Check out the recaps for SOL baseball teams in action Wednesday. PW/Quakertown photos provided courtesy of Kim Supko Photography. Lower Moreland/Upper Moreland photos courtesy of Kathy Leister Photography. Check back for galleries of both games.
SOL Patriot Division
Council Rock South 8, Neshaminy 7
The Golden Hawks built an 8-2 lead after five innings and reliever Brandon Purdy then recorded the game’s final two outs as the home team held off Neshaminy for an impressive SOL Patriot Division win.
The tying run was on second with one out when Purdy entered the game, and he induced a pop up to right field and then a grounder to third to end the game.
“Guys did a great job today,” said CR South coach Greg Paprocki. “We got out to an early start and lost focus in the middle innings. The guys handled the adversity well and finished the job.
“We just got off a 10-day COVID shutdown, and they guys came out ready to play. Couldn’t be more proud of the way they battled even with the time off. We still have a lot of work to do but this is a great start.”
Offensively, CR South pounded out eight runs on 10 hits, led by leadoff hitter Jack O’Neill, who went 3-for-3, Joey Purcell (2-for-2, 2 RBIs) and Ryan Bauerle (2-for-2, 2 runs, 1 RBI).
After Neshaminy jumped ahead with a run in the top of the third, the Hawks took over the game with three in the third, two in the second and three more in the fifth.
Ryan Wheet’s three-run home run to center put South in front in the third, Purcell had a two-run double in the fourth, and in the fifth, Blake Booth had a RBI double and Bauerle scored a run with a single.
Neshaminy, which also had 10 hits, was led by Gaige Ryan, Jake Kozlowski and Michael Donato with two hits each, and despite the big deficit, it hardly went quietly in the late innings.
Trailing 8-2, Neshaminy scored three in the top of the sixth with two outs, including RBI singles by Kozlowski and Zach Bowman, and another run scored on a passed ball.
The seventh saw Tyler Warr hit a RBI double to right, and then Myles Calderbank made it 8-7 with an RBI single. Calderbank moved up to second on an error, but was stranded there thanks to Purdy’s clutch relief pitching for CR South.
The Hawks (2-0, 1-0 SOL) will look to stay unbeaten Friday at home against CR North. Neshaminy (1-1, 0-1 SOL) is at Pennsbury.
Neshaminy 001 013 2 – 7 10 0
CR South 003 230 x – 8 10 1
Bensalem 9, Pennsbury 7
Jalen Soberal singled home two in the bottom of the fifth, as Bensalem edged Pennsbury in the SOL Patriot opener for both teams.
Sean Nelson and Nick Nush had two hits a piece for the Owls, while Tyler Fischer had three RBIs and Soberal and Greg Phalen had two RBIs each.
Kyle Rubin and Matt McShane were dominant out of the bullpen for Bensalem. Rubin came on in the fourth and pitched 1 1/3 innings, while McShane went the final two innings and struck out four. Neither allowed a hit or a run.
Pennsbury, which rallied from three runs down to go up in the fourth, was led by Charlie Evans, who went 3-for-4 with a double and three runs scored. Ryan Zuckerman was 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBIs, while Justin Mitrovich also drove in a pair.
After a bases loaded walk to Mitrovich gave the Falcons the early lead in the top of the first, Bensalem countered with four runs in the bottom of the first. Phalen had a RBI sac fly, and later in the inning, Fischer hit a three-RBI double to make it 4-1.
Pennsbury cut it to 4-3 with a RBI fielder’s choice by Cailin Fang and a RBI single by Jake Schilling.
Bensalem tacked on a pair in the third, thanks to a Logan Young RBI single and a RBI sac bunt by Sean Swentkoski.
In the top of the fourth, Evans led off with a double to center, and the next batter, Zuckerman, hit a two-run homer to left. An RBI single by Mitrovich tied the game and back-to-back doubles by Gavin Hawkes and Joe Limongelli gave Pennsbury the 7-6 lead.
Back came Bensalem in the bottom of the fourth on a RBI triple by Phalen to tie it up. Then Soberal’s two-out RBI single in the fifth gave the Owls the lead for good.
Bensalem improved to 3-0 overall (2-0 SOL) with the win. It will have a home nonleague game Friday against Executive Education Charter. Pennsbury (2-2, 0-1 SOL) hosts rival Neshaminy on Friday.
Pennsbury 120 400 0 – 7 10 1
Bensalem 402 120 x – 9 9 1
Council Rock North 6, Harry S Truman 0
CR North’s Alex Estrada held the Truman bats at bay all game, pitching six shutout innings to lead his team to the shutout win.
Estrada allowed just three hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out nine.
Alex Chase pitched the seventh inning for the Indians, striking out all three batters he faced.
“Alex Estrada was terrific on the mound today,” said North coach Matt Schram. “Went six innings, no walks, one HBP, and 11 Ks. He was great against a great team that is so well coached and disciplined at the plate. To be able to keep them off of the scoreboard shows the kind of day Alex had.”
Offensively, CR North started with two runs in the bottom of the first to give Estrada the lead and never looked back. Pat Kusters went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBIs to lead the way, while Josh Huddy was 2-for-2 with a RBI.
Kusters’ RBI double with one out in the bottom of the first opened the scoring. He later scored on a Huddy sacrifice fly to center.
Kusters then made it 3-0 with a RBI single in the second and 5-0 with a RBI groundout in the fourth inning. Two runs also scored on passed balls in the fourth.
Makai Jackson went 2-for-3 to lead Truman hitters, while Christian Culver had the team’s other hit. Culver also pitched 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, with five strikeouts.
CR North (3-0, 1-0 SOL) looks to remain unbeaten on Friday when it plays at CR South. Truman (0-4, 0-2) has a nonleague game Saturday at home against Wissahickon.
Harry S. Truman 000 000 0 – 0 3 1
CR North 210 300 x – 6 8 1
SOL Colonial Division
Central Bucks East 6, Pennridge 2
CB East jumped up with three runs in the top of the first and rode solid pitching on the way to a win over Pennridge at James Memorial Park on Wednesday night.
Aiden Weaver, a Duke commit, was dominant on the mound for the Patriots. Over five innings, Weaver allowed just two hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out 12. Xavier Sjostedt pitched a scoreless sixth and then Gabe Marshall worked out of trouble and finished the Rams off in the seventh.
Left fielder Jack Nugent was 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs to lead CB East. Joey Wilga was 2-for-4 with a RBI, while Tony Rossi was 2-for-4 with two batted in.
In the first, after one crossed on an error, Wilga made it 2-0 with a RBI single to score Brett Young. Rossi’s two-out single scored Wilga for another run.
Nugent led off the third with a solo home run to center, and later in the inning, a Rossi RBI single plated Max McGrady. The lead grew to 6-0 on an RBI single from Nugent in the fourth.
Pennridge was led by Joey Calabretti, who went 2-for-3 and led off the seventh inning with a home run to center field. Nic Chellew also drove in a run for the Rams with a two-out RBI single later in the inning.
Pennridge was hurt by four errors in the field. Starter Ryan DeHaven went four innings on the mound, but only two of the six runs allowed were earned. He struck out three. Nate Manulola pitched a scoreless inning with three strikeouts, while Harry Haeflein pitched two scoreless frames with four Ks.
CB East (3-0, 1-0 SOL) hosts Souderton on Friday, while Pennridge (1-1, 0-1) plays at North Pennridge.
CB East 302 100 0 – 6 8 0
Pennridge 000 000 2 – 2 5 4
Souderton 11, Central Bucks South 1 (5 innings)
In a rematch of the 2019 state championship game, two years later, the Indians jumped up early and then blew the game wide open with a seven-run fourth inning on the way to the lopsided, 5-inning mercy rule victory.
Shanley Wall, Isaac Frye and Hunter Weitzel had two RBIs each for Souderton. The Indians scored 11 runs in just five innings, taking advantage of eight bases on balls, two hit batters and three errors.
They were led on the mound by Jacob Horton, who pitched all five innings, allowing one run (unearned) on two hits and four walks, while striking out eight.
“I thought Jacob Horton had a decent day on the mound for his first league appearance this year, holding CB South to two hits with eight Ks in five innings,” said Souderton coach Mike Childs. “It was good to see some timely hitting having three guys – Wall, Frye, Weitzel – with 2 RBIs each.”
Frye’s RBI double highlighted Souderton’s two-run first, and it tacked on two more in the third, as one scored on a balk and another on a wild pitch. The seven-run fourth started with two walks, a hit batter, a two-run single by Wall, another walk, another hit by pitch and then an error that plated another run. Weitzel and Alex Morales followed with RBI singles to make it 11-0.
A bases-loaded walk in the top of the fifth by Carter Hallgren scored South’s only run. Jimmy Kelly and Josh Yang had the Titans’ two hits.
Souderton (2-0, 1-0 SOL) plays at CB East in an early-season big game on Friday. CB South (1-1, 0-1 SOL) looks to bounce back Friday night at home (6 p.m.) against rival CB West.
CB South 000 01 – 1 2 3
Souderton 202 7x – 11 5 1
North Penn 7, Central Bucks West 6
Eric Hamilton pitched four scoreless innings of relief as North Penn bounced back from a 6-4 deficit to edge CB West in the SOL opener for both squads.
Hamilton, a senior, came on in relief of starter Dylan Brown, and over four innings, allowed just three hits and didn’t walk a batter. He struck out three.
“The big performance really was Eric Hamilton’s four innings of relief,” said NP coach Kevin Manero. “Right now, Dylan Brown is struggling with his release point a little bit. He still is a tremendous pitcher, but he’s just struggling with his consistency right now, but Eric Hamilton, for the second time this season, came in out of the bullpen and really did a nice job for us. His scoreless innings really were the difference maker more than anything.”
Offensively, the Knights took advantage of nine bases on balls on the day to go with some timely hitting. Evin Sullivan was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, while Jeff Sabater was 2-for-2 with two runs scored.
“It was kind of like one of those knife fights in a telephone booth kind of games, and you just hope you get out alive,” Manero said.
James Carbone and Max Grill had three hits each to lead the CB West offense, while Andrew Kohl had two hits. Overall, the Bucks had 12 hits on the day.
“It was a matchup of two good starting pitchers, but the offenses found ways to attack them,” West coach Brian Weaver said. “I’m not sure anybody is better at drilling small ball and executing it than Kevin (Manero) and his guys. When they need to get a bunt down or swipe a bag, they get the job done.
“On our end, Max Grill did a great job at the plate. James Carbone and Mike Boyle both worked great at-bats all day, as well. When we raise our defense and pitching to the level of our offense, we’ll be a tough out.”
The game was back-and-forth throughout, starting with a run in the top of the first for West on an RBI grounder by Carbone. Sullivan doubled to lead off the bottom of the inning for North Penn and scored on a Patrick Breen single.
The Knights went up 4-1 with three in the bottom of the second, one scoring on a RBI single by Sullivan, then a sac fly by Sam Cohen and another crossing the plate on a wild pitch.
The Bucks bounced right back in the third, however, as Carbone had a RBI double, and RBI singles from Grill and Robb Watson to tie it up once again. They then grabbed the lead on RBI singles by Kohl and Carbone in the top of the fourth.
At that point, Hamilton shut the West down and North Penn was able to answer with two runs in the bottom of the fourth to tie it up – RJ Agriss had a RBI fielder’s choice and another scored on an error – and then went back in front with a run in the fifth, as Sullivan scored Steven Corrado with a sacrifice fly.
“Evin Sullivan had a really big game at the plate – a couple of RBIs, a couple of hits – out of the leadoff spot, but just as important is that our nine hitter (Jeffrey Sabater) was on twice, so that really set the table a couple of times for the top of our order,” Manero said. “For Evin, it was a big game because the first couple of games he’s had a couple of decent at-bats here and there, but I felt today he really broke through.”
North Penn (3-0, 1-0) is back in action Friday at home against Pennridge, while CB West (0-3, 0-1) looks for its first win with a night game at rival CB South.
CB West 103 200 0 – 6 11 2
North Penn130 210 x – 7 7 3
SOL Liberty Division
Abington 11, Upper Dublin 7
Five runs in the bottom of the fourth erased a three-run deficit, and Abington pulled away late to win a back-and-forth struggle against the visiting Flying Cardinals, the first win of the season for the Galloping Ghosts in the league opener for both teams.
Anthony Ehly had a big game at the plate for Abington, going 2-for-4 with four RBIs, a double and a triple. Alex Dardaris had a pair of RBIs, while Henry Tyler had two hits, including a double.
Tyler also picked up the win on the mound in relief, while Ehly came on in the seventh and pitched a shutout inning to close out the win.
Tristan Carnes went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and two RBIs to lead the Cardinals. Kyle Rizzo was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs.
Trailing 3-0, the bottom of the fourth started with a walk to Colin Hamsher. A one-out double by Tyler put runners on second and third, and both scored as Ehly followed with a triple to right field.
Dadaris then singled home Ehly to tie the game at 3. Matt Warek’s two-out RBI single later in the inning tied the game, and then Cody Frazier doubled to make it a 5-3 game.
Upper Dublin tied at 5 in the fifth, thanks to an RBI double by Cairnes and a sac fly by Karan Acharya.
Dadaris hit a sac fly to left to put the Ghosts back in front in the bottom of the fifth, only to see UD answer again, this time thanks two a two-run single by Rizzo.
But three straight walks started the bottom of the sixth for Abington, followed by a Hamsher RBI single, two more scored on an error, and then Ehly picked up two more RBIs with a double to left to make it 11-7.
Abington (1-2 overall) plays at Wissahickon on Friday, while UD (0-3) looks for its first win at home against Quakertown on Friday.
Upper Dublin 102 022 0 – 7 8 2
Abington 000 515 x – 11 9 1
Hatboro-Horsham 6, Wissahickon 2
Five runs over the last three innings and stellar pitching from senior Jimmy Tooley lifted the Hatters to the impressive win over Wissahickon on opening day in the SOL Liberty Division.
Tooley, a left-hander, pitched six innings and allowed just two runs (unearned) on one hit and one walk with four strikeouts, before giving way to Stephen Plefka, who threw a scoreless seventh to finish off the win.
“(Tooley) was outstanding on the mound,” said Hatboro-Horsham coach Pete Moore. “Set the tone early, retiring the first nine hitters he faced.”
Offensively, Cole Fisher went 2-for-3 with a RBI for the Hatters, while Noah Gremo had two RBIs and Noah Schlosser belted a double.
“Very proud of the way our guys competed today and focused on what we could control,” Moore said. “We moved a few guys around and they all responded well. Our energy provided by guys that started on the bench was outstanding.”
Schlosser doubled with one out in the fifth, went to second on a balk and tied the game on an RBI groundout by Gremo.
One inning later, Logan Fischer drew a bases loaded walk to put Hatboro-Horsham in front, and Nick Katherine drove in one with a sacrifice fly to make it 4-2.
Jack Elwell and Fisher added RBI singles in the bottom of the sixth to finish off the scoring.
“Sophomore Noah Schlosser had a big double and run scored in his first career varsity start,” Moore said. “Junior Ryan Toporowski played outfield for the first time in his career and made two great plays tracking fly balls in left field. Senior catcher Justin Kahrimanian was tremendous behind the plate and was 1-for-2 at the plate with two walks.”
Grayson Lovitz and Kasey Weiss each had RBIs in the fourth to lead Wissahickon. H-H (2-2, 1-0 SOL) returns to action Friday at Plymouth Whitemarsh, while Wissahickon (0-3, 0-1) hosts Abington.
Wissahickon 000 200 0 – 2 2 2
Hatboro-Horsham 010 122 x – 6 7 1
Plymouth Whitemarsh 6, Quakertown 1
Joe Rauscher and Ray Tomassetti combined on a one-hitter as Plymouth Whitemarsh took out Quakertown in Wednesday’s SOL Liberty opener.
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Rauscher allowed just one run (unearned) on one hit, scattering five walks and striking out seven in a 81-pitch, five-inning start to pick up the win. Tomassetti threw two scoreless and hitless innings, with four Ks, to close out the win.
“On the mound, senior Joe Rauscher was strong and didn’t want to come out of the game,” said PW coach Chris Manero, “but Ray Tomassetti (a junior), throwing his first career varsity innings, helped preserve Joe’s win with two strong innings in relief.
Offensively, senior Joe Jaconski was 2-for-2 with a double, a triple, two walks, three runs scored and two RBIs.
His triple led off the bottom of the first, and he scored one batter later on a sacrifice fly to right field by his brother, junior Jesse Jaconski.
The lead remained 1-0 into the fifth, when the Colonials, namely the Jaconski brothers, tacked on two more runs thanks to aggressive base running.
Justin Butler had Quakertown’s lone hit, a two-out double in the top of the third, and he also scored the Panthers’ run in the sixth on a passed ball.
Up 3-1, PW put the game away, on Joe Jaconski’s two-run double to center field and then a RBI single by senior Jack Hildebrand.
“We had to shift some things in our lineup today because of an injury to our center fielder (sophomore) Luke Caucci,” Manero said. “But Joe and Jesse Jaconski at the top of the order, along with Jack Hildebrand in the (No.) 3 spot stepped up to combine for five hits, four RBIs, and three runs scored.”
PW (2-0, 1-0 SOL) hosts Hatboro-Horsham on Friday. Quakertown (0-3, 0-1) plays at Upper Dublin.
Quakertown 000 001 0 – 1 1 0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 100 023 x – 6 6 0
SOL Freedom Division
William Tennent 12, Cheltenham 1
Less than 24 hours after a mercy-rule loss to Council Rock South, Tennent answered back with a convincing win to open up SOL Freedom Division play at home against Cheltenham.
Tennent opened the game with three runs in the bottom of the first and dominated the rest of the way, scoring two runs in the bottom of the sixth to enact the mercy rule.
Mike Scheller had an impressive day on the mound, as he didn’t allow a hit in 4 1/3 innings, before being pulled at 83 pitches in the fifth. He allowed just one earned run, walked five and struck out five.
Mike Soltis struck out four and allowed just one hit in 1 2/3 shutout innings of relief.
“It was a good bounce back from a tough game (Tuesday),” said Tennent coach Lucas Denzi. “Mike Scheller gave us a really strong outing on the mound and we capitalized on some key situations with runners in scoring position.”
Offensively, the Panthers scored 12 runs on 10 hits, led by Josh Nydick, who went 3-for-3 with a double, two runs scored and two RBIs. Aidan Larsen and Kyle Bussinger had two hits each, while Chris Colella had a double and four RBIs.
Larsen led off the bottom of the first to jumpstart Tennent’s three-run first, while Colella scored one with a groundout, one scored on a passed ball and Bussinger made it 3-0 with a RBI double.
Nydick made it 4-0 with a RBI double in the second and then the Panthers blew the game wide open with a five-run third. Larsen had a RBI single and Colella drove in two with a double in the inning.
Walks and errors resulted in additional runs and then in the bottom of the sixth, Carter Crawford ended the game with a two-run single.
Tennent (1-1-1, 1-0 SOL) plays at Springfield on Friday. Cheltenham, which was playing its season opener, is back in action against Upper Moreland at home on Friday.
Cheltenham 000 010 – 1 1 0
William Tennent 315 102 – 12 10 1
Lower Moreland 2, Upper Moreland 1
Freshman Mason Tammaro dazzled in his SOL Freedom Division debut on Wednesday, allowing just one run on four hits. He did not walk
a batter in a 74-pitch, complete-game win for Lower Moreland on the road over Upper Moreland.
Tammaro allowed just one baserunner through the first four innings and two hits through six, before UM threatened with back-to-back doubles and a run in the seventh. But with the tying run on second, he induced a pop up back to the mound and then ended the game with a strikeout.
“It was a real battle the whole game with both teams making great plays,” said LM coach Tony Martino. “Mason Tammaro threw a complete and battled all day. (He) threw a ton of strikes and didn’t walk anybody which helped us keep them from scoring. Huge performance by him in his first ever high school league game.”
Offensively, the Lions didn’t exactly rack up the hits against Golden Bears starter Jimmy Torpey, but were opportunistic.
In the third, LM plated a run as Robbie Link led off with a walk, went to second on a sacrifice and scored on a RBI single by Jack Doneker.
Then, the Lions added a key insurance run in the seventh, as Kenny Wieczorek reached with a one out single, went to second on an error and then scored on another error.
Upper Moreland threatened, thanks to a one-out double by Kevin Davis in the bottom of the seventh, followed by an RBI double by Connor English, but that is where its rally would come to an end.
“It was a big game for us defensively, making all of the plays and competing against a really good team like Upper Moreland,” Martino said.
Lower Moreland (2-0, 1-0 SOL) looks to remain unbeaten at home Friday against New Hope-Solebury. Upper Moreland (0-3, 0-1) plays at Cheltenham.
Lower Moreland 001 000 1 – 2 3 0
Upper Moreland 000 000 1 – 1 4 2
Springfield 15, New Hope-Solebury 4 (6 innings)
Gabe Franczyk went 3-for-5, belted two doubles and drove in three runs to lead Springfield’s offensive explosion in an impressive win over New Hope to kick off the SOL Freedom schedule for both teams.
“I was pleased with the whole (game) mainly because we executed some things,” said Springfield coach Dennis Primavera. “That second inning was a combination of what we’ve been practicing for the last three or four weeks but only the last week on the field and outside. We squeezed twice in a row and ended up with other situations where we got big hits. We put together a seven-run inning, which we sat on a while.”
Alex Wynne and Tim Saiber had the back-to-back squeeze bunts in the seven-run second inning that put the Spartans in front for good.
New Hope pulled within 7-4 after four, but Springfield countered with four runs in the fifth and four more in the second. Overall, it had 15 runs on 11 hits, and also took advantage of seven walks and five errors in a game then ended after six due to the mercy rule.
Will Conlin and Andrew Kennedy had two hits each, while Jack O’Malley added a double.
“I was pleased with our hitting,” Primavera said. “Our fielding wasn’t bad. According to my stats, we didn’t have any errors. We have a lot of things we need to work on. It was the first game on our field, and it was a good situation for the kids to come away with a positive win, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.
“We played New Hope before in districts, and they’re not a bad team. We go to their place next time, and we’ll hopefully be ready for them.”
On the mound, Saiber picked up the win, going the first 2 1/3 innings, followed by Brett Smith, who allowed just one run in 2 2/3 and Wynne, who struck out two in a scoreless sixth inning.
“They did a good job,” Primavera said. “I’m going to go through three pitchers a game. I don’t really have a No. 1 starter. That was last year when I had two.”
New Hope was led by Kyle Campbell and Mason Scall, who had two hits each. Josh Shiller had a hit and two RBIs.
Springfield (1-1, 1-0 SOL) hosts William Tennent on Friday, while New Hope (1-2, 0-1) is back on the road against Lower Moreland.
New Hope-Solebury 003 100 – 4 5 5
Springfield 070 044 – 15 11 0
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