MURPHY'S GETS TO 17-3, CLINCHES NO. 1 OVERALL SEED

While it wasn't quite the way the Murphy's softball team had envisioned it, the end result is all that matters at this point.

By virtue of a pair of forfeits by Santucci's last Sunday at Bensalem's Community Park in addition to a Harrington Pub's loss, Murphy's improved to 17-3 and secured the No. 1 overall seed in the 2012 Lower Bucks Softball League playoffs.

The Lower South Division champions will face the Not So Athletics Sunday at 9 a.m. at Bensalem's Community Park. The Not So Athletics gave Murphy's their first loss of the season following a 10-0 start, a 12-11 walk-off win at Poplar Park back on May 13th.

Murphy's rebounded to pound out 18 hits - including five extra-base hits - in an 18-6 victory in Game Two of that day.

Matt Harker, Jim Trochak, Kevin Maloney, Colin Tosti, Josh Yeager and T.J. Coles all had multiple hits in Game Two. Harker, Trochak, Maloney, Andrew Graham and Sean Walker all had multiple hits in Game One.

2012 Murphy's Softball Team
Top left: Sean Walker, Matt Harker, Andrew Graham, Mike Simpson,
Jim Trochak, Marc Rossi, Ed Gurt, T.J. Coles, Dan Rosar and Josh Yeager.
Bottom left: Kevin Maloney, Colin Tosti, Joe Faust Jr., Evan Christie
and Joe Faust Sr.

Since that initial meeting with the Not So Athletics, Murphy's has won six of its last eight and is averaging 11.4 runs per game.

While the pair of 9-0 wins it received for the forfeits deflates that average a bit, Murphy's will almost certainly need to scorer higher than that average in order to reel off the six wins it will take to bring home the program's first title in its eight-yer history.

The playoffs are a "Best of Three" format. If Murphy's can get past the Not So Athletics this week, it'll take on the Schaffers/Pasquales winner Sunday, July 1st. The Lower Bucks Softball League championship is set to be played Sunday, July 8th.

That would give Murphy's a full four weeks to rest and prepare for the 2012 Trentonian Tournament, which is slated for Saturday and Sunday, August 4th-5th.

Lower Bucks Softball League Playoff Matchup's

North Division
No. 1 Harrington's Pub (15-5) vs. No. 4 Skybox (11-9), Poplar Park, 9 a.m.
No. 2 GTS (14-6) vs. No. 3 Paddywhack's (12-8), Charles Boehm, 9 a.m.

South Division 
No. 1 Murphy's (17-3) vs. No. 4 Not So Athletics (11-9), Bensalem Community Park, 9 a.m.
No. 2 Schaffers (12-8) vs. No. 3 Pasquales (12-8), Maple Point, 8 a.m.

Final 2012 Lower Bucks Softball League Lower South Standings