Check out the results for SOL baseball teams in action Thursday. Go to our gallery to view photos from the CR South/Abington game….CLICK HERE.
By Scott Huff
And the beat goes on…
Suburban One League Continental Conference
Central Bucks East 2 – Hatboro-Horsham 1.
The Patriots (8-2) assumed sole possession of first place in the conference with the razor-thin victory over the contending Hatters (7-3). It was the eighth straight conference win for CB East.
“We have played good baseball in all facets on the game lately,” said Central Bucks East head coach Kyle Dennis. “Hatboro-Horsham is a great team – a very talented team.
“We have had some breaks continue to go our way,” added Dennis. “We lost the first two (conference) games, and we have played the game with a chip on our shoulder since that second loss.”
The Patriot offense was sparked by David Yanni who had two hits and an RBI, while Andrew Collins had two hits. CJ Gilmer drove home the game-winner on a fielder’s choice, breaking a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning.
CB East pitcher Michael Broderick was masterful with a complete game effort. Broderick allowed just a single run and exhibited great control with no walks and five strikeouts.
“Michael won’t blow it by anyone, but he is always around the plate,” said Dennis. “And if you can do that on the high school level, you will win a lot of baseball games.
“This is a team that loves the game,” added Dennis. “They go full speed in practice – and always work hard.”
Ryan Murphy was the tough-luck loser for Hatboro-Horsham as he allowed three hits and no earned runs in five and a third innings. Brian Edgington pitched a scoreless inning and two thirds in relief.
Justin Gregorio had two of the seven Hatter hits, and Eric Lane drove home the lone run in the first inning.
Central Bucks East Patriots 0010100 * 2 5 0
Hatboro-Horsham Hatters 100 0000 * 1 7 3
Pennridge 6 – Central Bucks South 1.
The Rams (7-3) kept pace with first place CB East with the victory over the visiting Titans (3-7). It was the fourth straight conference win for the Green & White.
“We have been scrambling for our playoff lives the last two weeks,” said Pennridge head coach Tom Nuneviller. “All we can do is win games and stay in striking distance – and hope that someone can open the door for us the next couple of weeks.”
In the win over the Titans, the Rams – who broke a 1-1 tie with a three-run fourth – cranked up the offense with 14 hits. Tommy Nuneviller (3-for-4, double, two runs) and Dave Totoian (3-for-4, one run) led the Rams. Danny Long, Tyler Freed, and Caleb Hand each had two hits. Tatoian and Long each collected two RBIs.
Andrew Mayhew was the winning pitcher in a complete game effort.
“We were inconsistent at times during the year,” said Nuneviller. “Today we had a lot of good at-bats, and we were able to put pressure on them the whole game. When we’re hitting – you can’t relax against our lineup.
“This is a such a good league – and we can see the end of the schedule,” added Nuneviller. “We just have to continue to find ways to win games.”
Central Bucks South Titans 001 000 0 * 1 6 3
Pennridge Rams 010 302 X * 6 14 1
Souderton 8 – Central Bucks West 1.
The Indians (4-6) won their second consecutive conference game this week with the victory over the Bucks (1-9).
“We starting to get some timely hitting – the games we lost earlier in the season we’re beginning to win now,” said Souderton head coach Mike Childs. “We starting to come around as a team – we’re figuring out the pieces to the puzzle, and we’re still not out of the playoffs.
“We still have Pennridge (7-3), Central Bucks East (8-2), and North Penn (7-2) to play in the second half,” added Childs. “If we could get to 8-6 or even to 7-7, you never know. Of course, beating Pennridge, East, or North Penn is going to be tough. But if we want to get to the playoffs, we are going to have to beat the higher echelon teams.”
Souderton scored in five of the seven innings in the win over the Bucks. They put three runs on the board in the first and never looked back.
Dylan Morrissette fueled the offense with a double and three RBIs and nine different Indian starters got hits.
Nate Luscombe was the winning pitcher for the Big Red with a complete game effort. He limited the Bucks to just three hits while striking out nine and walking none.
“Nate is a control pitcher with a really nice breaking ball,” said Childs. “We will be counting on him and Aaron (Gulibon) at the end of the season.”
Matt Peralta accounted for two of the Bucks’ three hits.
Central Bucks West Bucks 000 100 0 * 1 3 0
Souderton Indians 300 221 X * 8 9 1
Suburban One League National Conference
Pennsbury 4 – Bensalem 2.
The Falcons (9-1) continued to inch toward a conference championship with a victory over the Owls (4-6).
“We can’t afford to look ahead to anything,” said Pennsbury head coach Joe Pesci. “If you think about a game in the future – you will lose a game in the present.
“Everyone is coming after us, and our goal is to go out and win every game,” added Pesci. “We can’t take anything for granted. We beat Bensalem 18-2 the first time, but it was a 3-2 game going into the sixth inning. Bensalem is a good team, and so are all the other teams in our league.”
Brody McFadden earned the win for the Black & Orange, while Andrew Gilbert was effective as he earned the save. Zach Szumaglia and Billy Bethel each had two hits for the winners, while Bethel and Tyrone Hodges collected the only RBIs.
“Brody threw four innings and gave up only one run – and that’s pretty effective,” said Pesci. “And Andrew came on in relief and did an outstanding job in the sixth and seventh innings.”
The Bensalem offense was led by Jerry Crespo with two hits, while Chris Reyes drove home the only run. Nick 
Mulvey was the tough-luck loser for the Owls.
“Nick threw a great game for them,” said Pesci. “He mixed things up and kept us off balance.
“We know that if we win games we will win the league – and get a top seed in the district,” added Pesci. “But we have to stay focused.”
Bensalem Owls 0001100 * 2 6 2
Pennsbury Falcons 001 201 X * 4 6 2
Council Rock South 8 – Abington 2.
The Golden Hawks (7-3) kept themselves in the contention for the conference championship with a key 8-2 victory over the Ghosts (4-4).
CR South exploded for eight runs in the third inning to coast to the win. Connor Macaulay (two doubles), Shaun Stackhouse, and Evan Fisher all had two hits for the Hawks, while Fisher and Josh Kim led the team with two RBIs each. Kim also had a double.
Jordan Silverman was the winning pitcher with a complete game effort. He allowed just four hits and struck out five.
“We don’t score eight runs a game – much less eight runs an inning,” said Council Rock South head coach Ted Kirner. “It was an offensive feast for us – and it was great to see.
“Abington has proven to be a very good baseball team,” added Kirner. “They are a team that can knock you out. We needed to play well – and we did – especially in the third inning.
“We understand we are two games behind Pennsbury with four to play,” continued Kirner. “But we can’t control what they do – if they lose a game – and we win all of ours – we can control our own destiny.”
Abington was led offensively by Conor Breslin who hit a two-run homerun in the fifth inning. Nick Bein had two of the four Ghost hits on the day.
Abington Ghosts 0000200 * 2 4 2
CR South Hawks 008000X * 8 11 0
Council Rock North 7 – Harry S Truman 1.
The Indians (6-3) also remained in contention for a conference championship with a critical 7-1 victory over the Tigers (4-5).
“We were able to hit up and down the lineup today,” said Council Rock North head coach Matt Schram. “We hit the ball hard – and except for a couple of base running mistakes – we played a pretty complete game.”
The Indians broke a 1-1 tie with a single run in the second when Noah Hartwell hit a sacrifice fly. They added three more runs in the fifth and two in the seventh.
Cole German and Seth Lutz each had two hits – including a double – for the Indians. Jared Schram had a two-run double while Brandon McIlwain, JR Hicks, Cole Hofman, Matt Hand, and Tyler Nowmos (double) each had one RBI. McIlwain’s RBI came on a solo home run in the seventh.
Hartwell earned the win throwing six and a third innings. He allowed no runs and struck out seven Owl hitters.
“Noah is a crafty pitcher that has great command and is always around the plate,” said Schram. “It was a great win for us – a total team effort.”
Matt Hebling had two of the four Truman hits.
CR North Indians 1100302 * 7 9 1
Truman Tigers 1000000 * 1 4 1
Neshaminy 11 – William Tennent 1.
The Redskins (3-7) erupted for a huge mercy-rule victory over the Panthers (1-9).
Suburban One League American Conference
Wissahickon 12 – Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 (5 innings)
The Trojans (10-0) remained unbeaten with a convincing victory over the Colonials (3-6) in the abbreviated contest.
“Let’s just say that we don’t have a desire to be co-champions of our league,” said Wissahickon head coach Shannon Gunby as Upper Dublin (9-1) continues to be on the heels of the Trojans. “We know that we have a target on our back – and we have continue to play good baseball.”
Wissahickon – which led 8-1 after two innings – played good baseball against PW as the Trojans pounded out 12 hits. And two of the biggest sparks in the win over the Colonials were a pair of sophomores – Alexander Tappen and Matt Shilling. Tappen – who was also the winning pitcher with seven strikeouts – had three hits and two RBIs. Shilling – who also pitches – had three hits, including two doubles, and four RBIs.
“I’m not at all surprised with our sophomore class,” said Gunby. “Alexander is hitting .429 – Shilling is at .500 – and Logan Willans is hitting .333 and leads the team in wins with four.”
Also contributing multi-hit efforts for the Trojans were Blake Rapoport (2-for-4, double, 1 run), (Nick Falso (2-for-4, 2 runs), Ryan Becker (2-for-3, double, 3 runs) and Julian Osterneck (3-for-4, 3 RBIs, 2 runs).
The Plymouth Whitemarsh offense was sparked by Evan Bischoff and Noah Goldstein who each drove home a run.
“We want to win the league,” said Gunby. “And we hope to get a top three seed in districts.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials 01100 * 2 6 5
Wissahickon Trojans 53013 * 12 12 0
Springfield 6 – Cheltenham 1.
The Spartans (5-5) moved into third place in the standings with the victory over the Panthers (4-6).
“We did a great job of moving runners and playing the game the right way,” said Springfield head coach Dennis Primavera. “Today might be the best that we have done all season in doing things the right way. We played like we practiced.”
Springfield played small ball and scored in five of the six innings. Mike Johnston was the hitting star for the Spartans with a perfect 3-for-3 day that included a triple and two RBIs, while Julian Salzer, who tripled, threw a complete game – two hitter.
“It was encouraging to see the way that Julian threw the ball today,” said Primavera. “But I was more encouraged by how we are playing at the end of the season.”
Cheltenham Panthers 0001000 * 1 2 1
Springfield Spartans 021111X * 6 7 2
Norristown 11 – Upper Merion 4.
The Eagles (3-6) had their largest offensive outburst of the season in the victory over the rival Vikings (1-8).
“This was really the first game all season we had production from the top of our lineup to the bottom of the lineup,” said Norristown head coach Rich Campbell as Norristown pounded out 22 hits. “I was thrilled with the way that we played.”
The offensive explosion was generated by Charles Grello who had five hits and an RBI – Tom Piccari who had three hits and three RBIs – Anthony Wayne who had three hits and two RBIs – and Joe Cook who had three hits and two RBIs. Alec Proietto earned the win for the Eagles.
“Upper Merion was coming off its win with Plymouth Whitemarsh,” said Campbell. “They were amped up to play us – and we were just as amped up to play them.”
Norristown Eagles 2321012 * 11 22 1
Upper Merion Vikings 0202000 * 4 9 6
Upper Dublin 10 – Upper Moreland 0.
The Flying Cardinals (9-1) remained a single game behind unbeaten Wissahickon (10-0) in the conference standings with the mercy-rule win over the Golden Bears (3-6).
Cole Swiger was the winning pitcher for Upper Dublin with a complete game shutout. Swiger allowed Upper Moreland just a pair of singles. The Cardinal offense was generated by Conor McFadden who collected a pair of hits and a pair of RBIs. Thomas Juelke and John Lee also had a pair of hits for the winners.
Upper Dublin Cardinals 2043011 * 10 9 1
Upper Moreland Bears 0000000 * 0 2 6
Non-League
Parkland 8 – North Penn 3.
Parkland Trojans 1001510 * 8 13 1
North Penn Knights 0001101 * 3 7 2
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