Jarred Saffren recaps all of Wednesday’s SOL baseball action.
By Jarrad Saffren
Eighteen Suburban One League baseball teams played league games Wednesday. Two—Bensalem and Central Bucks South—played a non-league crossover game.
All 10 results and recaps are below.
SOL National
Pennsbury 1, Council Rock South 0
Ryan McCarty pitched all seven innings for Pennsbury. Zach Mayer pitched all six innings for Council Rock South.
They dueled the whole way. McCarty won by the smallest possible margin.
Pennsbury scored off Mayer in the bottom of the fourth. Dave Murphy crushed a double over the centerfielder’s head. Nick Price bunted Murphy’s pinch-runner—Josh Arruda—to third. Vaughn Ward blooped a single down the left field line.
Arruda trotted home.
Mayer had been baffling the Falcons with his slow, looping curveball. His only other pitch, at least on Wednesday, was a fastball. Murphy and Ward sat on fastballs. They figured Mayer had to throw at least one per at-bat.
“If he starts you with the curveball, you just don’t swing and wait for the fastball,” Murphy said. “I was looking fastball and when I got it, I wanted to hit it as far as I could.”
“I was waiting for a fastball and I got one away,” Ward said.
Mayer pitched six innings in 74 pitches. Pennsbury stranded seven runners and went 3-for-12 with runners on. Mayer made one mistake in a key spot. That was all it took.
McCarty pitched seven innings in 82 pitches. He struck out six. Like Mayer, he pitched well with men on base. CR South stranded seven and went 2-for-11 with men on.
“I kept them out of my head and kept hitting spots,” McCarty said. “I just keep focusing on (catcher Josh Tesarck’s) target.”
McCarty pounded the zone with fastballs. He also mixed in changeups and curveballs. CR South hitters swung late at the fastballs and popped them up. They swung early at the off-speed pitches and popped them up, too.
“I hit my spots well,” McCarty said. “I’m real confident in my fastball.”
“My glove was popping,” Tesarck said. “He was spotting his fastball and his changeup looked good.”
Matt Smith and Joe Shragher both stroked two hits for South.
Pennsbury (12-6, 8-2 SOL) plays Council Rock North Friday at 3:45. CR South (9-9, 5-5 SOL) hosts Bensalem Thursday at 3:45.
Council Rock South 0-0-0-0-0-0-0 0
Pennsbury 0-0-0-1-0-0-0 1
Abington 2, Harry S. Truman 0
Abington starter JP Nolan pitched a two-hit shutout. He struck out eight and allowed two hits in seven innings.
“He had an outstanding game. He was mixing pitches up tremendously,” Ghosts coach Jon Morrissette said. “Our sophomore catcher, Stephen Vogel, did a great job blocking third strikes in the dirt.”
Vogel made his fourth start of the season Wednesday. He won the job recently.
“He’s been working hard all year,” Morrissette said.
Abington scored two runs on one hit in the sixth. With runners on second and third, with two outs, with two strikes, George Jacob ripped a double to center. Nick McClay and Matt Horn scored.
“We had baserunners all day. We never get that clutch hit, which has been a problem for us all year,” Morrissette said. “George got it today.”
Colin Kelly led Abington with three hits.
“He’s been getting on base all year for us,” Morrissette said. “We haven’t gotten him in enough.”
Abington (5-14, 3-9 SOL) hosts Upper Dublin Monday night at seven. Harry S. Truman (2-12, 1-9 SOL) plays Neshaminy Friday at 3:45.
Abington 0-0-0-0-0-2-0 2
Harry S. Truman 0-0-0-0-0-0-0 0
SOL Continental
Souderton 4, North Penn 2
Souderton took over first-place in the Suburban One League Continental Conference. The Indians improved to 7-3 in SOL Continental play. North Penn fell to 6-3.
Souderton has two league games left. North Penn has three.
“It feels good. We are staying humble because we know anything can happen. We have to finish out,” Souderton coach Michael Childs said. “This is a fighting team. They don’t give up. It’s not a textbook baseball, but we fight to the end. And we’ve had great pitching and timely hitting.”
Souderton had great pitching and timely hitting on Wednesday.
Starter Blaise Sclafani allowed one earned run in five innings. He also fanned six. Reliever Dan Knechel gave up no hits and no runs in two innings.
Souderton scored two runs in the bottom of the first and never trailed. Thylar Summarell had a big game for Souderton, with two runs and two RBIs. Luke Barnum had two runs and two hits.
North Penn’s Corey Stouffer had two hits, one run and one RBI. Billy Collins knocked in a run. Ryan Bealer scored one.
Souderton (12-6, 7-3 SOL) plays Central Bucks West Friday at 3:30. North Penn (13-3, 6-3 SOL) hosts Central Bucks South Thursday at four.
North Penn 0-1-0-0-1-0-0 2
Souderton 2-0-2-0-0-0-X 4
William Tennent 10, Central Bucks East 6
William Tennent built a 5-1 lead through four innings. Central Bucks East rallied for five runs in the fifth and sixth, taking a 6-5 lead.
But Tennent answered with five runs in the bottom of the sixth, taking a 10-6 lead. CB East did not score in the top of the seventh.
“To put a five-spot up after they lost the lead, that was a good answer,” Tennent coach Rick Penecale said. “They showed a lot of heart today. I’m really proud of them as a group.”
Almost everyone in Tennent’s lineup produced. Joey Shannon had four RBIs and two runs. Nick Cataldi drove in three runs. Greg Delgado scored two runs and knocked one in. CJ Goodz scored two runs. Cole Browne and Danny Goodz both scored one. Matt Hartenstein had one RBI.
“The middle of the order hit the ball well and we had a nice little contribution from CJ at the bottom. The big boys came through today. They were aggressive and we jumped out early,” Penecale said. “We hit a lot of balls hard, played small ball and got a couple sacrifice flies.”
CB East’s Jimmy Parrish drove in two runs. Jimmy Wiegers scored two. CJ Gillmer and Collin Sheehan both scored a run and drove one in. Cameron Komonchak and Matt Ernst both scored a run.
Tennent (7-7, 5-5 SOL) plays Reading Thursday at 3:45. CB East (10-7, 6-5 SOL) battles Neshaminy Thursday night at six.
Central Bucks East 1-0-0-0-4-1-0 6
William Tennent 3-1-0-1-0-5-X 10
Central Bucks West 8, Pennridge 7 (9 innings)
In the top of the ninth, Trevor D’Arcy doubled to center. Matt Cooper raced home from first. Central Bucks West took an 8-7 lead.
The Bucks held the lead in the bottom of the ninth. With two on and two outs, John Martindale got Oliver Jervis on a fly ball to right. Martindale allowed no runs in 3.2 innings.
Pennridge took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Jervis hit a two-run single to center. Kyle Yoder and Andrew Fantaskey scored. Sean Yoder walked with the bases loaded, scoring Brendan Knouse.
CB West tied the game at three in the top of the second. Blaise Heacox singled to center, scoring Jake Boehm. Then Daniel Clayton hit a two-run double to center. Heacox and Brian Gilvary scored.
D’Arcy hit an RBI single in the fourth. Steven Gebre hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth. Those runs made it 5-3 Bucks. But Pennridge rallied for three in the bottom of the fifth. Joe Robinson’s RBI walk put the Rams up 6-5.
The Rams led 7-5 going into the top of the seventh. With the Bucks down to their last strike, D’Arcy roped a 0-2 pitch into left field to plate Heacox and Clayton with the tying runs.
The Rams had a chance to win it in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs and runners on first and second, Jervis singled to right. Clayton charged the ball and threw to catcher Josh Crecca, whose diving tag on Kyle Yoder sent the game into extra innings.
Overall, the Bucks cut down three runners at the plate and caught another attempting to steal second.
Clayton and D’Arcy had big games for CB West. Clayton had four hits, two RBIs and a run. D’Arcy had four hits and four RBIs. Heacox had a pair of hits and one RBI. West reliever Chris Heller tossed 2.2 scoreless innings.
For the Rams, Jervis had four hits and three RBIs, Fantaskey had two hits and scored three runs, and Bryce Dickey had two hits and one RBI.
The two teams combined for 15 runs on 24 hits, 16 walks, five hit batsmen and six errors.
CB West (5-10, 3-7 SOL) hosts Souderton Friday at 3:30. Pennridge (5-12, 3-7 SOL) plays William Tennent Friday at 3:30.
Central Bucks West 0-3-0-1-1-0-2-0-1 8
Pennridge 3-0-0-0-3-1-0-0-0 7
SOL American
Springfield Township 4, Upper Dublin 3
The game was tied at three going into the bottom of the eighth. Tim Dahme walked on four pitches. Then he advanced to second on a passed ball.
Nick Pave grounded out to first, moving Dahme to third. Then Brian Murphy hit a grounder to second. The second baseman threw wide to first. Dahme charged home with the winning run.
“We put the ball in play with two outs. It was a tough play for the second baseman. He fielded it cleanly and just threw wide of first,” Springfield coach Dennis Primavera said. “The game was going our way. We should have put it away in the seventh.”
Upper Dublin tied the game at three in the top of the seventh. JT Breslin hit a grounder off the third baseman’s glove. Julian Gimbel scored.
The Flying Cardinals took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third. Matt Hebling grounded out to second, scoring Gimbel. Breslin singled to short, scoring Justin Horn.
Springfield answered with three runs in the bottom of the third, taking a 3-2 lead. Jackson Pauwels doubled to center, plating Robert Demerlis and Chris Kelly. Then Pauwels scored on an error by the first baseman.
That set the stage for the late inning drama.
Springfield was in position to win because starter Nick Pave allowed two earned runs in seven innings. He fanned eight. Dahme pitched a scoreless eighth.
“He pitched another good game. We never support him. He’s a gamer but he stays with it,” Primavera said. “Tim has pitched well this year, too.”
Upper Dublin starter Tommy Reilly gave up no earned runs in seven innings.
Primavera thinks this win keeps Springfield in the hunt for the District One Class 4A playoffs. The Spartans are fifth in the power rankings, and four teams make the playoffs. The Spartans are 1.2 points behind No. 4 Octorara.
“We probably have to win both,” Primavera said. “We have an outside chance if we win one. Anything can happen.”
Springfield (8-8, 5-7 SOL) plays Quakertown Friday night at seven. Upper Dublin (5-11, 3-9 SOL) hosts Hatboro-Horsham Friday at 3:45.
Upper Dublin 0-0-2-0-0-0-1-0 3
Springfield Township 0-0-3-0-0-0-0-1 4
Hatboro-Horsham 4, Plymouth Whitemarsh 0
Hatboro-Horsham starter Brian Edgington pitched a no-hitter. He struck out eight, walked none and got through seven innings in 75 pitches.
Plymouth Whitemarsh had one baserunner. Dillon Famous reached on an error in the top of the sixth.
Hatboro-Horsham took a one-game lead on Quakertown for first-place in the Suburban One League American Conference. Hatters pitchers have thrown four straight shutouts in league play, according to coach Pete Moore.
Edgington improved to 6-1 on Wednesday. He lowered his earned run average to 0.38. He has allowed two earned runs and 21 hits in 47 innings. He has also fanned 60.
Hatboro-Horsham supported its pitcher with one run in the third and three in the fourth.
PW’s John Pecharo allowed two hits and four runs (all unearned) in four innings. Ben Mascio did not allow a hit in two scoreless innings in relief.
Four Hatters players—Ryan O’Donnell, Drew Passerini, Eric Jester and Ryan Long—all scored one run. Long, Edgington and Shaun Thomas all drove in a run.
Hatboro-Horsham (12-4, 10-2 SOL) plays Upper Dublin Friday at 3:30. PW (4-13, 2-10 SOL) battles Cheltenham Friday at 3:30.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 0-0-0-0-0-0-0 0
Hatboro-Horsham 0-0-1-3-0-0-X 4
Upper Moreland 2, Quakertown 1
There isn’t a whole lot of hitting going on when the Golden Bears and Panthers do battle. In two meeting this year, the teams have combined for just seven hits – four of those in Wednesday’s rematch.
Brandon Kohn was all but untouchable in five innings for UM, recording 12 of 15 outs via strikeouts. He allowed just one hit and one run in a stellar outing that resulted in no decision.
“He just did a great job of hitting spots,” said UM coach Dan Heiland, pointing to Kohn’s rapport with catcher Ryan Lowry as key. “They have been working together for three years now, and they have a great chemistry together when he’s on the mound.
“Brandon just does a great job of mixing up off speed and fastballs and really keeping the other team’s batters off balance. It’s really tough when you have a pitcher out there who can throw mid 80s and can throw an effective off speed pitch for strikes. When you don’t know what’s coming – and he has confidence to throw any pitch at any point in the count, it’s really tough to be ready to hit the ball when it comes. He just does an unbelievable job.”
Quakertown’s Justin Guidos matched Kohn pitch for pitch.
The Golden Bears got on the board in the top of the first when Randy Meehl, who led off with a triple, scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Kohn. The Panthers answered with a run in the top of the third. The Golden Bears plated the game winner without the benefit of a hit. Lowry and Jon Searles were both hit by pitches, setting the stage for a grounder to third by Kevin Walder.
“A ball was hit to the third baseman, he threw to second base, and the kid went to throw it to first and hit our base runner when he was sliding, the ball went into the outfield,” Heiland said of a play that allowed the game-winning run to cross the plate. “We were very fortunate to come out with a win. Their pitcher pitched an unbelievable game. Like Brandon, he did a great job of hitting his spots and keeping our guys guessing in the box. When you can get ahead in the count, it’s really difficult for a batter to tee off on a pitcher. He pitched unbelievably."
Tommy Jacob threw two shutout innings to earn the win, allowing one hit and striking out one.
“It’s a huge win for us," Heiland said. "With power points and how close the playoffs are, that team has 10 wins already and is looking to finish out the regular season with two more wins, and it’s only going to benefit us in the rankings. We go 2-0 this week so far. We have one more Friday, and hopefully, we’ll go undefeated this week and go into next week with the guys feeling really good and continue that off into the playoffs.”
The Golden Bears improved to 8-3 in league play.
They are 10th in the District One Class 5A Power Rankings and 2-0 since the rankings came out. Sixteen teams make the District One 5A playoffs.
Quakertown fell to 9-3 in league play, falling one game behind Hatboro-Horsham. The Panthers are second in the District One Class 6A Power Rankings and 1-1 since they came out.
Upper Moreland (11-4, 8-3 SOL) plays Wissahickon Friday at 3:30. Quakertown (11-5, 9-3 SOL) hosts Springfield Township Thursday at 3:30.
Quakertown 0-0-1-0-0-0-0 1
Upper Moreland 1-0-0-0-0-1-X 2
Wissahickon 7, Cheltenham 1
Wissahickon scored two runs in the second and four in the third, taking an insurmountable 6-0 lead.
Matt Shilling blasted a two-run homer to right in the third. He also scored a run Wednesday.
Alex Tappen and Mike Schoenleber both had two hits for Wissahickon. Steven Loden doubled and scored a run. Eddie Fortescue scored a run and drove one in. Mike Seitz had an RBI. Trey France, Antonio Bova and Mike Schoenleber all scored a run.
France allowed five hits and one run and fanned nine in seven innings.
Joel White drove in Cheltenham’s only run. Noah Hoffman scored it.
Wissahickon (10-8, 7-5 SOL) hosts Upper Moreland Friday at 3:30. Cheltenham (3-12, 3-8 SOL) plays PW on the same day and time.
Cheltenham 0-0-0-1-0-0-0 1
Wissahickon 0-2-4-0-0-1-X 7
Non-League Crossover
Bensalem 5, Central Bucks South 2
Bensalem starter Nicholas Dean allowed one earned run and two hits in six innings. He struck out five. Nick Fossile relieved him and pitched a scoreless seventh.
Bensalem again won with pitching. But its offense did enough, scoring one run in the first and four in the third.
Austin Shay, Stephen Aldrich, Anthony Robinson, Jon Revell and Nick Bagnarelli all scored one run for Bensalem. Shay, Dean, Bagnarelli, Keith Parrish and Brian Swentkowski all drove in a run for Bensalem.
Chris Farrell and Ethan Gross both scored a run for Central Bucks South. Ben Berger knocked in a run.
CB South relievers Justin Mauz, Justin Anderosky and Alex Bendzlowicz pitched 4.2 scoreless innings.
Bensalem (11-6, 6-5 SOL) plays CR South Friday at 3:30. CB South (9-6, 5-5 SOL) battles North Penn Thursday at 3:45.
Bensalem 1-0-4-0-0-0-0 5
Central Bucks South 0-0-1-0-0-1-0 2
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