http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/
FROM KEITH GROLLER
Before I even learned the final score of the Bangor-Whitehall quarterfinal round game, I got a tweet from Slater Athletics asking me, politely, to pick Pleasant Valley in tonight's District 11 4A semis.
It has been that kind of year.
Hard to figure anything and certainly the 4A quarterfinals caught me by surprise with Bangor beating Whitehall, Pleasant Valley beating Freedom and Northampton knocking off Liberty. Yes, I was 1-for-4.
Both Freedom and Liberty squandered three-run leads and Bangor scored seven runs on just four hits against Whitehall. So it goes in this crazy season.
About the only thing you can depend on is Parkland winning games.
The Trojans have won 21 straight. They are the only team that has been consisent from the snow-filled, freezing days of March through the 80-degree warmth of Memorial Day weekend.
Of course, when you have to play the same teams over and over again, the teams you've already beaten gain an advantage. The pressure is completely off them. To use gambling language, they are playing with house money because people expect them to lose.
Meanwhile, all the pressure is on Parkland. They are expected to win. If the Trojans don't, it would be a major disappointment.
All that said, Parkland should have confidence in being the area's best team. When people would ask Charles Barkley if he was worried about playing a team that the 76ers had beaten often in a season, he said: "No. That just means you're the better team. And anything you can do once or twice, you can do again."
The biggest question as I type away at 1:45 is, again, will the games get played?
I don't think anybody wants to get rained out and have to play games on back-to-back days.
For better or (probably) worse, here are my predictions:
CLASS 4A
Pleasant Valley 6, Bangor 4 -- Here you go Slaters. You're welcome. PV has played the tougher schedule and seems to be playing its best softball of the season.
Parkland 4, Northampton 2 -- After 20 scoreless innings against Morgan Rentzheimer, I expect the K-Kids to finally break through with a couple of runs. Northampton is a very confident team. They are not acting like a typical underdog. But all of the bold talk probably will have the Trojans rising to the occasion.
CLASS 3A
Becahi 8, Palmerton 3 -- The Golden Hawks, assuming they still remember there's a season going on, have too much offensive firepower for the Blue Bombers.
Wilson 5, Southern Lehigh 4 -- Talk about great stories. Considering the history of these two Colonial League softball programs, a Warriors win used to be a a lot like Lehigh beating Duke in basketball. However, those days are gone. Southern Lehigh isn't what it used to be and Wilson has established itself as a solid program and a win here would provide further validation.
CLASS 2A
Pen Argyl 6, North Schuylkill 4 -- These two have established a great district rivalry. They know each other well. The Green Knights turned Colonial League disappointment into district gold last year. I see them doing it again this year.
Catasauqua 12, Salisbury 8 -- If this game doesn't get into double-digits in overall scoring, I will be shocked. I covered the first meeting between these two a long time ago and the Falcons had no answers for the Rough Riders offense that day. I expect a more competitive game this time, but just like Pen Argyl, I see Catty using Colonial League disappointment as motivation for a strong district effort.
CLASS A CHAMPIONSHIP
Williams Valley 3, Minersville 2 -- Might be the best championship game in any class. Hard to go against an unbeaten team.
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