ELIZABETHTHOWN COLLEGE BASEBALL
Monday, March 20, 2006

Elizabethtown Completes Series Sweep of Defending Conference Champion Messiah with 10-1 Win

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- Elizabethtown defeated defending Commonwealth Conference champion Messiah for the third game in a row Monday, completing the Blue Jays’ 2006 series sweep against the Falcons with a 10-1 win in a nine-inning game at Etown. The Blue Jays had also defeated Messiah 5-3 and 8-4 during a doubleheader of seven-inning games in Grantham Saturday. Etown improves to 8-5-1 overall and 3-0 in the conference with Monday’s win, while Messiah drops to 5-10 overall and 0-3 in the conference.

Etown chased Messiah’s starting pitcher from the game in a five run burst in the bottom of the first inning. Adam Sheibley (Landisburg, PA/West Perry) and Mike Donahue (Hatfield, PA/Lansdale Catholic) opened up the bottom half of the inning with walks, and Jon Kalejta (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown) loaded the bases with no one out when he reached on a throwing error. Dean Whetham (Wilmington, DE/Brandywine) followed with a two-RBI single. With Whetham and Kalejta on first and second, Bryan Torresani (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) moved the pair up to second on third with a sacrifice bunt for Etown’s first out. Following a second Etown out, Tom Semanek (Swoyersville, PA/Bishop Hoban) singled to drive both runners home. Jared Auman (Northumberland, PA/Shikellamy) followed with a single, and Ryan White (Lebanon, PA/Cedar Crest) walked to load the bases once more. Sheibley then came to the plate for the second time in the inning and walked again to drive home Semanek for the final run of the inning.

Messiah scored its only run in the top of the third inning as Stephen Bozzo (Stoney Brook, NY/Ward Melville) led off with a double, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a Craig Mease (Quakertown, PA/Quakertown) sacrifice fly.

Etown added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth. With two out, Auman singled, and White followed with a walk. Auman attempted to steal on what turned out to be the fourth ball to White, and Messiah’s catcher threw the ball into the outfield attempting to nab Auman, who advanced to third on the error. White then followed with a steal of second base a few pitches later. Sheibley then came to the plate, and he reached first on an error as Auman scored. Donahue then followed with a base-clearing triple.

The Blue Jays added their final two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning as Kalejta led off with a home run. Whetham doubled off the outfield wall in the next at bat, and Brandon Watson (Philadelphia, PA/Central) moved him up to third on a one-out single. Jared Morris (Brielle, NJ/Manasquan) followed with a single to drive home Whetham.

Whetham finished the game with two runs and two RBI while batting 2-for-5 with a double. Sheibley also scored twice and drove in two runs, and he went 0-for-2 with three walks at the plate. Kalejta went 2-for-5 with two runs, 1 RBI and a home run, and Auman hit 3-for-5 with one run. Morris hit 2-for-2 with one RBI, and Semanek went 1-for-2 with a run, two RBI and one time hit by a pitch. Donahue batted 1-for-4 with a run, two RBI, one walk and a triple. Etown pitcher Tyler Hoffman (Phoenix, MD/Loyola Blakefield) threw a complete game on the mound for Etown, spreading seven hits, one run and three walks over nine innings while striking out five to improve to 2-0.