Sussex Co. has Delaware's best baseball; Padua has plans for Penn Relays

It's time to pull out the crystal ball and see what the future holds for Delaware high school baseball teams.

Just say the magic words — eenie-meenie-chili-beanie — and the fortunes will be revealed.

Hi! I’m Greg Giesen, Sports Strategist for Delaware Online, this week's De Game Day newsletter is filled with items to get you ready for a busy weekend.

While the spirits may not have a clear picture of what will happen next month, DelawareOnline.com high school sports reporter Brad Myers has seen enough baseball this season to give us an idea of what to expect this May.

In addition, DelawareOnline.com high school sports reporter Brandon Holveck previews the Penn Relays and the local runners who could make some noise. Finally, DelawareOnline.com University of Delaware sports reporter Kevin Tresolini previews the Blue Hens' lacrosse match against its rival Towson.

Sussex County filled with the state's top baseball teams

Don’t be surprised if three Sussex County teams make the ride to Frawley Stadium for the DIAA Baseball Tournament semifinals next month.

Sussex Central, Sussex Tech and Cape Henlopen are currently ranked Nos. 1-3 statewide by The News Journal/Delaware Online.

They have a combined record of 30-3, with two of the losses coming to each other.

Sussex Tech scored three runs in the sixth to topple Cape 3-1 last Thursday.

Then Sussex Central sophomore Osiah Kelley shook off an early solo homer by the Vikings’ Trey Hitchcock to allow just three hits and strike out 10 in a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night.

The game ended on a diving catch by Golden Knights center fielder Kole Swain, thrilling a large crowd at the Sports at the Beach complex in Georgetown.

That will be the site of another big showdown on May 2 – Sussex Central vs. Sussex Tech.

Other teams around the state will certainly have a say, of course. But the Golden Knights, Ravens and Vikings are going to be tough to knock out in the postseason.

– Brad Myers

Delaware high school athletes set for Penn Relays

Earlier this week, Delaware Online/The News Journal compiled a list of the 30 greatest performances by Delaware high schoolers at Penn Relays. Here is a look at some of the races to watch at this year’s edition of the East Coast’s most historic track and field meet.

• Coming off a national championship win, Padua is the team to beat in the 4x800. The Pandas team of Anna Bockius, Sophia Holgado, Kelsey Wolff and Molly Flanagan ran 8:49.86 to set the indoor state record. The outdoor record of 8:59.73 will be in play when Padua runs their qualifying heat on Thursday at 9 a.m. The 12 fastest teams qualify for the final Friday at 6:15 p.m.
• Middletown’s Simone Cooper is one of several field event athletes from Delaware who will be competing for individual championships. Cooper has won all but one competition she’s entered this outdoor track and field season and holds the state’s best throws in the shot put (44-1) and discus (149-4). The girls shot put begins at 9:30 a.m. Thursday.

• Tatnall will be vying for the school’s third distance medley Championship of America win Friday at 5:15 p.m. 1,200-meter leadoff runner Ruby Schwelm has the state’s fastest time in the 800 this season, a 2:10.58 in a fifth-place finish at the Fords Track Classic in Havertown, Pennsylvania. It’s the third-fastest time in state history. She’ll be joined by 400 runner Malana Neal, 800 runner Katie Payne, who is fourth in state history in the 800, and 1,600 runner Abby Downin, the 800 indoor state record holder.
• Salesianum’s Ethan Walther and Middletown’s Isabelle Walsh are entered in the mile championships, scheduled to go off at 5:30 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. Friday. Both athletes hold the fastest times in Delaware this year. Walther ran 4:18.44 to win the Warrior Invitational in West Chester, Pennsylvania last Friday. Walsh won the Art Madric Hall of Fame Invitational at Caravel Saturday in 4:46.78, the third-fastest time in state history. Delaware’s only Penn Relays mile winner is Salesianum’s Dom Della Pelle (2006).

– Brandon Holveck

Delaware men's lacrosse gets a preview of potential CAA title game

Delaware will play its biggest men’s lacrosse rival Friday night in a game that may just be a tune-up for a far more important rematch next week.

The Blue Hens host Towson in their regular-season finale at 7 p.m. The Coastal Athletic Association regular-season championship goes to the winner, as both carry 6-0 league records into the matchup. There is value to that, as the No. 1 seed should have a more agreeable matchup on May 2 against the No. 4 seed in the CAA Tournament semifinals, which will be one of four teams now 2-4 in CAA games. The No. 2 seed gets No. 3 Fairfield (4-2 in the league).

That tournament is at Towson’s Johnny Unitas Stadium regardless of Friday’s outcome, as the CAA has taken away postseason hosting opportunities from Delaware as a penalty for its planned summer 2025 move to Conference USA.

No. 15-ranked Towson (10-3) and No. 18 Delaware (8-3) are good bets to meet in the May 4 title game at 3:30, when the league’s automatic NCAA Tournament representative will be determined. That has been Delaware for the last two years.

There are nine automatic conference winners plus eight at-large picks in the 17-team NCAA field, with the two least regarded meeting in a play-in game. That has been Delaware the past two seasons, no doubt partially because of Hampton, the worst program in NCAA Division I lacrosse, being a league member everyone must play. Towson is presently 22 nd and Delaware 30 th in the NCAA’s RPI, meaning neither is positioned for an at-large pick should it fail to win the CAA.

So the Blue Hens would like to take care of business against the Tigers Friday night, and thereby poise themselves for a satisfying sequel a week later.

– Kevin Tresolini

You can get more sports coverage at Delaware Online or DEGameday on Instagram. You can also follow Brandon, Brad or Kevin on X, formerly known as Twitter. Finally, if you have any questions or suggestions for this newsletter, you can contact me at fgiesen@delawareonline.com .

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Sussex Co. has Delaware's best baseball; Padua has plans for Penn Relays