5/13/23
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Of all the things that could have lit a fire under the Lackawanna College baseball squad in Saturday's Region XIX championship, an intentional walk in the first inning certainly wasn't high on the list. And yet, that's what happened, as the top-ranked Falcons ripped an RBI single to take the lead early in the first, then used overwhelming power at the plate and excellent relief pitching to batter #3 Delaware Tech, 15-2, to clinch the Region XIX DII Baseball championship on Saturday afternoon at Scranton HS.
 
Lackawanna College (35-15) won its third straight game in the region tournament, and fifth straight game over Delaware Tech this season, and it started in the first, when the opposition elected to intentionally walk Dennis Pierce (Quakertown, PA) in the bottom of the first inning with one out and a runner on second. Pierce had burned Del Tech a day before with two homers and a double, so on the surface the move made sense, but the next batter was Michael Miller (Lafayette Hill, PA), and Miller took exception and blasted an RBI single up the middle to score the game's first run. That hit kickstarted a Falcon offensive onslaught that registered 14 hits, nine of which were for extra bases, and three homeruns on the afternoon. Things were still relatively tight after Delaware Tech (32-19) scored two runs in the third to cut the Lackawanna advantage to 3-2, but a two-run moonshot from Eric Ludwick (Bethlehem, PA), followed by an RBI triple from Michael Rickert (Moosic, PA), boosted the Falcon advantage back out to 6-2. The wheels really came off for the visitors in the sixth, when Lackawanna brought 12 batters to the plate and pushed nine runs across, highlighted by another homer for Ludwick, and a two-run shot from Christian Rush (Perkasie, PA), which gave the Falcons an insurmountable 15-2 advantage. While the offense did its thing, Ty Morris (Manchester Valley, MD) shut the opposition down, pitching six scoreless innings out of the pen, scattering four hits and striking out a pair to get his sixth win of the season. Rush finished 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored, while Miller and Ludwick each had two hits, and Rickert was 2-for-4 with an RBI.
 
Nathan Russell (Drexel Hill, PA) got the start for Lackawanna in the first, and he pitched around a two-out walk and an error to keep Del Tech from getting off to a fast start. In the bottom frame, Ian Murphy (West Deptford, NJ) doubled with one out to give Lackawanna a baserunner. Piercer came up and, with his two-homer day fresh in the minds of Delaware Tech, he was given a pass to first base. That irked Miller, the team-leader in batting average and homeruns entering the game, and the next hitter. He promptly laced an RBI single into center field to score Murphy and make it 1-0, Falcons. Ludwick followed with a sac fly to score Pierce, and the Falcons held a 2-0 lead after one inning.
 
Russell pitched around a hit batter to keep Del Tech off the board in the second, and the Falcons got a one-out double from Mitchell Jolikko (Middletown, NY), who came home on a two-out RBI triple from Rush that made it 3-0, Falcons.
 
In the third, Del Tech had a runner at third with two outs. A hit batter put runners on the corners, and Delaware Tech hit what was at the time a huge two-run triple to right field, cutting the Falcon advantage to just one. Russell managed to recover with a man at third, and got a ground out to end the threat.
 
In the bottom frame, Miller ripped a single down the third base line with one out. Ludwick then cashed him in with a towering drive to left field, pushing the Lackawanna lead back out to three runs at 5-2. A hit batter gave Lackawanna a one-out base runner, and forced a pitching change from Delaware Tech. Rickert rudely welcomed the new pitcher with an RBI triple to left-center to make it 6-2, Falcons. Lackawanna couldn't cash in Rickert and add to its lead, sending things to the fourth.
 
Morris took over for Russell in the top of the fourth, and he pitched around a leadoff walk to get a strikeout and a big 6-4-3 double play to keep the Falcons in front by four.
 
Del Tech got a two-out double and an error to put runners on the corners in the top of the fifth, but a grounder to short got one of the runners out on a fielder's choice to once again strand the runners and keep Del Tech off the scoreboard.
 
There was no real action until the bottom of the sixth, when the Lackawanna offense really clicked into gear. Brayden D'Amico (Bethlehem, PA) led the inning off by getting hit by a pitch, giving the Falcons a baserunner. Rush singled, and D'Amico advanced to third on an error at first base. Rush stole second to put both runners in scoring position, and Murphy doubled both of them home to make it 8-2, Falcons. Murphy moved to third on a wild pitch, then scored on a wild ball four that put Pierce on base, making it 9-2 Falcons and forcing a pitching change for Delaware Tech. A ground out retired the first Falcon of the inning, and in stepped Ludwick, who jumped on a pitch and rode it even further than his first out to left field, crushing another two-run blast and pushing the Falcons' lead out to 11-2. Two more errors led to another run scoring, and D'Amico came up and doubled home another run that made it 13-2, Falcons. That brought Rush back to the plate in the inning, and it was Christian's turn to go yard, cranking a two-run homer of his own over the left field fence to make it 15-2, Falcons, heading into the final three innings.
 
Morris worked out of a single and a passed ball to keep a run from crossing in the seventh, and then worked out trouble in the top of the ninth, when a single looked to put runners on the corners, but the Falcons had an excellent relay from right to third put the runner out. Another single, followed by a balk, put runners on second and third with two outs, but Morris got a final ground out to D'Amico at short, who tossed to first for the final out, which set off the celebration in the Falcons' dugout, spilling onto the infield as Lackawanna celebrated the region title.
 
The win gives Lackawanna College its third Region XIX championship in the last five seasons under coach Michael McCarry, who was named the Region XIX DII Coach of the Year. The Falcons' 35 wins are the most the program has had under McCarry, and are the most wins for the program in a season since winning 35 in 2017. Ludwick was named the tournament's most outstanding player. He finished a combined 3-for-7 with seven RBI, two runs scored, a double, and two two-run homeruns in two of the three games.  
 
Both Lackawanna College and Delaware Tech advance to next weekend's NJCAA DII East District Baseball Tournament, which will take place on Friday, May 19^th, Saturday, May 20^th, and Sunday, May 21^st, in Scranton, PA, hosted by Lackawanna College. The other teams involved in the four-team bracket include Region 21 representative UConn Avery Point, and Region 15 champion SUNY Sullivan CC. The winner of the East District championship will earn a spot in the NJCAA DII Baseball World Series, happening May 27^th through early June in Enid, Oklahoma.
 
More details will follow at lackawannafalcons.com.