CAPAHAS TRY TO RECLAIM STATE TITLE

It's been two years since the host Kohlfeld Capahas last won the National Baseball Congress state title.

But the 22-2 Capahas look poised to take that title back from two-time defending champion O.B. Clark of St. Louis this weekend as the five-team, double-elimination tournament begins tonight at Capaha Field.

The Caps and O.B. Clark are the clear front-runners in the tournament field, but Paducah, Ky., Goreville, Ill., and Pine Bluff, Ark., will look to make a run at the title.

Kohlfeld opens play tonight against Goreville at 6:30. Following the first game, O.B. Clark faces Paducah at 9:30.

The Capahas are undefeated against the tournament competition this year, with two doubleheader sweeps of O.B. Clark and a 3-0 record against Paducah. But Kohlfeld manager Jess Bolen is still cautious entering the tournament.

"O.B. Clark is the team to beat," Bolen said. "Even though we swept them this year, they've won the tournament the last two years and Paducah is capable of beating anybody."

Paducah finished second behind O.B. Clark last year.

The Caps regular season success has been enjoyable for Bolen as he claimed his 1,000th career coaching victory this summer, but the NBC state and national tournaments are what Bolen wants.

"I always judge my teams by what they accomplish," said Bolen. "Even though we reeled off 19 wins in a row this year, where we wind up in this tournament and the national tournament declares to me how good a ball club this was."

So far, the Capahas have been virtually unstoppable on the diamond. The Caps won their first 19 games, with their only two loses coming to a solid Waterloo, Ill., club that the Caps beat three times.

"Early in the year, we were just hot and having a great start," said Bolen of the Caps' season-long hot streak. "But when you get to the 24th ball game, it gets beyond just a hot spell. It becomes a great year."

Looking at the Capahas' batting averages, they resemble the averages of a softball team rather than a semi-pro baseball club. Every position player is batting above .300 and five are above the .400 mark.

Center fielder Steve Kress leads the way in several offensive categories, including batting average (.523), home runs (nine), RBIs (35) and slugging percentage (.943).

Third baseman Ryan Murphy and shortstop Cory Crosnoe have both clubbed eight homers this summer. Murphy's batting .446 with a team-leading 10 doubles (tied with Darrin Kinsolving) while Crosnoe's batting .457.

Clean-up batter Tom Breuer (.494) and Kinsolving (.489) are also flirting with the .500 mark.

"We've got a lot of guys that can drive the ball out of the yard, but they don't strike out a lot," Bolen said. "Even if they don't hit the ball out of the ballpark, they still put the ball in play and that helps their averages."

It appears the only thing that could slow the Capahas hot bats is a little dental surgery. Crosnoe had his wisdom teeth removed Monday and was still feeling ill Wednesday night. Bolen said Crosnoe had lost 12 pounds and did not join the team for batting practice Wednesday night.

Along with Crosnoe's uncertain status, Bolen was still debating who to throw in the first game. Pitchers Brandon West (3-0, 0.91 ERA) and David Michel (4-0, 1.86) are the top candidates.

Saturday's action begins at 10 a.m. with the Capahas-Goreville winner playing the loser of O.B. Clark-Paducah. Pine Bluff will see its first action in the tournament Saturday at 1 p.m., facing the winner of the late game tonight.

Saturday's final game is scheduled for 8 p.m., with action continuing Sunday at 1 p.m. The championship final is scheduled for 4 p.m., Sunday, with another game following if necessary in the double-elimination tourney.