With one swing, Raider baseball clinched a spot in the 2015 PSAC playoffs in a double-header on Saturday, after missing the tournament last season.

Sophomore Ryan McMillen sent a solo shot out of the park for a game-winning home run in the sixth inning, ensuring a win against Bloomsburg and securing a playoff berth.

Prior to 2014, Shippensburg had recorded two consecutive 32-win seasons, winning the Division II College World Series in 2013.

The Raiders look to return to post-season dominance and find their groove as contenders in DII college baseball.

The team ranks No. 3 in the PSAC with a 22-20 record, listed behind No. 2 Millersville (32-9, 18-6 PSAC East) and No. 1 West Chester (22-8, 17-5 PSAC East). SU’s record against Millersville has been impressive, however, as the Raiders have earned a season series split at two games a piece.

Shippensburg has yet to play West Chester University in 2015, but closes out the regular season with two double headers against the division leaders. The Raiders have a chance to make a statement before they even make the trip to the PSAC tournament, and starting this Friday they must get into playoff mode.

Several players have impressed throughout the season for Shippensburg, but there are a few more that must improve their level of play in order for the Raiders to make a run at another College World Series.

Your sports editors discuss the keys to success for the Raider offense, defense and pitching in this week’s edition of Bleacher Talk.

Dave:

Shippensburg definitely has a shot at making a run in the 2015 College Baseball Playoffs, but the team has to step up in many facets of its game. Defensively, the team has been competitive if not great, but offensively the Raiders have shown the ability to keep pace with the best teams in the division. The team’s pitching has been solid, but if SU wants to reach the next level in the playoffs it needs to see some good outings from starters Marcus Shippey, Gabe Mosser, Mark Curtis and Rich Michaud, the latter who started the season on a strong note this spring.

Shippensburg has been known for its defense in recent years, and this past season it fell off a bit. Three games out, the team ranks second with 58 errors, although a fielding percentage of 0.957 achieved it the No. 7 spot in PSAC play.

From a pitching standpoint, the rotation has allowed the second-most hits in PSAC play, 38 of which were home runs. That places them third in the conference; long balls are something SU will have to limit in the post season. The team also placed third in strikeouts with 282, a positive that can help it in close games. The team’s 143 walks ranks it third; however, it is a statistic that can lead to extra runs and illustrate that pitchers are falling behind in the count.

Shippensburg’s offense has found success this season, ranking in the Top 5 in batting average, home runs, runs, hits and slugging percentage. The team ranks second with 158 walks, illustrating patience at the plate, but that is countered by its conference-leading 272 strikeouts.

Standout hitters from this year include sophomore catcher Jake Kennedy, who slammed 16 homers on the season while posting a .358 batting percentage, and Mike Marcinko, who is closing out his 2015 campaign with a team-high .400 average and has totaled six home runs to date. If Kennedy and Marcinko can continue to lead the team with power and getting on base, and Cody Ezolt can improve on his nine home runs, the Raider offense should be able to keep pace with some of the high-scoring offenses like Seton Hill and Millersville universities.

The team will still need clutch hitting from the rest of the lineup, but seven of the starting nine have batting averages over .300 and on-base percentages over .400 so the hitting has made its mark for the Raiders this season.

Cale:

The Red Raiders have mostly been a .500 team all season, currently standing at 22-20 on the season. Yet, they have been good enough to qualify for a PSAC Tournament berth.

Offense has been the team’s strength, as they have been led by Jake Kennedy, who has 16 homeruns and 43 RBI’s in 2015, which is tops for SU in both categories. Other solid contributors include Mike Marcinko, who is batting .400, and Cody Ezolt, who is second on the team with 38 RBI’s.

The mound has been where the Red Raiders have struggled all season, failing to find a single consistent starter to rely on. Pitchers Marcus Shippey and Mark Curtis have posted ERA’s north of 5.00 while pitching the most innings for the team.

If the Red Raiders hope to find success in the playoffs, they are going to need to get a consistent performance from their starting pitching, which is something they have not received all season. Otherwise, the team will have to hit its way to a title, but it is hard to keep scoring runs when you cannot keep the opposition from scoring.

While SU has the offense to make some noise in the PSAC Tournament, I do not believe they will be able to win with the inconsistent pitching staff being the Red Raiders’ Achilles’ heel.

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