Scott Huff previews Monday’s PIAA Tournament baseball games featuring SOL squads.
By Scott Huff
Are you kidding me?
Pennridge plays North Penn – again – actually for the fourth time this season - with the winner playing for the PIAA Quad-A State Baseball Championship on Friday (6/14/13) on Medlar Field at Lubrano Park on the campus of Penn State University.
Both the Rams and the Knights have more in common than just playing in the Suburban One League Continental Conference. Both finished the regular season 9-5 which placed both in a dead heat for third place in the standings behind conference champion Central Bucks East (12-2) and Central Bucks South (10-4). Both not only failed to win a conference championship – neither won the PIAA Quad-A District One championship that crowned Coatesville as king of the district.
But either Pennridge or North Penn will earn the coveted shot of playing for the PIAA Quad-A state title – and both have richly deserved the opportunity.
“This is a crazy game, it is funny how things work out,” said Central Bucks South head coach Mike Schaefer. “When you get hot, you can stay hot. To have a 10 and 12 seed from District One playing in the final four in the state is amazing.
“It really speaks to what we deal with in our conference on a day-to-day basis,” added Schaefer. “I don’t think that anyone could argue that there is a tougher conference in the state than the Suburban One Continental Conference.
“Both teams are very well coached, and they do the little things right,” continued Schaefer in reference to Pennridge head coach Tom Nuneviller and North Penn head coach Kevin Manero. “The best pitchers for either team are not untouchable, but those pitchers compete well and throw strikes. The game should be interesting. It is tough for a team to beat another team four times in the same season, but Pennridge will have to do that if they want to go to the finals.”
Pennridge does indeed have a perfect 3-0 record against North Penn this 2013 baseball season. The recent Ram-Knight history, though, really means nothing now.
Pennridge beat North Penn at home 4-0 on April 19 when Evan Myers fired a complete game, five-hit, shutout. The Rams hammered the Knights at North Penn 18-8 on May 13, scoring 11 runs in the first two innings fueled by a three-run homer by Jake Gordon - a victory that also earned Pennridge a slot in the district playoffs. Pennridge then rallied back from an early 3-1 deficit to defeat North Penn in the District One semifinals by a 4-3 margin in a game played at the Villanova University Ballpark at Plymouth.
The only Pennridge-North Penn game that is of any consequence, however, will be the one played Monday (6/10/13) at Ram Stadium on the campus of Spring-Ford High School with the first pitch to be thrown at 3:30 pm.
Good luck to both teams.
PIAA Quad-A State Baseball Semifinal Playoff
Tuesday – June 11, 2013
North Penn Knights vs. Pennridge Rams
@ Spring-Ford High School – Royersford – 6 pm
- Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between District 3 champion Lower Dauphin and District 7 champion North Allegheny in the PIAA Quad-A State Championship Game on Friday – June 14, 2013. The game will be played at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park – Penn State University Park – 6 pm.
- Season Resume: North Penn finished as the 3rd place finisher in the Suburban One League Continental Conference with a conference record of 9-5, while Pennridge also finished as the 3rd place finisher in the SOL Continental Conference with a conference record of 9-5.
PIAA Quad-A District One Playoff Resume: North Penn finished as the 4th seed from District One as the Knights won their opening round game over Conestoga (9-3) and followed with wins over both Perkiomen Valley (8-3) and Strath Haven (5-0). North Penn lost a pair of district games to both Pennridge (4-3) and Council Rock North (4-1). Pennridge finished as the second seed from District One as the Rams won their district opener over Great Valley (7-3) and followed with wins over both Neshaminy (7-1) and Boyertown (4-1). Pennridge then lost in the District One title game to Coatesville – 5-4.- PIAA Quad-A State Playoff Resume: North Penn opened the state playoffs with a thrilling 1-0 victory over District 11 champion Parkland and followed with an impressive 11-1 mercy-rule victory over District One champion Coatesville. Pennridge opened the state playoffs with a remarkable 11-4 victory over defending state champion and District 12 champion La Salle and followed with a gutsy 3-1 victory over District 2 champion Wyoming Valley West.
- Players To Watch: Possible North Penn starting lineup: (1) Brady West – RF; (2) Brad Bertucci – 3B; (3) Eddie Posavec – C; (4) Chris Kersey – SS; (5) Jared Melone – 1B; (6) Bobby Scott – DH; (7) Zillur Rahim – CF; (8) Mason Nadeau – LF; (9) Anthony Cameron – 2B. --- [Pitcher] – Brian Maher. Possible Pennridge starting lineup: (1) Danny Shane – CF; (2) Brad Misialek – SS; (3) David Tatoian – 2B; (4) Mike Kacergis – C; (5) AJ Molettiere – LF; (6) Jake Gordon – 1B; (7) Tyler Schoultes – DH; (8) Joe Unangst – RF; (9) Ben Morina – 3B. [Pitcher] – Evan Myers.
- North Penn head coach Kevin Manero says: “This game without question has the highest stakes of any game we have played this year. We can’t ignore the fact that Pennridge beat us the first three times, and in the back of their heads, the players would like nothing better than to beat a team that has beaten you three times. But no matter who we played in this game, the stakes are the same. Win and you get to play for a state championship and what could be better than that.”
- Pennridge head coach Tom Nuneviller says: “We had to beat North Penn just to get into districts, and then we had to beat them to get to the district final, and now we have to play them again to get to the state finals. What we did against them the first three times really doesn’t come into play – it is a one-game series and the winner gets to play for a state championship. The opportunity to play in this game – no matter who we would be playing – is exciting for both the players and the coaches.”
Are you kidding me?
Upper Moreland advanced to the PIAA Class AAA semifinals with its second consecutive 4-3 state playoff walk-off victory. The Golden Bears knocked off Punxsutawney in walk-off fashion on Saturday with an RBI single by Mike Cavanaugh – Upper Moreland captured a 4-3 walk-off victory over Greencastle-Atrim in the first round on an RBI single by Charlie Hooker.
The Suburban One League American Conference champions have become road warriors, making the scenic trips to south-central Pennsylvania in their quest for a state title. The quarterfinal contest with District 9 champion Punxsuatawney on Saturday was played at Green Township Park in Scotland – a 2 ½ hour trek from Willow Grove. And the Golden Bears will back on the bus Monday to return to Scotland to play Keystone Oaks in the semifinal game.
Does Upper Moreland next a passport to play in Scotland?
The wheels on the bus go round and round …
PIAA Class AAA Baseball Semifinal Playoff
Tuesday – June 11, 2013
Upper Moreland Golden Bears vs. Keystone Oaks Golden Eagles
@ Green Township Park – Scotland – 2 pm
- Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the (3-3) West York – (2-1) Abington Heights winner in the PIAA Class AAA finals on Friday (6/14/13). The game will be played at 1 pm on Medlar Field @ Lubrano Park on the campus of Penn State University.
- Season Resume: Upper Moreland was the champion of the Suburban One League American Conference with a conference record of 13-1, while Keystone Oaks was the champion of the WPIAL AAA League with a league record of 8-2.
District Playoff Resume: Upper Moreland was the 2nd place finisher in District One. The Golden Bears captured a 12-0 win over Marple Newtown and an 8-1 win over Pottstown before losing in the district final to Holy Ghost Prep by a 6-0 score. Keystone Oaks was the 3rd place finisher in District 7. The Golden Eagles soared to wins over Elizabeth Forward (10-0) and Chartiers Valley (4-3) before losing in the district final to South Park (1-0).- State Playoff Resume: Upper Moreland opened the state playoffs with a come-from-behind 4-3 walk-off win over Greencastle-Atrim and followed with another 4-3 walk-off victory over Punxsuatawney to reach the state semifinals. Keystone Oaks opened the playoffs with a 4-0 victory over Slippery Rock and followed with a revenge 3-0 win over South Park.
- Players To Watch: Upper Moreland has featured the pitching of both Charlie Hooker and Eddie Decker and the clutch hitting of Pat Driscoll, Matt Kohn, and Rob Knox. Keystone Oaks has a Division One recruit in pitcher Jared Skolnicki (Kent State) and the hitting of Ryan Ribeau, Nick Rigglem and Taylor Lehman.
- Golden Bear head coach Ernie Rehr says: “It is going to be tough to go from playing on Saturday to playing again on Monday when you have to travel 2 ½ hours for each game. Plus the kids have graduation parties on Sunday, and it is going to be a very busy time for them. But to still be playing is very exciting, and we are still competing for a state championship. We have no complaints. We have had two great wins so far with the walk-off wins, and we want to continue winning.”
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