The California University of Pennsylvania baseball team is closing in on another Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division title.

The Vulcans have won or shared the title four of the past six years under coach Mike Conte and are currently tied for first place.

"Our goal is win another Western Division title, but we still have 12 conference games left," Conte said on Wednesday. "We have the talent required to win another title, but have to take it one game at a time."

California has posted three consecutive 30-win seasons and are closing in on a fourth, as the Vulcans entered Thursday's scheduled doubleheader against West Liberty State with an 18-9 mark. They are tied with Shippensburg with a 6-2 record in the PSAC West.

"It's been a unified team effort," said Conte, who is in his 11th season at California and has a 282-211-1 career record. "We have had many players make contributions in many different ways."

The Vulcans feature seven players who were PSAC West All-Stars last year, including three named to the first team, second baseman Drew Aniceti, shortstop Robert Hedrick and left fielder Lee Rohan.

Aniceti, a junior who graduated from Blackhawk High School, was a second-team selection and Western Division Rookie of the Year in 2005. In 23 starts, Aniceti is batting .316 with 16 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 20 attempts.

Hedrick, a junior from Suffolk, Va., is a two-time first-team selection. He was batting .302 with 13 runs scored and 12 runs batted in prior to an arm injury that ended his season.

Rohan, a senior from Erie McDowell, has played in all 27 games, starting all but one. He is hitting .413 with 20 runs scored and 13 stolen bases in 15 attempts.

"Drew and Robert are both three-year starters," said Conte. "We lost Robert on April 3 to a season-ending arm injury in a game against Seton Hill. It's never easy to lose a starter, but we are fortunate to have some flexibility with our lineup."

The four Vulcans who were voted to the PSAC-West second-team last year are shortstop Dustin Woodring, catcher Dave Sibenac, outfielder Ryan Yost and starting pitcher Chris Doerschner.

Woodring, a senior from Philipsburg-Osceola, has also seen time at first base. He is batting .311 with 20 runs scored, 13 runs batted in, and three home runs.

Sibenac, a junior from Shaler, is struggling a bit at the plate with a .162 average. Yost, a junior from Montour, is batting .270.

Doerschner, a senior from Carrick, is a four-year letterman who has been a PSAC-West second-team selection the past two years. He has pitched in six games, starting five, and has a 5-1 record and a 4.32 earned run average.

"Chris has been a part of our pitching staff since his freshman year," said Conte. "He's been a big-game pitcher since picking up the victory in the state championship game as a freshman."

Doerschner is one of seven Vulcans who have started three or more games. Nick Schreiber and Jon Squeglia have both made four starts. Schreiber, a right-handed sophomore from Greencastle-Antrim, is 3-1 with a 2.18 ERA. Squeglia, a sophomore left-hander from Shaler, is 2-1 with a 3.47 ERA.

"Most of our conference games are played in four-game sets over two days, two at home and two on the road," said Conte. "A schedule like that is very demanding on a pitching staff.

"It's easy to have a staff become taxed unless you have enough pitching depth. We are very fortunate to have a strong pitching staff."

The injury to Hedrick has forced Conte to do some lineup juggling. Jeremy Potter has moved from first to third base to replace Hedrick, while Woodring has moved from shortstop to first base to replace Potter. Ryan Kemerer has stepped in at shortstop, while also seeing time at third base.

Potter, a junior from Philipsburg-Osceola, is batting .326. Kemerer, a sophomore from New Brighton, leads the team with a .425 average.

Others who have started 15 or more games are: outfielders Alex Lefcakis and Jon Selby, and infielders Chris Novia and Derek Henson.

Lefcakis, a junior from Plum, is batting .365 and leads the team with 22 RBI. Selby, a sophomore from New Brighton, is batting .322 with 18 runs scored. Novia, a junior from Ontario, is batting .288 and leads the team with four home runs. Henson, a sophomore from Brentwood, is batting .239.