Council Rock South to La Salle 3-1 in Friday’s PIAA Class AAAA title game at Penn State University on Friday. To view photos of all the action, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Scott Huff
State College – Council Rock South senior Dan Callahan sat in the home dugout after the Golden Hawks’ 3-1 loss to La Salle in the PIAA Quad-A state championship game. His eyes were rimmed with tears, and he fidgeted with the silver medal when questioned about the dreadful loss.
Anyone could tell he really didn’t want the second place medallion.
“We try to go out and play with no regrets, but I have regrets about how we played today,” said Callahan as the explosive Rock South lineup produced just three hits and no earned runs. “The middle of our lineup left too many runners on base early in the game, and they just outplayed us.
“I will be a Hawk forever,” added Callahan who ironically will play at La Salle University next spring. “I have played with these eight other seniors since we were about eight years old, and I am so proud of what we have done. We just needed to do a little more.”
“Deep in the hearts of these players, you can tell they expected to win today,” said Council Rock South head coach Greg Young, who coached his last game for the Hawks. “This group of seniors have worked real hard and have been successful at every level they have played together.
“They never quit, they play with tenacity, and have a tremendous work ethic,” continued Young. “They are a very special group of players, and they will be missed.”
Council Rock South posed a threat in the first inning. With one out, senior center fielder Brian Donnelly singled and moved to second on a single by starting pitcher Bret DeStefano. Both Donnelly and DeStefano moved up to second and third with one out on a passed ball.
However, a strikeout and a pop out to first base resulted in a scoreless inning. The Golden Hawks would manage just a single hit over the final six innings.
That hit came in the second inning with Rock South down 1-0. With two outs, senior third baseman Michael Chaykin laced a double, and senior shortstop Steve Wright was hit by a pitch. But with runners on first and second, the Golden Hawks again failed to come up with a timely hit to produce a run.
Council Rock South scored its only run of the game in the fourth inning. Senior first baseman Zak Gross opened the inning with a drive that was misplayed in centerfield for a three-base error (triple in my book). Gross scored as senior leftfielder Kane Price lofted a sacrifice fly to right field to slice the lead to 3-1.
The Golden Hawks would get no closer as La Salle senior Kevin Long was masterful on the mound. Long threw a complete game with eight strikeouts and only issued one base on balls.
“Long did a great job of keeping the ball away from us,” said Young. “Any time that you can throw three different pitches for strikes, you are going to be a good high school pitcher. He competes like crazy on the mound, and he was tough on us.”
“He looked hittable, but he located his fastball and hit his spots the whole game,” added Callahan. “This just isn’t the way we wanted our season to end.”
Council Rock South desperately wanted to leave State College with more than a silver medal – they coveted the gold. The arduous three-hour plus bus ride home will seem a whole lot longer.
La Salle Explorers 010 200 0 -3 6 2
Council Rock South Golden Hawks 000 100 0 -1 3 0
PIAA Extra Bases
Suburban One Leagueperformances in the baseball state final game are as follows:
2009 – North Penn won the Quad-A title with a 3-1 victory over Parkland @ Penn State University.
2007 – Souderton lost in the Quad-A title game by a 9-1 tally against Seneca Valley @ Blair County Park in Altoona.
1994 – Plymouth Whitemarsh won a Class AAA title with a 5-4 victory over North Allegheny @ Bowman Field in Williamsport.
1987 – Pennridge won a state Class AAA title with a 6-5 nine inning win over Bethel Park @ Shippensburg University.
1977 – Hatboro-Horsham won a state title with a 4-0 victory over Penn Hills @ Shippensburg University in the first ever state championship game.
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