IMMACULATA, Pa.- For the third consecutive year, the Mighty Mac baseball team (21-19, 11-7 CSAC) will be competing for a Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) Championship as they open up play in the four-team, double elimination tournament on Thursday afternoon.  Immaculata earned the number two seed, the highest in program history, and will host No. 3 Neumann on Thursday afternoon at the IU Baseball Field.
 
No. 1 Keystone hosts No. 4 Gwynedd Mercy on Thursday at 3 p.m. in the other game.  The winners will play on Friday morning at 10:30 a.m. at Keystone College, while the losers from the opening games will play in an elimination game on Friday morning at Marywood University.  The loser of Friday's winners' bracket game will play the winner of the elimination game on Friday afternoon at Keystone College in another elimination game.
 
The two teams left standing after Friday will play for the CSAC Championship on Saturday at 12 p.m. at Keystone College.
 
Immaculata is making their fourth appearance overall in the CSAC Tournament, and they have gone 1-2 in each of their previous three trips in 2011, 2014, and 2015.  They are 1-1 against Neumann in team postseason history as they got a 12-1 victory over the Knights in 2014, and were eliminated by Neumann last year by a score of 22-9.
 
This season, the Macs took two out of three from Neumann (19-17, 11-7 CSAC) by sweeping the doubleheader at their home field, where the Macs are 13-2 this season.  Neumann took the opener in the series on Friday, April 15^th by a score of 8-5.  The Macs were leading 3-1 heading into the fourth inning, aided by a two-run double by Second Team All-CSAC designated hitter Matt Simon, but the Knights scored six runs against junior Ryan Blough to take a 7-3 lead.  Honorable Mention All-CSAC first baseman Mike Lascomb would hit a home run in the next inning, but the Macs were never able to cut into the lead significantly in the loss.  Neumann's Honorable Mention All-CSAC starting pitcher Kristian DeLuzio got the win on the mound for the Knights as he went seven innings and allowed three earned runs.
 
On Saturday, April 16^th, the two teams met again for a doubleheader at the IU Baseball Field.  The Macs jumped all over Neumann from the start scoring one in the first, three in the second, and three in the third to take a commanding 7-0 lead.  From there, Second Team All-CSAC starting pitcher Dan Whalen never let the Knights get close despite single runs in the fourth, fifth, and seventh innings in a 7-3 IU victory.  Whalen allowed eight hits, two earned runs and three walks while striking out seven in the win.
 
In the second game, it was Neumann's turn to take the early lead as they jumped out to a 4-0 advantage through three innings, led by a two run home run by CSAC Player of the Year Cody MacNair.  The Macs scored two in the fourth, but Neumann would add a run in the fifth to take a 5-2 lead.  Immaculata went down to their last at bat trailing by three and rallied with four runs in their final at bat to defeat the Knights, 6-5.  Honorable Mention All-CSAC outfielder Howie Kalamets laid down a perfect RBI bunt single with two outs to tie the game, and Simon followed him with the walk-off RBI single to center field to get the victory for IU.
 
The Macs will look to Second Team All-CSAC catcher Ryan Tecco (.370, 37 hits), First Team All-CSAC outfielder Jason McCormick (.343, team record 47 runs scored, 16 doubles), Lascomb (.315, 33 RBIs), Simon (.308, 21 runs), and Kalamets (.298, 3 HR, 8 triples) to lead the Immaculata offense.  On the mound, the Macs will rely on Whalen (5-1, 2.71 ERA, 63 IP, 65 K), Second Team All-CSAC reliever Trevor O'Brien (5-2, 3.64 ERA, 42 IP), and Blough (3-6, 7.13 ERA, 48 IP).
 
Neumann is led by MacNair (.388, 29 RBI, 50 hits), Eric Bergman (.379, 50 hits, 30 RBI), Chuck Trentler (.339, 10 doubles), and Curt Yenchik (.325, 23 RBI) offensively.  On the mound, DeLuzio (5-4, 4.48 ERA, 78.1 IP) and Patrick Graham (2-4, 4.03 ERA) have logged the most innings.
 
The Mighty Macs will then match up with either Keystone or Gwynedd Mercy in their next game.  IU lost two of three to Keystone and defeated Gwynedd Mercy in two of three games.
 
Be sure to stay up to date by checking www.gomightymacs.com for all updates throughout the weekend.