The final three weeks of the Schuylkill League baseball season has arrived with can’t miss games across the league.
Here’s a look at some of the best remaining matchups.
Tuesday, April 21: Shenandoah Valley at Williams Valley
Williams Valley (8-3) has lost two straight games after winning eight of its first nine games to start the season. Shenandoah Valley (8-4) has won five of its last seven games, most recently an 18-1 win over Weatherly.
Chase McCole leads Shenandoah Valley on the mound with a 2-1 record and 3.08 ERA, while adding 19 hits and three homers in 38 at bats. Williams Valley is led by Cayden Witmer on the mound who owns a 3-0 record and 1.12 ERA, and Fletcher Thompson leads the way at the plate with a .387 batting average. John Rautzahn has a team-high 13 hits for the Vikings.
Shenandoah Valley defeated Williams Valley 3-2 on March 26 when McCole drove in two runs and Jostin Lajara brought in the other run.
Minersville (5-6) and Nativity (3-10) met on March 26 with the Battlin’ Miners emerging with an 8-3 home win.
Minersville defeated Mahanoy Area 11-3 on April 16 after dropping four straight games while Nativity last defeated Schuylkill Haven 5-4 on April 16 after dropping four straight games prior to that.
Trey Keating leads the Hilltoppers with a .390 batting average and 16 hits while Minersville’s lineup is led by Nolan Plesnarski, Camden Rogers and Jason Correll.
Tuesday, April 21: Blue Mountain at North Schuylkill
Blue Mountain (10-1) and North Schuylkill (7-4) last met on March 26, a 2-1 win for the Eagles.
Aaron Brayford leads the Spartans lineup with a .303 batting average and 10 hits while Chase Slotcavage owns a 3-2 record with a 0.56 ERA on the mound.
The Eagles have won six straight games going back to a 15-4 win at Tamaqua on April 2. The Spartans have won four of their last six games, the most recent a 10-0 shutout of Berwick on April 18.
Blue Mountain (10-1) is on a tear this season and is currently riding a six-game winning streak while Tri-Valley (10-4) has won its last two games.
The Eagles have benefitted from their dangerous lineup this season which has outscored opponents, 82-19. Josh Hoover, Frankie Russo and Cohen Kirby lead the way at the plate. Evan Setlock leads the way on the mound, most recently shining in a complete game win over Tamaqua in which he allowed just one run on five hits with eight strikeouts.
The Bulldogs have brought the power at the plate again this season as the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents, 109-52. Jack Wehry, Gavin Scheib, Jason Stewart and Braeden Doyle lead the way at the plate.
The last matchup between these two teams resulted in a Tri-Valley 7-1 win on March 31.
Thursday, April 30: Schuylkill Haven at Marian Catholic
Schuylkill Haven (8-6) and Marian Catholic (9-3) will match up for the second time this season after the Hurricanes came up with a 14-4 win on April 8.
The Hurricanes have won three of their last five games, the most recent a 14-2 win over Shenandoah Valley on April 14, in which Lane Yoder drove in a team-high four runs. Marian Catholic is on a three-game winning streak with league wins over Minersville and Williams Valley.