The distance from the pitcher’s mound to home plate is still 60 feet, six inches.

The base lines are 90 feet.

But even though the measurements are the same ones as on any high school field, when a baseball player stands in the batter’s box at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown or in PNC Field in Moosic, there’s no comparison.

High school players fortunate enough to play a game at either of those venues during their high school careers, may just have to pinch themselves to realize the moment is real.

But while the majority of high school players will never get the opportunity to play on either of those fields, the Pleasant Valley baseball team got to experience playing at both of them this season.

The Bears played games in each venue against rival Stroudsburg. On April 25, PV shut out the Mountaineers, 8-0 at Coca-Cola Park - the home of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. On May 5, they lost to Stroudsburg, 14-3, at PNC Field - the home of the Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders.

Playing baseball in the minor league homes of the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Yankees franchises was a part of this year’s schedule for all Eastern Pennsylvania Conference teams.

It was an experience that Pleasant Valley baseball coach TJ Murphy was thrilled his team got the chance to experience.

“Give credit to our former athletic director Tom Toth, and our booster club for giving our players these opportunities,” Murphy said. “They worked behind the scenes for us to have a great experience.”

At Coca-Cola Park, the Bears were permitted to take batting practice for 10 minutes in the cage underneath the stands and afterward, hold a 10-minute pregame infield-outfield practice. At PNC Field, they were given 20 minutes of batting practice, and took pregame ground balls and fly balls on the outfield grass.

“When the kids took the infield, there wasn’t a clump of dirt anywhere,” explained Murphy about the pristine field conditions. “And of course our pitchers liked throwing off a professional mound that is groomed, unlike any high school mound that they have ever pitched on.”

Despite the perfect conditions both fields provided, Murphy said his players didn’t act like they were in awe of the minor league stadiums.

“Once we started to play, it became just another baseball game,” he remarked.

The one major difference between both venues compared to any high school field is the vast outfield dimensions. At Coca-Cola Park, it’s over 400 feet to centerfield, 374 feet to deep left center and 369 to right center. At PNC Field, dead center measures at 408 feet, with both gaps at 371 feet. Although many high school fields have similar distances down the foul lines, the deepest parts of minor league fields provide the possibility of many more extra-base hits.

“There’s certainly a lot more ground to cover, but amazingly, that had little impact on our games,” said Murphy. “I can recall a triple that might not have been one on a high school field, but there weren’t a lot of other balls hit that were impacted by the dimensions.”

With crowd capacity at just over 10,000 at both parks, there were significantly more seats than fans. Still, these two special events drew larger crowds than any typical high school game.

Murphy was especially impressed with the support his team received from the school’s student body.

“We have had a really good student fan following at our home games this year, and student body really backed us at these two special games as well,” said Murphy. “We had about 200 students come to these two games to cheer us on.”

Murphy added that the RailRiders were especially accommodating and offered his team a bonus return to PNC Field to take in a game.

“They offered to acknowledge us on their scoreboard video screen and have one of our players to throw out the first pitch.” Murphy said.

The Bears are having another successful season under Murphy, who has been at the helm of the Pleasant Valley baseball program for the past three years. The Bears finished the regular season with a 14-6 record and qualified for both the EPC and District 11 playoffs.

Pleasant Valley’s success on the field has also been enhanced by the two special fields it has played on this season

“Playing baseball at Coca Cola Park and PNC Field is a very special experience for our team that they deserve,” Murphy said. “These are venues they will remember for the rest of their lives. I told them to enjoy it all and just take in the moment.”

*******

RECORD BREAKERS … The opening day of the Schuylkill League Track and Field Championships on Tuesday at Mahanoy Area High School was a memorable one for the Jim Thorpe duo of Kaila O’Connor and Laura Clarke. Both O’Connor and Clarke not only walked away with gold medals, but they also set school records in the process.

O’Connor won the 300 hurdles in a school record a time of 45.91 seconds. Clarke captured - and bettered - her own school record in the process with a throw of 116-5.

*******

FAMILY TIES … Northwestern’s Faith Yost tied the school record in the high jump on Tuesday at the Colonial League Track and Field Championships at Whitehall, but Yost still doesn’t have sole ownership of the best high jump ever by a member of her own family.

Yost’s leap of 5-5 gave her a gold medal in the event and matched the best high jump in school history - a mark set in 1992 by her aunt, Kathy Yost.

*******

MEMORABLE JUMP … Palmerton’s Nataly Walters, only a freshman, is already a school record holder. On the second day of the Colonial League Track and Field Championships Wednesday at Whitehall High School, Walters not only turned in a gold medal winning leap of 37-8 3/4 in the triple jump, but in the process set a school record. Her distance bettered the mark of 37- 1/4 set by 2008 Palmerton graduate Casey Ord.

*******

MILESTONE … On Monday,, Tony Radocha won his 100th-career game as the Marian baseball coach. The milestone came in a 5-2 Schuylkill League victory over Mahanoy Area.

Radocha was named the head coach of his alma mater in 2014. In his eight years at the helm of the Colts, his teams have won five Schuylkill League Division 3 titles and one overall Schuylkill League championship. His teams have also made three appearances in the District 11 title game, winning two of them. Marian has also qualified for the PIAA State Tournament twice under Radocha.

Following his 100th victory, Radocha said, “I’m humbled and honored. To every player who has ever played for me, I hope I made as big of an impact on your lives as you have made on mine. To my coaches - past and present - I would be nothing without you. I’m truly at a loss for words at how honored I am right now. This was a moment for the entire Marian Baseball Family, and the Marian Family as a whole. Thank you for the countless support. Here is to the next 100.”

*******

BONUS BASEBALL … In the span of a week, the Northwestern baseball team played two 12-inning games.

On May 2, the Tigers posted a 7-6 walk-off victory over Pen Argyl in the 12th inning. On May 5, the Tigers once again needed a dozen innings to record a 7-5 victory over Southern Lehigh. In between the two marathons, Northwestern added a 13-1, seven-inning victory over Salisbury.

That means in the span of four days, Northwestern played 33 innings of baseball - the equivalent of almost five full games.

The Tigers weren’t the only area team playing double digit innings of baseball recently. Northern Lehigh needed 11 innings to post a 4-3 victory over Moravian Academy on Tuesday in a game that lasted three-and-a-half hours.

*******

NO-NO … On Tuesday, Pleasant Valley softball pitcher Kailynn Getz tossed a four-inning no-hitter against Marian as the Bears rolled to a 15-0 non-league win. Getz struck out seven and didn’t allow a walk.

*******

SPECIAL K … This past Monday, Weatherly softball pitcher Madyson vonFrisch was able to register her 300th-career strikeout. The Wrecker junior reached the milestone in about 36 starts over the last two seasons. vonFrisch’s 300th came in a 14-strikeout effort against Shenandoah.

*******

RUNNING WILD … The Weatherly baseball team has struggled to win games this season. But the Wreckers (1-17) have made the most of their team speed. Weatherly has stolen 70 bases this season - an average of almost four stolen bases per game. Leading the way for the Wreckers are Nate Tripp, Jack James and Wyatt Higgins, who have stolen 14, 12 and 11 bases, respectively, this season.