Raise the Jolly Roger

It will be a Pirate themed 2017 South Penn League final, as the Hanover Raiders and Cashtown Pirates advanced to the championship series with road victories Monday night.

Hanover defeated Littlestown 7-3 as Andrew Burke notched his second win of the series. Mark Phillips and Kody Kibler each drove in a pair of runs and Kenny Horney was 3-for-3 for the Raiders, who advance to the SPL finals for the third straight year.

Cashtown got RBI singles from Zach Ketterman and Chris Schachle in the top of the third and pitcher D.J. Cool made the runs stand up in the Pirates' 2-0 win over New Oxford. Cashtown returns to the championship series for the first time since 2012.

Hanover won the regular season series between the two teams 3-1. Cashtown took the first meeting this year, beating Hanover 6-5 at Diller Field. The Raiders swept a doubleheader at Cashtown in late June by scores of 6-1 and 3-0, then turned away the Pirates 5-4 in the final week of the season to secure the top playoff seed.

Game one of the best-of-five series is Thursday at Diller Field at 6:00.