BOX SCORE
Boyertown, PA (May 7, 2006) – Sophomore Zach Lutz (Mohnton, PA/Governor Mifflin) salted away the Championship MVP award throwing eight solid innings and providing offensive support with a two-run home run in the fifth as third-seeded Alvernia College won its eighth Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Baseball Championship with a 13-3 win over #2 Gwynedd-Mercy Sunday afternoon at Bear Stadium.
Lutz, pictured below, allowed just two baserunners over the first three innings and singled and scored during a five-run fourth inning as the Crusaders (30-11) staked themselves to an early lead. Senior Eric Bonds (Lancaster, PA/Penn Manor), who along with Lutz led the tournament with a .571 average, singled to open the fourth. Lutz followed with a single and a well-placed bunt by Jason Zeigler (Shillington, PA/Governor Mifflin) loaded the bases.
Junior transfer Chris Raniere (Manalapan, NJ/St. John Vianney) knocked in two of his tournament-best nine RBIs with a single up the middle and the Crusaders were up 2-0. Back-to-back fly balls plated another run and the bottom of the lineup came through when Scott Schuler (Aston, PA/Sun Valley) drove a run-scoring single up the middle and Edwin Tavarez (Reading, PA/Reading) smacked an RBI triple to leftcenter.
Lutz came right after the Griffins (31-13) with the five run lead and freshman Ken Bengtson (Jamison, PA/C.B. East) doubled to lead off the bottom of the fourth and scored on a Ryan McMahon (Upper Darby, PA/Monsignor Bonner) single.
Bonds opened the fifth with a single, just as he had the fourth, and came around to score on Lutz’s long home run to leftfield. Zeigler again followed with a base hit and was stranded when Joe Harris (Norristown, PA/Kennedy-Kenrick) relieved Tim McMenamin (Maple Shade, NJ/Maple Shade) to retire Ben Reifsnyder (Wyomissing, PA/Wilson) ending the inning.
Lutz set down the Griffins in order in the fifth and the Crusaders threatened but failed to score in the top half of the sixth.
Gwynedd-Mercy junior Anthony Capella (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic) opened the sixth inning with a double and scored on a Troy Peiffer (Royersford, PA/Spring Ford) one-out single. Lutz stranded Peiffer with a flyout and a groundout.
The Crusaders had two on with two out in the seventh before Schuler walked to load the bases. Tavarez followed with an RBI single and Tim Carroll (Bensalem, PA/Conwell Egan) bounced a single through the right side to drive home another run for a 9-2 lead. Bonds then lifted a three run home run to left scoring for the sixth time on the weekend.
Lutz continued to throw strikes to open the eighth and Capella doubled and scored to close the gap to 13-3. Alvernia went quietly in the top of the eighth and Andrew Long (Pottstown, PA/Pottstown) made his third appearance of the tournament to get the Griffins in the ninth.
Alvernia head coach Yogi Lutz picked up his 497th career victory and the Crusaders captured their fourth of the last five conference titles. The PAC and Alvernia College will host the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional back in Boyertown May 17-21.
#3 Alvernia 13, #2 Gwynedd-Mercy 3
