Bulldogs continue playoff push; Saints win ahead of Berks III showdown with Lynx

Wilson continued its late-season playoff push Tuesday, edging Daniel Boone 4-3 in nine innings in a Berks Baseball League Division I-II crossover game at Wilson West.

The win was the third straight for the Bulldogs (6-4 Berks I, 10-6), who now have the second-best power rating in the league and are on the cusp of locking up a wildcard playoff spot. Wilson got a three-hit effort from Christo Hunsicker, two RBIs from Charlie Frantz and three perfect innings of relief from winning pitcher Ben Kulp.

The Bulldogs haven’t beaten Exeter, Muhlenberg and Daniel Boone — each a district playoff contender — in the least week by a combined 24-12 score.

The loss by the Blazers (4-6 Berks II, 10-7) helped idle Fleetwood inch closer to the Berks II title.

The Tigers (5-4 Berks II, 11-6) need one win in their final two league games or losses by both Twin Valley (4-5 Berks II, 6-9) and Daniel Boone to clinch the title. Fleetwood plays at Muhlenberg Wednesday and closes league play at home Thursday against Conrad Weiser.

Muhlenberg (7-3 Berks I, 9-5) remained a game ahead of Wilson with an 11-7 win over Exeter (4-6 Berks I, 9-8) at Gochnauer Field. The Muhls got an outstanding relief effort from freshman Cole Moody, who went the final five innings and allowed just one hit and one run, striking out six; he earned the win.

Julian Hatt reached base four times and scored three runs for the Muhls and Cam Burr had two hits, stole two bases and scored twice. The Muhls drew 11 walks and recorded seven stolen bases without being caught.

Berks Catholic (6-4 Berks III, 13-5) kept alive hopes for a division title with a 4-2 win over Tulpehocken in the completion of a game suspended on Monday. Freshman Dillon Walls pitched five innings Tuesday, allowing two hits while striking out five to pick up the win.

Parker Nein had two hits and two RBIs for the Saints, who host division-leading Oley Valley (8-2 Berks III, 10-7) Wednesday. The Lynx can clinch the division title with a win.

If the Saints win out – they complete league play Friday at Schuylkill Valley – and the Lynx lose their league finale against Berks IV-leading Brandywine Heights on Friday the teams would finish tied at 8-4 in league play. The Saints would likely earn the division title and automatic Berks playoff berth based on their tiebreaker advantage, a higher power rating.

The Berks IV race tightened Tuesday as Kutztown (7-3 Berks IV, 12-5) beat Schuylkill Valley (4-7 Berks III, 6-10) 16-3. Nick Hugo homered and drove in three runs for the Cougars; Dalton Furst and Colin Diehl also each had three RBIs.

The Cougars trail Brandywine Heights (7-2 Berks IV, 10-4) by one game; they wrap up league play Friday against Tulpehocken (3-7 Berks IV, 7-9). The Bullets play at Tulpehocken Wednesday and at Oley Valley Friday. If the teams end up tied Kutztown, which entered play Tuesday with a 28-point power rating lead over the Bullets, would likely earn the division title and automatic playoff berth. The teams split their regular season meetings.

Sixteen of the 18 teams in the league are expected to have their league games completed by Friday. Gov. Mifflin and Reading High are scheduled to complete league play Monday afternoon at George Field.

The BCIAA Tournament opens May 11 with quarterfinals at Owls Field and Gochnauer Field.

Eight teams qualify for the league playoffs: The four division champs, two second-place teams and two wild cards (based on power rating).

The league semifinals are Saturday, May 13, at FirstEnergy Stadium, starting at 9 a.m. The championship game is back at FirstEnergy on Monday, May 15.