WILKES-BARRE – The 2026 Landmark Conference Baseball Tournament begins tomorrow, with contenders' eyes fixed on Penn Medicine Park in Lancaster this weekend. Before that, the top-seeded Wilkes University Colonels host No. 5 Drew University at Bruggeworth Field in a First Round matchup this Tuesday, May 5.

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Wilkes enters the tournament for the second consecutive year since joining the conference in 2024 and has entered as the top seed each time. This season, the Colonels finished with an 18-6 record in conference play and 24-16 overall record.

Junior second basemen Jack Mathis (Exeter PA/Wyoming Area) leads the Colonel offense with a .370 batting average, a top ten figure in the Landmark, with 23 RBIs, 22 walks, and 13 extra-base hits, including a conference-best six triples and 34 stolen bases. Sophomore Andres Cruz (Wayne, PA/Radnor) has provided power to the lineup, with a team-high six home runs and 39 RBIs (sixth most in the Landmark). Senior Evan Melberger (West Pittston, PA/Wyoming Area) has also provided a spark late in the season, hitting .338. Tyler Uram (Carbondale Twp, PA/Lakeland) (.333) and Jeremiah Atwell (Eastlake, OH/Willoughby South) (.304) make up the other two Colonels hitting above .300 this season.

The Colonel pitching staff is headed by the one-two punch of AJ Levandoski (Scranton, PA/West Scranton) and Zachary Lloyd (Scranton, PA/West Scranton), who have each pitched a team-high 49 innings. Levandoski (4-2) leads the team with a 3.99 ERA and 50 strikeouts, marks that put him eighth and second in the conference in respective categories. He also sits second in the conference in opposing batting average at .230. Lloyd sits right behind Levandoski with a 4.04 ERA, striking out 23 in 10 appearances. His five wins on the year lead the team and are the second most by any pitcher in the Landmark this season.

Out of the bullpen, the Colonels have seen strong contributions from Ethan Grodack (Lake Ariel, PA/Western Wayne), who sits second on the team with 30 strikeouts, and Shaun O'Donnell (New Tripoli, PA/Northwestern Lehigh), who boasts a 3.18 ERA in 17 appearances, just to name a few.

After last playing in a play-in game in 2024, Drew University has reached the Landmark playoffs this year for the first time since 2017. They finished the year with a 13-11 record in Landmark play and a 24-15 overall record powered by a young, talented core.

Sophomore Frank Master led the team with a .401 batting average, 43 runs scored, 57 hits, and a .509 on-base percentage, marks that are all top five in the conference. Fellow sophomore Zach Maxwell sits second with a .346 average, boasting 53 hits and 28 RBIs. Joining them, first-year duo Anthony Tetto and Nick Donofrio hold team-highs in OPS (1.030, Tetto), home runs (10, Donofrio) and RBIs (46, Donofrio).

First year pitcher Nicholas Lo Vacco leads the pitching staff with a 4.50 ERA and 33 strikeouts through 44 innings pitched. His opposing batting average of .235 is the third-lowest in the conference, right behind Levandoski. Fellow first year Jayce Thoroughman leads the team with 53.2 innings pitched and 44 strikeouts, with an ERA of 5.37 that sits second to Lo Vacco. First year Mikey Sica and sophomore Nick Garbooshian have proved to be strong relief for the Rangers as well.

The Colonels swept the Rangers in the season series, taking all three games held at Bruggeworth Field. In the third game of the series, Wilkes came back from a 5-1 hole to win in the ninth on a passed ball.

After this contest, both teams will advance to Penn Medicine Park for the remainder of the Landmark Conference tournament, beginning on Friday, May 8^th.
 
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Tuesday, May 5: at Higher Seed
Game 1:    #5 Drew at #1 Wilkes – 4:00 PM
Game 2:   #4 Scranton at #3 Elizabethtown – 3:30 PM
 
Friday, May 8 at Lancaster (Penn Medicine Park)
Game 3: Lowest Winning Seed from Game 1 or Game 2 vs. #2 Susquehanna - 11:00 AM
Game 4: Loser Game 1 vs Loser Game 2 (Elimination Game) - 2:30 PM
Game 5: Winner Game 4 vs Loser Game 3 (Elimination Game) - 6:00 PM
 
Saturday, May 9 at Lancaster (Penn Medicine Park)
Game 6: Highest Winning Seed from Game 1 or Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3 - 11:00 AM
Game 7: Loser Game 6 vs Winner Game 5 (Elimination Game) - 2:30 PM