Aeros 4, Sea Dogs 1

Relaxed Aeros win Eastern League title

Dittler gets the victory as Aeros capture series in four games with
Sea Dogs

By Stephanie Storm

Beacon Journal sports writer

Anyone who witnessed the Aeros during batting practice Saturday would
be hard-pressed to tell it was hours before the potential
championship-clinching game.

The Aeros players were loose and carefree. Hitting coach Wayne Kirby
was talking his usual smack while throwing to hitters in the cage.
Even pitching coach Greg Hibbard didn't mind being bothered for an
in-depth lesson in Pitching 101.

But at game time, Aeros manager Torey Lovullo told the team it was
time to turn on the switch.

``This team plays better when on edge,'' Lovullo said. ``So that's
what I encouraged them to do, stay on edge.''

And that's exactly how the Aeros played in their 4-1 victory over
Portland, claiming the Eastern League Championship series 3-1 and
winning the title for the second time in three years.

``This is such an awesome feeling,'' yelled Aeros winning pitcher Jake
Dittler, as he bowed his head and held it in his hands searching for
the right words while players jumped in celebration. ``These guys had
talked about what it was like to win a championship all year, and I
wanted it so bad.''

In the 2003 season, an experienced Aeros squad needed just three games
to dispatch the New Haven Ravens in claiming the first title in
franchise history. This time around, Akron did it in four, saving
their best for Saturday night.

The Aeros played aggressive from the start, taking an early lead with
one run in the third and fourth innings. A Ryan Mulhern sacrifice fly
scored Eider Torres to put the Aeros on the board. A walk, error and
another sacrifice fly produced the second run an inning later.

The second score was aided by Akron piling the pressure on the Sea
Dogs defensively.

After Jon Van Every walked with one out, Javier Herrera reached on a
swinging bunt. The runners promptly moved up a base on David Pauley's
throwing error, as Portland's starting pitcher tried to beat Herrera
to the bag with an off-balance throw rather than keep the ball on the
close play.

One batter later, Ivan Ochoa launched a fly ball to shallow left
field. Lovullo decided to send Van Every anyway, forcing Chris Durbin
to make a perfect throw. He didn't, and Van Every slid in safe to pad
Akron's lead to two unanswered runs.

The game's momentum was on the Aeros' side the rest of the evening, as
they increased their lead with two more runs in the fifth against
reliever Randy Beam. The inning featured three hits, including
run-scoring doubles by Ryan Mulhern and Shaun Larkin, and a pair of walks.

Nate Panther, who was 4-for-4 with a triple and run scored, was named
the playoff MVP. In eight games, he batted .380 (12-for-31) with two
doubles, two triples, one home run and five RBI.

While the offense did its part Saturday, so did the Aeros' pitchers
for the second consecutive night. After the Aeros shut out the Sea
Dogs through nine innings the previous night, Dittler continued the
trend as the right-hander scattered five hits over seven innings.
Chris Cooper and closer Edward Mujica took care of the final two
innings; Mujica allowed Portland's lone score, in the ninth, before
notching his fifth playoff save.

``We felt our way around early on, hit our stride midway through the
season, and in the end it all culminated in a championship,'' said
Lovullo, who was then fittingly doused with a bottle of champagne by
Ochoa.