PHILADELPHIA - One team stands in the way of the La Salle baseball team and a trip to Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. That team is Big 5 rival Penn and the Quakers visit Hank DeVincent Field on Tuesday at 3 PM in the Liberty Bell Classic Semifinals with the winner advancing to the April 17 final in South Philadelphia.  

Pitching Matchup

RHP Mark Williams (1-0, 4.50 ERA)  vs. TBA

Scouting the Explorers (15-12)

La Salle won game one of its Atlantic 10 series versus Richmond on Friday but dropped the next two to fall to 15-12 overall. The Explorers advanced to Tuesday's semifinal game by defeating Lafayette last Tuesday by a 11-2 score.

Senior Jeff Flax is coming off a four-game stretch where he batted .429. He is batting .313 this spring which is second on the team behind classmate Marc Schoch, who leads the team in doubles (10) and RBI (18). 

Seniors Adam Kammler (.506) and Brendan Norton (.500) are third and fifth in the A-10 in on-base percentage. Norton continues to lead the nation in bases on balls (38). Flax is the 12th hardest player to strikeout in Division I. 

Junior Pat Christensen, the A-10 leader in saves, is also among the nation's best. He ranks 12th in the NCAA.

As a team, La Salle ranks 13th in bases on balls on offense. On the mound, La Salle is 17th in strikeout-walk ratio (2.97) and 36th in strikeouts/nine innings (8.1).

The Explorers are making their second straight trip to the LBC Semifinals and are looking to return to Citizens Bank Park for the first time since 2006.

Scouting the Quakers (11-10)

Penn split a doubleheader on Monday with Brown, falling in game one, 12-2, before winning the nightcap, 7-5. 

Head coach John Cole's squad brings some speed to 20th and Olney, ranking 18th nationally in steals/game and sixth in triples. Greg Zebrack is one of the top hitters in the Ivy League and the Big 5, hitting .365 with eight doubles and three home runs.

Penn's 3-1 Ivy League record is tied with Princeton Columbia in the Gehrig Division. UP defeated Villanova, 11-4, last week to advance to Tuesday's semifinals. 

About the Liberty Bell Classic

The Liberty Bell Classic is an eight-team annual baseball tournament of area Division I teams, organized in conjunction with the Phillies. The field includes all five Big 5 schools (La Salle, Penn, Saint  Joseph's, Temple and Villanova) as well as Delaware, Lafayette and Lehigh.

The finals are held annually at Citizens Bank Park. This year's April 17th final begins at 7:30 PM. More information will be available should the Explorers advance. 

The other semifinal pits Delaware at Saint Joseph's. 

For more information about the Liberty Bell Classic, click here. 

Live Coverage

Live statistics of the game will be available on GoExplorers.com. Also be sure to sign up for free text alerts to receive scores at the conclusion of all baseball games. You can select specific sports to receive updates from.