Sports

CHSAA Class AA championship tournament preview

CHSAA baseball beat writer Dylan Butler breaks down the double-elimination Class AA championship tournament, which starts Wednesday.

Here is Wednesday’s schedule:

4 p.m. – No. 3 Iona Prep vs. No. 6 Fordham Prep @ Coffey Field

7 p.m. – No. 2 Monsignor Farrell vs. No. 7 Xavier @ Coffey Field

7 p.m. – No. 1 Xaverian vs. No. 8 St. Francis Prep @ Kaiser Stadium

To follow the action in real time, check out our live blog here.

No. 1 Xaverian Clippers

Head coach: Lou Piccola

Record: 17-2

Player to watch: Elvin Soto

Outlook: The Clippers find themselves in familiar territory as the tournament’s top seed. The same was true a year ago, but Xaverian fell short of its ultimate goal, losing the opener to No. 8 Xavier and then falling to St. Raymond.

Several players return from that squad, including switch-hitting catcher Elvin Soto, who signed a National Letter of Intent to Pittsburgh, but could be a high round draft pick next week. Soto bats in the middle of a dangerous and complete lineup with speedy Antonio Nunez and Bob McKenna on top and sluggers Kevin Martir, Tommy Midolo and Eric Kalman in the middle.

Anchored by Blaise Scerbo and Anthony Pastrana, Xaverian has arguably the deepest and most talented pitching staff in the tournament and is the clear-cut favorite to win a seventh CHSAA title.

No. 2 Monsignor Farrell Lions

Head coach: Bob Mulligan

Record: 15-2

Player to watch: Mike Viegas

Outlook: Monsignor Farrell was flying high for most of the season, but after winning its first 14 games, the Lions have hit turbulence. The Lions were shocked by St. Peter’s in their regular season finale and, after beating All Hallows, fell to Xaverian, 4-0, in the seeding round Saturday.

Senior right-hander Nick Thorgersen, who outdueled All Hallows ace James Norwood Friday afternoon, is the ace of a quality pitching staff, which also includes left-hander Connor Meehan and Anthony Storz.

The offensive catalyst is junior centerfielder Mike Viegas, arguably the fastest player in the league. Any ball hit on the ground is a potential base hit and Viegas is fast enough to turn every single into a triple with his base-stealing prowess. And when Viegas and Mike DePaola get on before him, leftfielder Jordan Stark seemingly always finds a way to drive them in.

No. 3. Iona Prep Gaels

Head coach: Fred Gallo

Record: 15-5

Player to watch: Cristian Fiorito

Outlook: The book was out on Iona Prep during the regular season. The Gaels were a solid defensive team with very good pitching, anchored by Rob Ambrosino and Tim McCarthy, but they struggled to get clutch hits and manufacture runs.

In the postseason, things are different. Sure, Iona Prep is still solid defensively, especially up the middle with catcher Justin Palladino, the middle infield of second baseman Sam Garito and shortstop Vinny DeMaria and centerfielder Nick Salzano, and the Gaels still have shutdown pitchings as McCarthy has stepped up especially late in the season. But now, it appears, Iona Prep is getting some big offensive contributions, not just from first baseman Cristian Fiorito, but from the entire lineup.

No. 4 All Hallows Gaels

Head coach: Ed Gutierrez

Record: 13-7

Player to watch: James Norwood

Outlook: A year after being eliminated by Monsignor Farrell in the best-of-three, third round qualifying series, All Hallows has made the final eight. The Gaels were somewhat of a surprise division winner and Ed Gutierrez hopes he can ride the St. Louis University-bound Norwood, arguably the best pitcher in the Class of 2011, deep into the tournament.

But All Hallows, which lost both seeding-round games and suffered defeats against Cardinal Spellman and Cardinal Hayes down the stretch of the regular season, is more than just the hard-throwing right-hander, who also happens to be its most dangerous hitter. The Gaels also have sophomore Stephen Alemas, who has come through in a big way at the plate this year, as well as second baseman Juliane Mateo and pitcher Gilbert Gonzalez.

No. 5 Archbishop Molloy Stanners

Head coach: Jack Curran

Record: 15-4

Player to watch: Jonathan Ramon

Outlook: The nucleus of this championship contender is from a Stanner squad that won the junior varsity championship two years ago. Now on the varsity, Jonathan Ramon, who is a threat on the mound and at the plate, Frank Peperone and Connor Lisante are hoping to repeat that feat on the varsity level and lead Molloy to an 18th CHSAA intersectional title and first since 2002.

The ingredients are there. This is a close-knit group with strong pitching from Ramon, Dean Sadik and Mike Auriemmo, quality fielding throughout and several players who can make a difference in the lineup.

No. 6. Fordham Prep Rams

Head coach: Pat Deane

Record: 14-7

Player to watch: Sal Annunziata

Outlook: The Seton Hall-bound Annunziata could be the best hitter in the CHSAA, but Andrew Velazquez is the Rams most complete offensive threat. The switch-hitting junior centerfielder has speed to burn and can hit for average and power – as he proved by nearly hitting for the cycle against Monsignor McClancy in an 11-1 rout Tuesday in the decisive third game of the third round qualifying series.

Fordham Prep also has plenty of pitching with James McCormack, Jack Becker and Elio Fernandez atop the rotation. However, the Rams struggled defensively to make the routine plays in the qualification series and that could come back to haunt them in this double-elimination tournament.

No. 7 Xavier Knights

Head coach: Rich Duffell

Record: 13-7

Player to watch: Nick DiLeo

Outlook: The third round qualifying series might have had a familiar feel to it, but unlike last year, when the Knights made a surprising run to their first-ever appearance in the CHSAA Class AA title game, Xavier is not the No. 8 seed. Rich Duffell’s team has St. Francis Prep to thank for that because the Terriers upset of Moore Catholic pushed Xavier out of the final berth and into seventh, which means a date with second-seeded Monsignor Farrell Wednesday.

DiLeo is listed as a player to watch and the junior left-hander is also the Knights ace, but there has been several heroes this season. The group includes Kenny Sumsky, who had a walkoff double in a 2-1 win against Archbishop Stepinac in the opener of their third round qualifying series, and David Eschen, who cleared the bases with a double in a Game 2’s 5-3 win Monday.

No. 8 St. Francis Prep

Head coach: Bro. Robert Kent

Record: 12-9

Player to watch: Chris Cannon

Outlook: On Friday, Bro. Robert Kent was trying every trick in the book to manufacture runs, calling for delayed double steals and squeeze bunts in a 4-1 second-round qualifying round victory against Cardinal Hayes.

But in back-to-back third round, qualifying series wins against favored Moore Catholic, the Terriers exploded for a combined 18 runs on 25 hits to reach the Class AA championship tournament for the first time since 2008, a year after the Terriers won their seventh city title.

Cannon is the Navy-bound catcher, equally feared for his bat as his arm, and part of a close senior class that isn’t ready to end their high-school careers. That group features seven starters, eight when Eric Delgado, Vincent Garzon or Joe Pravata is on the mound.

dbutler@nypost.com