[illeracula]

The first round of the playoffs are over, and history has been made... the first ever "Wild Card" round was fast and furious and fun to watch. The teams that moved on, aren't a surprise. If any team could be considered a surprise it would have been the Dover Generals. The Generals held on to beat the Lewes Braves in the closest of the 4 series, which was assisted by a key injury to the Braves offensive star Claude Bond... In the MarVa Conference an interesting battle against the DBL's only 100 game winning teams will take place as the Cavaliers and the Tourists battle it out. Should be fun...

Brewers Heading to Conference Championship: The Milton Brewers are one step closer to winning the League Championship.

With a series-clinching 7-5 win tonight at Iron Pigs Ballpark, the Brewers have eliminated the Wilmington Iron Pigs in the The Wild Card by a score of 3-1.

"I'm excited for the Conference Championship. We'll celebrate this one for a short time, but then it's back to business," said Fernando Fareles, who was dominant on the mound and earned The Wild Card MVP honors. "One step closer, one game at a time. We can't get ahead of ourselves."

Fareles had a 0.00 ERA over 8 innings pitched in the series. He also added 9 strikeouts with a 1-0 record.

The Milton Brewers don't know who they will face in the next round. They will play the winner of the Lewes Braves - Dover Generals series. Lewes leads the series 2 games to 1. The Conference Championship schedule will be announced after the The Wild Card finishes.

Dover Takes The Wild Card in Deciding Game: When the entire season is on the line in one game Hidekazu Okada said you find out what a team is really all about.

As it turns out the Dover Generals are made of fight and tenacity, as the team got by the Lewes Braves 11-4 tonight at Dover Grounds in order to win the The Wild Card and book a place in the next round.

"It wasn't hard to get excited for this game. Our guys answered the call and proved a lot about what our team is all about," said Okada, whose strong offensive output earned him MVP honors.

Okada hit .429 with a .500 on-base percentage. He had 3 home runs, drove in 9 RBI and scored 7 runs.

The Dover Generals will play against the Milton Brewers in the next round. Milton won their series against the Wilmington Iron Pigs 3 games to 1. The Conference Championship schedule will be announced after the The Wild Card finishes.

Tourists Dominate, Sweep The Wild Card: It's a sweet sweep for the Ocean City Tourists and they have won the The Wild Card. The Baltimore Barons were evidently no match, as they dropped the series quickly, losing 5-2 in the deciding game.

"Not really the effort we hoped for," said the Baltimore manager.

It's now on to the Conference Championship for Ocean City, after their 3-0 series win.

Leading the way for the series winners was António Castaneda, who was named MVP. For the series, Castaneda hit .400 with a .571 on-base percentage. He had 3 home runs, drove in 4 RBI and scored 4 runs.

The Ocean City Tourists don't know who they will face in the next round. They will play the winner of the Richmond Cardinals - Norfolk Cavaliers series. Norfolk leads the series 2 game to 1. The Conference Championship schedule will be announced after the The Wild Card finishes.

Norfolk Takes The Wild Card: The League Championship hopes remain strong for the Norfolk Cavaliers organization.

The team tonight eliminated the Richmond Cardinals with a 6-3 win, to capture the The Wild Card 3-1.

"We're rolling now. The pitchers are pitching, hitters are hitting, look out. I expect us to pick our game up to another level in the Conference Championship," said Oliver Ramos, who was named series MVP.

The standout offensive performance included a .647 batting average, .684 on-base percentage, 4 home runs, 7 RBI and 8 runs scored.

The Norfolk Cavaliers will play against the Ocean City Tourists in the next round. Ocean City won their series against the Baltimore Barons 3 games to 0. The Conference Championship schedule will be announced after the The Wild Card finishes.

A Look at the next Round:
The Brewers hold home field advantage, and were 5-2 versus the Generals this season... The Cavaliers will host the MarVa Conference series as they battle the only "Wild Card" team to make it the second round the Tourists. The Cavaliers beat the Tourists 9 out 15 games this season.