The Lancaster Barnstormers are going to the Atlantic League finals for the first time since their 2006 championship season.

The Barnstormers' bats pounded the York Revolution pitching staff for a third straight game en route to a 12-8 win over the host Revs. The victory gave the Stormers a sweep of the best-of-five Freedom Division series.

Lancaster will now face the winner of the Southern Maryland-Long Island series, which is tied 2-2 with the final game scheduled for today.

"You know how proud I am of you guys," Lancaster manager Butch Hobson told his players in a champagne-soaked locker room after the game. "I'm proud of what you did all season, and this sweep just proves that you're the best team in the Atlantic League. I think the best team in minor league baseball."

The Lancaster offense, a question mark going into playoffs, is alive and well. The Barnstormers totaled 34 hits and 30 runs in the series. The Barnsormers' bats had been in a slump before the postseason.

On Saturday, every Stormers starter but Blake Gailen, who hit three home runs in the first two games, had a hit.

Ryan Harvey and Tommy Everidge both hit three-run homers. Travis Denker was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and Bridger Hunt was 3-for-3 with two RBIs.

York took took a 4-1 lead after three innings. But the Barnstormers took the lead with four in the fourth and never trailed again.

Denker and Hunt both had two-run doubles in the fourth.

In the fifth, the Barnstormers added three more on Harvey's homer, a monster shot to center that cleared the carousel.

"The last couple weeks, I've just been battling out there," Harvey said of his struggles before the playoffs. "In the last few at-bats, I've been starting to feel better at the plate."

In the sixth, Tommy Everidge hit a three-run homer to right off former Barnstormer Kris Regas.

"That was big, especially opposite-field like that," Hobson said. "He's been working on that."

The Everidge home run was the eighth of the series for the Barnstomers.

Five of the Lancaster runs (four earned) came off of York starter and loser Chris Cody, who lasted just 3.2 innings.

Lancaster starter J.D. Durbin got the win despite giving up seven earned runs on 10 hits in five innings.

The Lancaster bullpen was big down the stretch. The relievers gave up just one run in the final four innings. Ronnie Morales, Jeff Bennett and Tim Hamulack each pitched a perfect inning to finish the game.

"We just held together like we always did all year,"  said Hamulack, the Lancaster closer who led the league with 33 saves. "We stayed focused and beat them. There was a lot less stress after we won the first two. Hopefully, we keep rolling and win everything."

Andres Perez and Chris Nowak continued to be the hot hitters for York. Perez was 3-for-5 and Nowak 4-for-5, and both had three RBIs.

"I don't think I've seen two guys that hit back-to-back (they were fourth and fifth in the batting order) who were that hot," Hobson said. "They hit everything."

The Barnstormers set a regular-season league-record with 88 wins, and York had the second-best record. York and Lancaster were the only two teams in the league with overall winning records.

"We beat in my opinion the second best team in the league," Hobson said. "We're the best team and they're the second best. The numbers speak for themselves."

The Barnstormers now have the luxury of a couple of days off before beginning the championship series in Lancaster on Wednesday.

I'm so pround of these guys and that we're able to put ouselves in a position do what I promised the people in Lancaster County we would do," Hobson said. "We want to win a championship. But for now, we'll enjoy this for a while."

Notes: The game was the last for York manager Andy Etchebarren, who as a player coach and manager has been in baseball for 51 years. He managed the Revs 3 1/2 seasons and skippered them to the title the last two seasons. … The series win was the first for the Barnstormers in the playoffs since they beat Bridgeport 3-0 in the championship series in 2006. … Hunt, according to Hobson, tweaked a hamstring muscle after a double in the sixth but should be OK for the championship series.

bwilson@lnpnews.com