday evening, the baseball team has to play an early afternoon game.

That means Cedar Cliff and Manheim Twp. will butt heads at 1 p.m. Thursday at Sovereign Bank Stadium in downtown York.

The Blue Streaks (16-6) pounded Spring Grove, 7-3, Tuesday while Cedar Cliff (15-9) jumped out to an early lead and held off New Oxford, 5-4.

In Class AAA, Mechanicsburg will also be playing at Sovereign Bank Stadium. The Wildcats meet Twin Valley at 4 p.m.

Northern will play for the final 3-AAA state playoff berth Thursday at 4 p.m. against Palmyra at Memorial Field in Hershey.

Quick history lesson

Before the District 3 baseball semifinals begin later this afternoon, we're offering a look back at the last time our three semifinalists made it this far.

Cedar Cliff, which will play New Oxford at 5 p.m. in 3-AAAA today at Northern, has never been the semifinals in Class AAAA. The Colts entered this postseason with a 1-5 record in the state's largest classification (the PIAA adopted four classes for baseball beginning with the 2005 season).

Northern, which meets Twin Valley at 4 p.m. in 3-AAA today at Red Lion, won its district semifinal the last time it got this far before falling to Susquehannock, 3-2, in the 2006 championship game.

Mechanicsburg is making its first appearance in the 3-AAA semifinals since 2004 when it advanced with a thrilling 13-inning win over Cumberland Valley in the quarterfinals. Chambersburg ended the Wildcats' run with a 3-2 semifinal victory.

Mechanicsburg plays Keystone Division rival Palmyra at Memorial Field in Hershey at 6:30 tonight.

Colts defying odds

This week, the Cedar Cliff baseball team will play for both a District 3 Class AAAA title and, more importantly, a bid to the state playoffs.

During the regular season, the Colts lost nine games to seven teams.

What's fascinating is the fact that six of thost teams have been eliminated from their respective district playoffs.

Here's a look at the teams that beat Cedar Cliff, the scores of the games and when the winning team's season ended.

Cumberland Valley (L, 2-3 and 6-7): lost in 3-AAAA first round

Altoona (L, 4-10): lost in 6-AAAA semifinals

Chambersburg (L, 5-6 and 5-13): lost in 3-AAAA quarterfinals

Red Land (L, 14-15): lost in 3-AAAA first round

State College (L, 4-7): lost in 6-AAAA semifinals

West York (L, 6-10): lost in 3-AAA first round

Mechanicsburg (L, 3-4): alive in 3-AAA semifinals

Scouts are finished

When the PIAA crowns baseball champions June 17 at Medlar Field in State College, there will be four new teams hoisting the trophies that day.

Thursday night in Muhlenberg, Twin Valley dumped rival Conrad Weiser, 5-3, in the District 3 Class AAA semifinals.

Weiser, which lost 10 seniors from last year's dominant team, was the final defending state champion still alive this spring.

Camp Hill is the last team to repeat as state baseball champions. The Lions captured state gold in 2008 and 2009.

In other news today, we're still awaiting word as to where the final three area baseball teams will be playing Tuesday.

In Class AAAA, Cedar Cliff will play either New Oxford or Chambersburg. In Class AAA, Northern meets Twin Valley and Mechanicsburg plays Palmyra in a matchup featuring two Mid-Penn Keystone Division teams.

Special thanks

Normally, it's the bad things people do that get the biggest attention in newspapers.

Today, I'm going to talk about the good things people did Thursday night.

When a severe storm bore down on Fredericksburg and those in attendance at the District 3 Class AAAA quarterfinal between Cedar Cliff and Lower Dauphin were asked to seek shelter, I literally had nowhere to go.

Not being familiar with anything remotely close to Fredericksburg, jumping in my car was pointless, especially if a tornando did hit. Luckily, the good folks at Fredericksburg Legion Post 915 -- the building is located near the baseball field -- opened their doors to both myself and a handfull of other people from the game.

Once inside, I realized how serious it was: the National Weather Service issued a Tornando Warning for numerous counties in the area, including Lebanon. The worst of it was to hit Fredericksburg at 8 p.m., roughly five minutes after I stepped inside.

After about 45 minutes in the Legion, Cedar Cliff catcher Will Enrico's mother offered to drive me back over to the field so I could interview Colts coach Justin Phillips without being soaked from the rain that was hanging around. When we were done, she drove me to my car at the top of the hill.

None of the people who helped Thursday night did it to get their son's name in the paper or to get good publicity for their Legion. They did it because they're good people and to them, I want to offer another thank you.

Defending champs go splat

Coming into Thursday's playoff action, only one defending PIAA baseball champion remains.

That team is Conrad Weiser, which stormed to the Class AAA title last year but lost 10 seniors from that team. The Scouts opened their playoff run with a 7-4 victory over Trinity in the 3-AAA first round. Awaiting them tonight in the quarterfinals at Muhlenberg's Gochnauer Field is a Twin Valley team that swept them in the regular season.

West Chester Henderson, the defending AAAA champion, didn't surive the second round of the District 1 playoffs. Henderson fell to last year's state runner-up, Owen J. Roberts, 8-2.

Last year's Class AA champion, Bermudian Springs, was bumped up to Class AAA this year and didn't survive District 3's preliminary round, dropping a tough 8-7 decision to Kennard-Dale in eight innings.

Now, for the most shocking score of the district playoffs this season. Perennial power Christopher Dock, the defending Class A champion and the top seed in District 1-A, lost to eighth-seeded Jenkintown, 3-2, Tuesday.

That's a shocking turn of events for the three-time state champions who opened the season by crushing Jenkintown, 13-3. The Pioneers were three-time defending champions of District 1-A.

Madness engulfs 3-AAAA playoffs

Another year, another district baseball playoffs full of upsets.

Normally, we're writing about how wild and crazy the District 3 Class AAA field. But, after the first round, that bracket is pretty solid. The only two real surprises were No. 12 Hershey over No. 5 West York and No. 14 Greecastle-Antrim's win over third-seeded West Perry.

Shippensburg, No. 17, nearly turned the bracket on its head by beating top-seeded Lampeter-Strasburg, but the Greyhounds came out just short in a 1-0 loss.

So, that bracket is fairly sound.

Such is not the case for Class AAAA. Consider the following teams that are out:

• Governor Mifflin (No. 1) -- the Mustangs won Berks I and Berks County Tournament titles and were 17-2 until No. 16 Cedar Cliff sent them packing, 4-3, Tuesday


• Cedar Crest (No. 2) -- the defending district champion were Lancaster-Lebanon Section I and Lancaster-Lebanon Tournament champions. No. 15 Wilson ended Crest's season, 11-4, Tuesday.


• Red Land (No. 3) -- Patriots came in winners of nine straight and were 16-4 before falling, 8-7, to No. 14 Spring Grove on Monday.


• Cumberland Valley (No. 6) -- Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division champions came into this one limping. The Eagles lost their final two games of the season (to Ephrata and to West Perry in the Mid-Penn Tournament) and were without Mike Palkovitz, their slugging first baseman who missed the game due to undisclosed injury. Warwick ended CV's season, 3-2.


• South Western (No. 18) -- Sure, the Mustangs weren't a very high seed, but they were the defending 3-AAAA runners-up. Wilson took care of them, 9-2, in Saturday's preliminary round.

Now, the question becomes: who is the favorite to win this thing? Well, we picked Crest to beat Hempfield in the final with Chambersburg grabbing the third bid to states by beating Red Land.

The fourth-seeded Trojans are now our favorite ... unless Lower Dauphin beats Cedar Cliff. If that happens, we could see Chambersburg's Mitch Warner vs. LD's Casey Kulina in the semifinals on Tuesday. Winner of that would be the favorite, but, with Kulina unavailable Thursday, we like Cedar Cliff to knock the Falcons out and have a shot to crack the state field with one more win.

In the bottom half, Warwick should emerge by beating Spring Grove and Manheim Twp.

So, our new picks for top three in 3-AAAA: Chambersburg, Warwick and Manheim Twp.

Baseball sites, times announced

The three remaining baseball teams from the area will all by playing at 4 p.m. Thursday in the quarterfinal round of the District 3 playoffs, baseball chairman Pat Tulley announced Tuesday afternoon.

In Class AAA, No. 12 Hershey (13-8) meets No. 4 Mechanicsburg (15-5) at Northern. The game will be the third between the Keystone Division rivals this year. The teams split the season series.

Another division game pits No. 14 Greencastle-Antrim vs. No. 6 Northern at Boiling Springs. The Polar Bears (17-4) swept two games from G-A (13-8) during Colonial Division play.

And, in Class AA, upstart Boiling Springs (11-10), seeded ninth, heads to Red Lion's Horn Field to play top-seeded Delone Catholic (17-1).

There two other games tonight that were postponed from last evening involving area teams. Cedar Cliff plays top-seeded Governor Mifflin at 5 p.m. in a 3-AAAA game at Gochnauer Field in Muhlenberg while Trinity travels to Ephrata's War Memorial Stadium at 4 to play defending district and state champion Conrad Weiser in 3-AAA.

Stiff tests await Panthers, Hounds

Back in early April, the Shippensburg and East Pennsboro baseball teams met at John H. Gross Field for a Mid-Penn non-division game.

Monday afternoon, those two teams have a chance to turn the District 3 Class AAA bracket on its head.

In the early game at Ephrata's War Memorial Stadium, the No. 17 seed Greyhounds (11-8) meet top-seeded Lampeter-Strasburg. Remember, the Pioneers didn't lose a game until they met defending District 3-AAAA champion Cedar Crest in the Lancaster-Lebanon League Tournament.

In downtown Reading on Monday at 6:30 p.m., No. 15 seed East Penn has it works cut out for it against second-seeded and Berks County Tournament runner-up Twin Valley.

The Panthers (14-6) are expected to send A.J. Wilson to mound (with Zach Nye available in relief) against the powerful Raiders, who advanced to the state semifinals last June.

Those are the matchups. Now, consider what happens if either, or both, of these teams win.

East Penn has the best shot and if the Panthers clear this hurdle, they'll get either Conrad Weiser or Trinity in the next round. Shippensburg, which will likely start Marshal Witmer, will play Palmyra or Garden Spot on Thursday.

Remember, there's always one or two teams that come out of nowhere in the 3-AAA bracket and make a push at the state tournament.

Right now, the two best teams to fit that mold are Shippensburg and No. 20 Kennard-Dale, which worked extra innings to bounce last year's Class AA state champion Bermudian Springs.

West Perry opens with G-A

Thanks to a resounding 10-4 win over visiting Manheim Central in the preliminary round of the District 3 Class AAA baseball playoffs, Greencastle-Antrim will be West Perry's first-round opponent Monday.

West Perry, tri-champions of the Mid-Penn Capital Division, will play the Blue Devils at 6:30 p.m. at Newport's Katchmer Field.

The Mustangs (19-3), who have been to the 3-AAA quarterfinals two of the last three years, are seeded third. Greencastle-Antrim (12-8) is No. 14.

Colts have shot at redemption

One year ago, Cedar Cliff fell flat in the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs.

The top-seeded Colts, who cruised to both the Mid-Penn Commonwealth title and the conference tournament championship, failed to score a run against No. 16 Hempfield in a 1-0 loss to the Black Knights in the first round.

This year, coach Justin Phillips' team is a decided underdog for its first-round game against powerful Governor Mifflin on Monday at Gochnauer Field in Muhlenberg.

First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.

The Mustangs are in much the same position as Cedar Cliff was last year. Governor Mifflin is coming off a Berks I title and the Berks County Tournament championship.

Obviously, this team has dreams of playing well past Memorial Day.

But, these Colts won't be an easy out.

Cedar Cliff is expected to send left-hander Jordan Lawson (above) to the mound. The well-rested Lawson hasn't pitched in over a month due to an undisclosed injury. A number of Mid-Penn coaches have said he might be the best pitcher in the conference.

Plus, the Colts, who have won six of their last eight, boast an extremely potent offense that can score with the best of them.

Maybe the most important aspect of this team is the fact that it's playing without much pressure. Last year, Cedar Cliff was expected to make a deep run in both the district and state playoffs. This year, with a 12-9 record after dispatching Carlisle on Friday, no such run is expected.

In the end, that might just help the Colts.

Closing the Mid-Penn season

Thursday's steady rain officially ended the Mid-Penn Conference baseball season with the cancellation of its annual four-team tournament.

But, before we move on to the District 3 tournament, we're going to take a look back at the past results of the Mid-Penn Tournament, which changed to its current format in 2007.

2011 -- rained out

2010 -- Cedar Cliff (Commonwealth) 14, Northern (Colonial) 2 in 6

2009 -- Northern (Colonial) 6, Mechanicsburg (Keystone) 3

2008 -- Chambersburg 5 (Commonwealth), Shippensburg (Colonial) 3

2007 -- Waynesboro (Colonail) 12, Lower Dauphin (Keystone) 3