PHOENIXVILLE, PA — For the second time in three years, Strath Haven and Phoenixville will meet in the PIAA District 1 5A playoffs.
Strath Haven took that one back in 2023 5-0 behind a complete game shutout from Alex Pak as Strath Haven would eventually win the district title over Upper Dublin. Only RHP/1B Luke D’Ancona and SS Ben Milligan remain from that team for the Panthers.
This one will take place at Phoenixville High School at 4:00. You can follow me on Twitter @BPRicciardi for live updates, and @DelcoBaseball for live updates from every game. We will have a reporter and a photographer at every single game, which is a pretty cool feeling for me selfishly.
Strath Haven went 10-6 this season while Phoenixville went 9-7. These teams seem very similar on paper, there is just one glaring question that will very likely decide this matchup.
Are we going to see Boston College recruit Luke D’Ancona on the mound for Strath Haven? And if so, how effective will he be?
D’Ancona was off to another elite start to the year when he hurt his pec way back on April 2nd against Marple Newtown. He came back on April 28th and threw two scoreless innings against Ridley, but has not pitched again since then.
If D’Ancona is anywhere close to 100%, you could argue he’s the best pitcher in Delco.
If he is unable to go, we will likely see senior LHP Rob Mattai get the ball. Mattai has been a very strong #2 for the Panthers and has filled in as the top dog this season with D’Ancona hurt. Expect to see Caden Shuster and Jasper Hals in relief as well.
Offensively, Strath Haven is led at the top of the order by Ben Milligan, their shortstop. The Dickinson recruit has a ton of speed at the top of the order and is an immediate threat on the bases.
While mostly know for his arm, Luke D’Ancona has had a great season at the plate as well in the middle of the order. Alex Selverian and Eli Price are also top of the order bats for this Panthers team who has struggled at times to score this year but can be very streaky.
The X Factor for this Panther lineup is Atticus Bean. The junior did not play much early on this season but has taken advantage of all the opportunities that Strath Haven Head Coach Brian Fili has given him and has earned a starting role for this team.
On the Phoenixville side of the ball, we are expecting to see Penn State Harrisburg recruit Kevin Kingsbury on the mound. Kingsbury leads the team in innings pitched with 35 innings pitched and an ERA of 2.60. He has 31 strikeouts compared to 28 walks, so Strath Haven needs to be patient and not be afraid to see some pitches.
We could also see Tommy Whitesel, who is second on the team in innings pitched with 32.1 and a 4.11 ERA. Colin Coleman has thrown 27 innings pitched this season but has an ERA of 0.78, so he may be the one that ends up getting the call.
Kingsbury is also second on the team with a .377 average and leads the team with a 1.144 OPS. He has two homers, two triples, and three doubles on the year. His brother, Drew, was on my 2023 National Champion Penn State Club Baseball team so I’m going to have to root for him to do well, but not too well.
Giovanni Vito leads the team in average at .392 and is second in OPS at 1.013. While this team has some good hitters, Vito and Kingsbury seem to be the top two to focus on.
They also have Alvernia recruit Bobby Gray, who is hitting .288 on the year as well as uncommitted shortstop Ryan Jacobson hitting .310.
This isn’t exactly going out on a limb based on the seeding matchup, but this feels like it could be the closest of our four games today. It very well could come down to whether or not Luke D’Ancona is able to throw.
The winner of this game will take on #1 Chichester. That game is currently schedule for Wednesday, but the weather does not look great so we will see what happens.
Phoenixville lost in the first round last year to Marple Newtown and will look to change that up. Strath Haven also lost to Marple Newtown last year in the semis then were knocked out by Upper Dublin in the states playback game.