Chief Pontiac, Auburn Hills eye American Legion zone title

BY DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

CLARKSTON — Now, the level of baseball intensifies.

The Michigan American Legion Baseball will enter the zone round of the state tournament at various sites around the state this weekend, with Chief Pontiac Post 377 near Clarkston and Milford will host games beginning Thursday and Friday. All remaining games will be contested Saturday and Sunday at Shufer Burns Memorial Field, behind the Chief Pontiac Post.

“It will be an interesting tournament,” said Doug Brady, skipper for Chief Pontiac. “Now, there are only good teams left.”

Auburn Hills went 3-0 to win the district playoffs tournament July 15-18, with Milford finishing 3-1. Auburn Hills defeated Milford in pool play in the tournament, but the championship finals between the two were cancelled July 19 due to field availability, thus giving Auburn Hills the title. Milford was scheduled to host the district finals.

“It’s a touchy subject, but we went undefeated at the district tournament last weekend, so we feel that we are district champions,” said Auburn Hills coach Dale Ahern. “There should not be a co-championship because we did not play the game. We were ready to play.”

Regardless of the official ruling, the two teams are very much alive in a quest for a state championship, and will join Berkley, Chief Pontiac, Livonia and Dearborn for a regional zone tournament July 22-25. Berkley advanced out of a different district, as did Livonia and Dearborn, while Chief Pontiac gained an automatic bid to both the zone playoffs and state championships, due to being a host site for both tournaments.

Zone games will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday (July 22) at various sites around the state, with additional games being played Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday if needed. The zones are a double-elimination format.

In the 11-member District 18, Berkley won this year’s regular season league title, with Milford, Auburn Hills, Chief Pontiac and Livonia rounding out the top five. All five of those teams are still alive in the hunt for the state title.

Midland Berryhill is the defending state and national championships.

So far this season, Auburn Hills has been led by players from both Auburn Hills Avondale and Rochester High, plus one player from Clinton Township Chippewa Valley. A.J. Susick (Avondale), Kevin Olson (Chippewa Valley), Jimmy Kingsley (Rochester), Dylan Ahern (Avondale) and Nick Crivilla (Rochester) have emerged as leaders.

Chief Pontiac has players mostly from the Clarkston-Davison areas, both from public high schools and private schools. Among them are Clarkston High players, Chris Mocerino and Matt Rodgers, both who were recently named to the www.northoaklandsports.com All-Area First Team. The squad has players from Clarkston, Davison, Memphis, Southfield Christian, Birmingham Detroit Country Day, and Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes, with those private school players residing in the Clarkston-Davison areas

“It’s been a strange season for us,” offered Brady. “We’ve had seven guys go down with injuries: kneecaps, broken bones, torn ACLs, so some of these guys were lost for the season. We haven’t really had a full lineup.

“Plus, the high school season was pushed back a week, so everybody has tried to cram in a schedule into a little more than a month,” he continued. “Not everyone got a chance to play all of their games when the (district tournament) began last weekend. “

STATE TOURNEY

Chief Pontiac will also host the Michigan State Championships, all at Shufer Burns Memorial Field, 4819 Mary Sue Street near Clarkston. The opening ceremony will take place at 6 p.m. July 28, followed by a banquet. Families, friends and baseball fans can purchase tickets at the door for $10 and former Major League Baseball player Dave Bergman, a 17-year MLB veteran, will be the key note speaker.

Bergman, who still holds Detroit-area ties, began his MLB career with the New York Yankees in 1975, and also had professional stints with the Houston Astros, New York Giants and the Detroit Tigers.

As for the state tourney, it will feature host Chief Pontiac, which receives an automatic bid for hosting, plus the zone champions from around both the Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula. The chmpionships begin with first-round games at 9 a.m. July 29 and continue through Aug. 1.

The six-team, double-elimination tournament, can be followed on-line at http://chiefpontiacbaseball.org/, plus games stats on the web live through GameTracker. Clarkston public access TV will also record and televise the games.

Day passes cost $5, four-day tournament passes are $15, while children 12 and 

under enter free. There is also free, on-site parking available and concessions will be on-hand.

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Last updated: Aug 26 2010 at 5:42 PM