FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
S-115-07-08
Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Baseball Looks for Third Straight Commonwealth Title

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- The Elizabethtown College baseball team will begin pursuit of its third consecutive Commonwealth Conference championship when the 2008 tournament begins on Thursday at Owls Field in West Lawn.

The Blue Jays (23-10 overall, 10-2 Commonwealth) are the top seed in the four-team field, and will face fourth-seeded Widener University in the tourney opener on Thursday at 4:00 p.m. Messiah College and Albright College round out the field in the three-day, double-elimination tournament.

Last season, the Blue Jays defeated Widener 12-1 in the championship game to win their second straight league title and advance to the NCAA Division III tournament. Elizabethtown has qualified for the conference playoffs in each of the last 10 seasons, winning three championships over that span.

Offensively, the Blue Jays carry a league-best .346 team batting average into the tournament. Seven of the team's nine starters are hitting over .300, led by senior catcher Jared Auman (Northumberland, PA/Shikellamy) at .442 with 36 RBI and junior first baseman/pitcher Sam Heaps (Landenberg, PA/Avon Grove) at .441 with 33 runs batted in.

Sophomore outfielder Rodney Francis (Pottstown, PA/Owen J. Roberts) leads the Blue Jays with 38 runs batted in and 26 walks, while his 42 runs scored and 19 stolen bases are second to junior outfielder Adam Sheibley (Landisburg, PA/West Perry), who has crossed the plate 44 times and swiped 25 bases in 27 attempts.

On the mound, Heaps has a 5-1 record and a 2.97 earned run average in nine starts. He tossed a two-hitter with nine strikeouts in his last start against Albright on Friday, and has fanned 57 batters in 57 2/3 innings on the year.

Junior Matt Kutz (New Cumberland, PA/Cedar Cliff) is 5-2 with a 4.50 ERA in nine starts as the staff's number-two starter, and also threw a shutout in his last start against Albright.

The tournament concludes on Saturday with the championship game at 12:00 p.m. Should an if-necessary game be needed, it will be played immediately following the conclusion of the first game.

Commonwealth Conference Baseball Tournament
at Owls Field - West Lawn, Pa.

Thursday, May 1
Game 1: Elizabethtown (23-10) vs. Widener (25-12), 4:00 p.m.
Game 2: Messiah (24-15) vs. Albright (16-16), 7:30 p.m.

Friday, May 2
Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 11:00 a.m.
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 3:00 p.m.
Game 5: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 3
Game 6: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 12:00 p.m.
Game 7: If necessary