Check out the recaps for SOL baseball teams in action Wednesday.
SOL Colonial
Central Bucks West 4, Central Bucks East 1
CB West entered the week still looking for its first win. That came Tuesday. Wednesday, the Bucks made themselves a factor in the SOL Colonial with a win over previously unbeaten Central Bucks East at home.
Junior Cole Fehrman out-dueled CB East standout Aiden Weaver with a seven-inning masterpiece. He allowed one run on two hits, didn’t walk a batter and struck out 11.
Fehrman retired the first nine batters he faced before Jack Nugent’s solo home run to lead off the fourth. He then retired five of the next six East hitters and dominated the rest of the way.
“The bottom line of today’s game was that Cole Fehrman was magnificent,” said CB West coach Brian Weaver. “He was locked in from the first batter and attacked with all of his pitches today.” When he’s on, he’s a tough matchup for anybody. To compete with a team as talented as East, you need your best stuff, and he had it today. It’s as good a game as I’ve seen pitched in high school baseball.”
Offensively, facing one of the best pitchers in the SOL in Duke University commit Weaver, the Bucks started fast as Andrew Kohl hit a solo home run with one out in the first.
James Carbone and Maxwell Grill had RBI singles in the third, with another run crossing on a groundout by Duane Thomas.
“Offensively, Andrew Kohl’s homer made a huge difference,” Weaver said. “Two batters into the game we have a lead, and everybody can play a lot looser. He’s been playing incredibly well, and he, Aidan Quinn, and James Carbone have been tough outs lately.
“At the plate, we’re fortunate to have a pretty composed group that doesn’t get too rattled. We had seven hits from seven different guys today, all guys that stood in against a great pitcher in Weaver and found a way to get the job done.”
For CB East, Derek Bound had its only other hit on Wednesday. Sophomore Xavier Sjostedt threw 2 1/3 shutout innings out of the bullpen, allowing one hit and one walk, with six strikeouts.
CB West (2-4, 2-2 SOL) looks to make it three in a row Friday at Souderton. CB East (4-1, 2-1 SOL) is back in action at North Penn on Friday.
“We’ve been struggling to get our offense, defense, and pitching to be consistently good at the same time,” Weaver said. “Today, all three clicked, and the result was an important win against a talented, well-coached team. It was a big day for us, but you don’t get an easy game in the league, so our guys are already doing a good job shifting focus to who’s next.”
CB East 000 100 0 – 1 2 1
CB West 103 000 x – 4 7 0
Central Bucks South 7, North Penn 2
Robbie Porco allowed just one run over six innings and CB South jumped up early and cruised to a huge win over North Penn on Wednesday.
Porco, a junior, worked around three hits and six walks, keeping the North Penn hitters off-balance all day. He struck out seven.
“Robbie Porco pitched a great game for us,” said CB South coach Kevin Bray. “He got ahead of hitters early, working in breaking balls with velocity on his fast ball. He pitched to contact really and our defense made plays in the field to back him up.”
Bray knew coming into the season that infield defense would be a strength of this team and they haven’t disappointed.
“Owen Petrich plays nice third base for us,” Bray said. “Carter Hinds (shortstop) and Josh Yang (second base) are silky smooth out there up the middle. It’s nice having those guys out there. From Day One, I knew we could play some defense. We weren’t sure how our outfield was going to shape up, but I knew we had a solid infield going into Day One.”
Offensively, the Titans started quickly with two runs in the first on a two-run single by Petrich and then added two more in the third and two in the fourth as they were in control of this one the whole way.
An error scored one in the third, and Petrich drove home another run with a sacrifice fly to center. Colin Mitchell hit a two-run home run in the fourth and then the final run scored on an error in the fifth.
“We put the ball in play, laid down a couple of bunts and put pressure on them early,” Bray said. “It helped us getting off to a fast start in this one for sure.
“No game is easy on this schedule that we have. In our conference, in our division, every game is a big game. To get a win against a quality opponent like North Penn makes it a little bit sweeter.”
Steve Corrado and John Carson had RBIs for North Penn. Gavin Mikulski allowed just one run in three innings of relief.
CB South (3-1, 2-1 SOL) plays at Pennridge on Friday night. North Penn (4-2, 2-2 SOL) host Central Bucks East on Friday.
North Penn 001 000 1 – 2 3 2
CB South 202 210 x – 7 9 1
Souderton 8, Pennridge 4
Starter Zach Crouthamel shook off a rough second inning and ended up with 13 strikeouts as Souderton rallied from an early 4-0 deficit to win this night game going away at James Memorial Park.
Crouthamel allowed two earned runs on three hits and three walks over 6 1/3 innings pitched before giving way to reliever Gabe Rohrbach in the seventh. Rohrbach walked one and struck out two to end the game.
Matt Atchley hit a grand slam to give Pennridge the early 4-0 lead in the second, but that’s where the Rams’ offense would stall. Crouthamel wouldn’t allow a runner past first the rest of the way, and he retired seven straight over the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.
Pennridge starter Ryan DeHaven carried that 4-0 lead into the fourth, but Souderton’s bats then came alive.
After the first two batters reached, Isaac Frye hit a three-run home run to pull the Indians to within one. An error and then a RBI single by Alex Morales tied the game at 4.
The Indians took their first lead an inning later, as Frye drove in another run with a sacrifice fly. Shanley Wall had an RBI single in the sixth, and in the seventh, an RBI single by Justin DiCesare plated two more for the four-run final advantage.
With the win, Souderton improved to 2-2 in the SOL Colonial (3-2 overall) heading into Friday’s home game against Central Bucks West. Pennridge (2-3, 1-3 SOL) looks to bounce back at home against Central Bucks South.
Souderton 000 411 2 – 8 6 0
Pennridge 040 000 0 – 4 3 2
SOL Liberty
Plymouth Whitemarsh 10, Abington 0 (5 innings)
The Colonials’ offense continued to roll Wednesday and they got a special five-inning gem on the mound from pitcher Tom Yanoshik to remain unbeaten with the mercy-rule win over Abington.
Yanoshik, a senior, retired all 15 batters he faced for the perfect game, striking out seven in a 54-pitch effort.
“Tom was outstanding today,” said PW coach Chris Manero. “He just seemed to be zoned in from his first pitch on, and he couldn’t have been much more efficient – 54 pitches, 44 strikes.
“Going back to last spring after the shutdown, Tom worked very hard to prepare for this season. It is paying off for him, and today was a clear indicator of that.”
Offensively, it was junior Jesse Jaconski’s chance to shine, as he went 3-for-4 with two home runs, two runs scored and five RBIs. His two-run home run in the fourth upped PW’s lead to 5-0 and essentially put the game out of reach.
Luke Gartland and Dominic DiCiurcio each had two hits and two RBIs for the Colonials. Shortstop Joe Jaconski was 1-for-3 with two walks, three runs scored and a RBI.
“We keep working on our approaches at the plate every time we practice,” Manero said. “It has resulted in guys throughout our lineup becoming very situationally aware. They are going to the plate with a plan and a willingness to adjust as needed.
“It also helps that the top of our lineup continues to get big hits that seem to ignite everyone else.”
With the win, PW is now 4-0 in SOL Liberty play (6-0 overall), heading into Friday’s home game against Wissahickon. Abington (2-4, 2-2 SOL) hosts Quakertown.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 003 34 – 10 10 0
Abington 000 00 – 0 0 1
Quakertown 10, Hatboro-Horsham 7
A seven-run second inning proved the difference in this one, as Quakertown jumped up big early and then held off the visiting Hatters late to win at Memorial Park on Wednesday afternoon.
“Big win against us against a quality opponent today,” said Panthers coach Jon Pallone. “Both teams hit the ball well today.
“Freddie Steinmetz came off the bench (Tuesday) and had a good hit and today in his first start had three. Justin Butler had three RBIs. The entire team did a great job putting the ball in play. Anthony Rostick had a great seventh inning to end the game.”
Rostick earned the save, going the final two innings for Quakertown, including a pair of strikeouts in the seventh. Trevor Hurst allowed two earned runs over four innings to pick up the win.
After a sac fly by Cole Fisher in the first put the Hatters up, Quakertown put up a crooked number in the second. Vinny Pellegrini had a double, Ethan Beil tied it with an RBI single and another run scored on a Thomas Kozlusky sacrifice. Rostick also had an RBI single, Brandon Pierce drove in two with a double and Butler drove in two more with a double to make it 7-1.
Hatboro-Horsham chipped away at the big deficit with four in the fourth and pulled within 8-7 with two in the top of the sixth on a Trey Porter RBI single and another sac fly by Fisher.
But Quakertown answered with two in the bottom of the sixth as Butler was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Hurst scored another with a sac fly.
Steinmetz went 3-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI to lead Quakertown’s nine-hit effort.
H-H was led by Porter, who went 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
Quakertown (2-4, 2-2 SOL) plays at Abington on Friday, while Hatboro-Horsham (2-5, 1-3 SOL) hosts Upper Dublin.
Hatboro-Horsham 100 402 0 – 7 9 4
Quakertown 071 002 x – 10 9 3
Wissahickon 4, Upper Dublin 1
Ben Junker had a big day on the mound with six solid innings and went 2-for-3 with a double at the plate, as Wissahickon picked up its third straight win on Wednesday.
Junker threw 91 pitches over six innings, allowing just one run on four hits, with just two walks, while striking out seven. He didn’t allow a hit through the first three innings and then worked out of jams in his final three innings, before giving way to Nate DeVincent, who struck out two in one inning of work to pick up the save.
Offensively, the Trojans gave Junker the early lead with three runs in the bottom of the first.
Joe Hornig led off with a single and was followed by an error and a walk to load the bases with nobody out. Seth Floyd scored one with a sacrifice fly, a double by Junker scored one more and then a third scored on an error.
Kyle Rizzo pulled UD within two runs with a sac fly in the top of the fifth, but Jake Tappen scored on a passed ball in the bottom half of the inning to make it 4-1.
For the game, Wissahickon had just three hits, two by Junker.
Upper Dublin was led by Nick Lombardo and Karan Acharya with two hits each, while Tristan Cairnes was solid on the mound, shaking off the slow start, allowing just two earned runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings, while striking out six.
Wissahickon (3-3, 2-1 SOL) plays at first-place Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday. Upper Dublin (0-5, 0-3 SOL) plays at Hatboro-Horsham.
Upper Dublin 000 010 0 – 1 5 3
Wissahickon 300 100 x – 4 3 4
SOL Freedom Division
New Hope-Solebury 12, Cheltenham 3
Kyle Campbell had himself quite a day for New Hope-Solebury.
The Lions shortstop went 4-for-5, and was just a double away from hitting for the cycle, as he had a home run, a triple, one run and six RBIs.
“Good team win over Cheltenham,” said NH-S coach Tony Vlahovic. “Josh Shiller got the win and Saul Carmenini picked up the save. Our hitting and quality at bats were spread through the lineup led by Kyle Campbell. Mason Scall had two hits and scored four runs. We scored in five of the six innings.”
New Hope scored 12 runs on nine hits and also took advantage of nine bases on balls.
On the mound, Shiller went 4 1/3 innings, allowing just two earned runs on five hits and two walks, while striking out six. Carmenini pitched 2 2/3 shutout innings of relief, allowing two hits, no walks and striking out four.
After a run scored on a wild pitch to open the scoring in the first, New Hope added to its lead in the third on a bunt RBI single by Campbell and then a Shiller RBI single. Scall had an RBI single in the fourth, followed by a two-run triple by Camobell.
In the fifth, after Cheltenham scored its three runs to pull within 6-3, New Hope answered with four more, as Scall had an RBI single, Lehman an RBI double and then Campbell hit a two-run home run to make it a 10-3 game.
Campbell added a RBI single in the bottom of the sixth to wrap up the scoring.
Sam Nakkula went 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored and two RBIs for Cheltenham.
New Hope (4-2, 2-1 SOL) next plays Friday at Upper Moreland. Cheltenham (0-3, 0-3 SOL) plays at Springfield.
Cheltenham 000 030 0 – 3 7 5
New Hope-Solebury 102 351 x – 12 9 2
Springfield Twp 11, Lower Moreland 1 (6 innings)
Freshman Brett Smith threw 4 1/3 innings, allowing just one run on one hit and the Springfield offense scored 11 runs on 14 hits to blow out Lower Moreland in six innings.
“I’m pleased with our pitching, but I’m really surprised by our hitting,” said Springfield coach Dennis Primavera. “Our hitting is carrying the team, and when we pitch well and play defense, we can play with anybody.
“We had good pitching yesterday against Upper Moreland (in an 8-5 loss), but we just played a real sloppy game. We couldn’t field – the middle infielders running into the outfielders on fly balls, which we don’t usually do – so we got that game out of our system. I hope it’s out of our system. When you play a good team and they put the ball in play, you have to make the plays. That’s what we did today. We had some timely big hits, and we wore them down with our hitting. We didn’t score a whole lot of runs until the sixth.”
The Spartans took a 5-0 lead with two runs in the fifth, but the Lions answered with a run in the bottom of the inning. The Spartans erupted for six runs in the sixth, bringing an early end to the game.
Nate Dennis went 4-for-4 with two RBIs for the Spartans, Joe Smith went 3-for-4, and Brett Smith was 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBIs. Dan Matthews was 2-for-4, Andrew Kennedy added a double and two RBIs, and Will Conlin had a double.
“The top five guys in our order have really performed well, and today, the second half of the order – Matthews and Joe Smith – they’re hitting well and Alex Wynne is contributing.
“We put the pressure on, we made the plays and we actually played really good defense. Made some tough plays, which is a turnaround from yesterday. We have to continue this on Friday.”
Jack O’Malley relieved Brett Smith on the mound and did not allow a hit in 1 2/3 inning.
“(Brett Smith) was up to about 80-81, pitches,” Primavera said, “and I thought it was time to take him out. We pitched our freshman against (LM’s) freshman, Mason Tammaro.
“I am pleased with the way we’re hitting, and I am pleased with the way we’re pitching. Last year, I would have had two really good pitchers, two No. 1s – Ethan Hamilton and Jackson Campbell – but this year because of the way the schedule is, we’re playing three games a week. I have seven or eight players that are all going to throw and pitch. On Friday, I have two guys ready to go that haven’t even pitched yet.”
Springfield Township (3-2, 3-1 SOL) will host Cheltenham on Friday, and Lower Moreland (2-2, 1-2) will travel to William Tennent Friday.
Springfield 002 126 – 11 14 0
Lower Moreland 000 010 – 1 2 6
William Tennent 6, Upper Moreland 5
Trailing going into the bottom of the seventh, Tennent scored two runs with two outs to get past Upper Moreland in a back-and-forth struggle on Wednesday.
“We finally were able to get the big hit,” said Tennent coach Lucas Denczi. “Through six, we left 12 guys on base. Credit to Upper Moreland for battling the whole game. It came down to the end where we were able to string together three hits and complete the comeback with two outs.”
With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Josh Nydick doubled and scored on a Chris Colella double. DJ Dickson’s RBI single scored Colella with the game-winning run.
Upper Moreland actually led this game 3-0, with single runs in the first three innings on a passed ball, wild pitch and then a Greg Wiley RBI single in the third.
Tennent cut it to 3-1 in the bottom of the third, scoring itself on a passed ball, and tied it two innings later as Dickson walked with the bases loaded and Kyle Bussinger had a RBI single.
Kevin Ralston broke the 3-3 tie with a bases loaded walk for the Panthers in the bottom of the sixth, only to see the Bears counter with a pair of two-out runs in the seventh – one on a Connor English single and the other on an error. That set the stage for Tennent’s dramatic walk-off win in the bottom of the seventh.
Ralston was also the winning pitcher for Tennent, retiring the final batter to get out of the jam in the top of the seventh.
With the win, Tennent is now 2-1 in the SOL Freedom (2-2-1 overall), heading into a Friday home game against Lower Moreland. Upper Moreland (2-4, 2-2 SOL) hosts New Hope-Solebury.
Upper Moreland 111 000 2 – 5 5 1
William Tennent 001 201 2 – 6 9 2
SOL Patriot Division
Neshaminy 5, Council Rock North 4
Neshaminy scored four runs on just two hits in a critical fifth inning, as it pulled past Council Rock North to remain one game back of first-place Bensalem with the one-run win on Wednesday.
Trailing 3-1 to start the fifth, Jake Oberholtzer, who earlier hit a home run in the bottom of the second, led off with a single for Neshaminy. A hit batter and an error later loaded the bases with just one out. Another error plated one run, and a Chris James RBI single tied the game at 3. A groundout by Gaige Ryan scored another run, and then James came across on a passed ball to put Neshaminy up 5-3.
CR North scored three runs in the third on a three-run home run by Josh Huddy. Then after falling behind, the Indians threatened again with an RBI single by Jadon Tang to pull within one, but they had a runner thrown out to end the sixth and had runners on first and second with one out in the seventh after a Colin Manel double and an intentional walk to Austin Stalker.
But Neshaminy reliever Matt Mays, who pitched two shutout innings of relief to earn the save for starter Justus Agosto, retired the final two batters on pop ups to close out the game.
Oberholtzer had two of Neshaminy’s four hits on the day. CR North starter Collin Williams pitched six innings, allowing just two earned run on four hits, while striking out seven.
Neshaminy (4-1, 3-1 SOL) plays at Bensalem in a key game on Friday, while CR North (4-2, 2-2 SOL) hosts Pennsbury.
CR North 003 001 0 – 4 9 2
Neshaminy 010 040 x – 5 4 0
Harry S. Truman 6, Pennsbury 0
Truman lost its first six games to start the 2021 season, but had some close calls and were better than its record might indicate. Wednesday, on the road at Pennsbury, the Tigers, showed exactly how dangerous they could be.
Sophomore Ryan Cavanaugh pitched a complete-game, two-hitter to pick up his first varsity win, and offensively, Truman scored two in the third to take control and ended up with six runs on nine hits.
“It’s huge,” said Tigers coach Tim Monaghan of the win. “We seem to always really play Pennsbury tough, no matter the discrepancy in talent from year to year. We look at them as our rival. We definitely mark the calendar, no matter when we’re playing them. When you’re struggling, there’s nothing like playing your rival to get you going.”
Cavanaugh allowed just two hits and one walk, while striking out seven in a 101-pitch outing. He retired 10 of the first 11 batters he faced, and no base runner advanced past first.
“Ryan Cavanaugh had a huge performance for us,” Monaghan said. “He struggled against Bensalem in his first start, but he was dominant today. For a sophomore, to beat Pennsbury on the road, in that atmosphere, to get that kind of performance is really special.”
Offensively, Truman jumped ahead in the third on an RBI double by George Cairns, who also scored later in the inning on an RBI single by Joey Wright.
That 2-0 lead held until the sixth, when the Tigers added to it with an RBI single by Noah Helbling, while two more scored on an error and then a passed ball later in the inning. A wild pitch scored Truman’s final run in the seventh.
Truman scored six runs on nine hits, led by Cairns, who went 3-for-3, and Helbling, who was 2-for-4.
“A lot of our kids play with (Pennsbury’s kids) growing up,” Monaghan said. “Playing in the same youth organizations, against each other or in some cases even on the same teams. Our kids have talent too. Our kids work just as hard as they do. It’s extra motivation every time we play them.
“Georgie Cairnes is as good a hitter as there is in our league. He had his best day so far, when we needed it the most. We were staring down the gun at 0-3, 0-4 in the league. You don’t want to get into too deep of hole in our league.
“Our guys fight through adversity and to be able to come through against a really talented team like Pennsbury is huge.”
Truman (1-6, 1-3 SOL) plays at Council Rock South on Friday. Pennsbury (3-4, 1-3 SOL) plays at Council Rock North.
Truman 002 003 1 – 6 9 0
Pennsbury 000 000 0 – 0 2 3
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