Three Henlopen baseball teams trying to reach state semis
CAMDEN — For a number of reasons, Downstate teams have often had a tough time succeeding in the DIAA baseball state tournament.
While Cape Henlopen High has won a pair of state titles …
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Three Henlopen baseball teams trying to reach state semis
By Andy WalterCAMDEN — For a number of reasons, Downstate teams have often had a tough time succeeding in the DIAA baseball state tournament.
While Cape Henlopen High has won a pair of state titles since 2018, the Vikings were the exception.
The fact is, only nine Henlopen Conference teams have ever captured state crowns.
And between Cape in 2018 and Seaford in 1993, no Downstate squads won the championship.
But the three Henlopen squads left in this year’s state tournament are going to see if they can break through.
The four quarterfinal matchups are set for today at 4 p.m.
Top-seeded Sussex Central (16-2) hosts No. 9 Saint Mark’s at Sports at the Beach, No. 2 Sussex Tech (17-3) hosts William Penn (14-4) and No. 6 Caesar Rodney (14-5) hosts No. 19 Middletown (12-8).
Fifth-seeded Sanford (16-2) hosts No. 13 Salesianum (13-7) in the other contest today.
CR hasn’t reached a baseball state championship game since 1994. To make Thursday’s semifinals, the Riders will have to get past a Middletown team that just pulled off the biggest upset of the tourney.
On Saturday, the Cavaliers knocked off No. 3 Cape Henlopen, 5-4, in Lewes.
Riders coach Jeff Gravatt, though, knows his team just has to worry about itself.
“It’s same mentality we’ve had all year,” he said. “We’ve got to be resilient.
“The opponent doesn’t matter. If we play our game, our pitching’s going to hold us in the game. We’ve got to manufacture runs. ... If we keep playing our game we’ll be OK.”
“I’m so excited,” said CR sophomore Will Lorentz. “We’ve been playing tough teams all season.”
CR has won three games in a row and five of its last six contests going into today’s matchup. The Riders got past No. 11 Dover, 4-3, on Saturday by scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Middletown and CR didn’t face each other during the regular season this spring but the Cavs won the previous three meetings between 2021-23.
Middletown lost to Cape, 12-7, as part of an 0-3 start. But the Cavs have won six of their last seven games.
But CR already has its most wins in a season in a decade. The Riders don’t want to let it end yet.
“It’s been a great season for the program,” said Gravatt. “After losing 11 seniors, everybody thought we’d have a down year. We were not ranked in the Top 20 in the pre-season.
“We’ve exceeded everybody’s expectations. It’s awesome. It’s a credit to my coaching staff. They’ve done a phenomenal job. We’re strong, we’re doing well. Our guys are fired up and they’re believing.”
Sussex Central started the season with 13 straight victories before going just 2-2 in its last four regular-season games. The Golden Knights, though, bounced back to beat Henlopen South champion Laurel, 6-2, on Saturday.
Central scored 8.2 runs per game during the regular season while giving up only 2.5.
Sussex Tech also breezed through most of its schedule. But the Ravens lost at William Penn, 5-0, on May 7 when they were limited to just three hits and committed three errors.
It’s the only time Sussex Tech has been shut out since 2022. The Ravens had gone 48 straight games without being blanked.
This time, however, the Ravens will face William Penn on their home field in Georgetown.
With six of the eight Henlopen North teams making the state tournament this year, the remaining teams would like to think they’re ready to play in big games.
“I think it just proves again why we’re the best division in baseball,” Dover coach Nick Spadafino said after Saturday’s loss to CR.
Extra innings
• Thursday’s semifinals are slated for Frawley Stadium with the finals back at the Wilmington stadium on Saturday at a time TBD.
• CR’s Zach Candeloro was the assistant coach of the year in the Henlopen North.
• Sussex Tech went 4-1 in one-run games during the regular season.
• Sussex Central is 8-1 at games at Sports at the Beach this season.
• The nine Henlopen Conference teams who have won baseball state titles are split among five schools: Seaford (4), Cape Henlopen (2) and CR, Dover and Sussex Central with one apiece.
