The DeSales University baseball team boasts one of the MAC Freedom Conference’s most potent lineups.

Sophomore Jacob Rivera believes the Bulldogs have more in them.

Rivera, a Liberty High graduate, has played a central role for a DeSales team that went into Tuesday ranked second in the MAC Freedom in batting average (.326), on-base percentage (.436) and runs (190). That offense has kept the Bulldogs (14-9 overall, 8-1 MAC Freedom) near the top of the conference standings — they’re tied for second place with Arcadia, one game behind Misericordia — as they near the midpoint of conference play.

“We’re not too focused right now about what the standings are saying,” Rivera said by phone Monday night. “We’re just going to go into every game with confidence, taking it pitch by pitch, and playing our game.

“We think if we’re able to play our best baseball at the right time, then things fall into place, and we like our chances. We’re feeling pretty good.”

DeSales coach Bryan Torresani has felt great writing Rivera into the lineup every game. Rivera began Tuesday tied for second in the conference in hits (33) and tied for third in doubles (10). He is hitting .413 with a team-best .600 slugging percentage.

Rivera’s offensive production has come while he has added defensive versatility to his skill set. He primarily played first base last season, when he was the MAC Freedom Conference rookie of the year. He has spent time at first base, right field and left field this season.

“He’s just a really skilled offensive player,” Torresani said. “He can kind of go foul pole to foul pole. He’s a tough out. He puts up professional at-bats. And obviously the fact that he hits left-handed I think is an advantage for anybody too.

“He’s had a really good season. He’s come up with some really big hits for us.”

Rivera has had help aplenty from his lineup mates. Graduate student Owen Fischl, a Whitehall product, leads the Bulldogs with a .429 average and has a 1.067 OPS.

Freshman Dominic Berretta has emerged as DeSales’ primary catcher, posting a 1.087 OPS in 17 games (12 starts). Senior Bobby Dingell, freshman Kevin Brace, and senior JT Anderosky have also been lineup mainstays, combining for 70 runs scored and 30 stolen bases. All three are hitting at least .329.

Torresani, who is in his first year leading DeSales after the retirement of long-time coach Tim Neiman, is looking for a few more pitchers to emerge to complement the offense. Torresani said he feels good about his top eight arms as DeSales navigates its three-game conference weekends. He would like to get to 10 trustworthy pitchers to better position the Bulldogs to compete for championships.

DeSales will spend its next two weekends battling the conference’s preseason favorites. The Bulldogs face Arcadia, which was picked to win the league in preseason polling, in a three-game series that opens Tuesday. They face Misericordia next weekend. The Cougars finished No. 2 in the MAC Freedom Conference preseason poll.

“We like our chances right now,” Rivera said. “We’re feeling pretty good.”

Here come the hits: Freshman infielder Will Dobil started his Lafayette career with two hits in his first 27 at-bats.

The Parkland graduate sent his batting average soaring over his next seven games.

Dobil went into Tuesday with multiple hits in four straight games and six of his last seven. He starred in Lafayette’s three-game weekend sweep of Holy Cross, going 7-for-12 with three doubles, five runs and four RBIs.

Dobil’s scorching stretch — he is 13 for his last 27 — lifted his batting average from .074 on March 18 to .278 heading into Tuesday’s Liberty Bell Classic matchup with Villanova.

Short hops: Kutztown redshirt senior Abel Saft (Moravian Academy) tossed a seven-inning complete game Saturday in a 3-2 win over Mansfield. He didn’t walk anyone and scattered seven hits in a 91-pitch gem. … Moravian senior left-hander Ross Huffman (East Stroudsburg South) struck out two batters Sunday to become the 22nd player in program history with 100 career strikeouts. He has whiffed 29 batters in 24 2/3 innings over five starts this season.

Stephen Miller is a freelance writer