Scott Huff recaps all of Tuesday’s SOL baseball action. To view photos of the North Penn/CB East game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Scott Huff
North Pennsenior Tyler Phifer came off the field with a huge smile on his face – and for good reason.
Phifer stroked three hits and contributed five RBI for the Knights (1-0) to fuel North Penn to an 11-1 mercy-rule victory over visiting Central Bucks East (0-1) in the Suburban One League Continental Conference opener for both teams.
“I played behind a senior most of last year, and now it is my turn,” said Phifer. “I was struggling with the bat a little in the first few (non-league) games, but I have worked hard on what the coaches want me to do at the plate.”
“Tyler is a great kid, a good listener, and both respects and loves the game,” said first year North Penn head coach Kevin Manero. “I had confidence that we would be ready to go when the league season got started.”
The offensive 11-hit explosion overshadowed a fine pitching performance of junior Bryce Mengel.
“Our hitting really helped me out today,” said Mengel, who threw a complete game for the Knights and had six strikeouts. “I didn’t feel real comfortable in the first inning (the only inning that CB East scored), but (catcher) Eddie (Posavec) came out and settled me down and I felt comfortable the rest of the game.
“I was able to throw all three of my pitches – the fastball, curve, and change-up – but I think my curve was the best pitch I had today,” added Mengel. “I go out there with the idea of whatever works is the pitch I am going to throw the most.”
North Penn had a three-run first inning, a three-run third inning, and ended the game on a Mengel single to conclude a four-run fifth inning.
“North Penn has a nice team, but in the innings they scored multiple runs we made some critical errors,” said Central Bucks East head coach Kyle Dennis. “The only good thing to come out of this game for us is that we know the cure – catch the baseball.”
Posavec (2-for-3, two runs scored) and Brady West (2-for-3, three runs) also delivered multiple hits for the Knights, who collected 11 hits. Vince Careghini accounted for two of East’s five hits.
Both teams will resume SOL Continental Conference play next Tuesday (4/10) when North Penn will travel to Pennridge, and Central Bucks East will host Hatboro-Horsham.
Central Bucks East Patriots 100 00 - 1 5 3
North Penn Knights 303 14 - 11 11 0
The Rest of the Story in the SOL Continental Conference
Hatboro-Horsham (1-0) opened its conference schedule with a five-inning no-hitter thrown by Zach Prendergast as the Hatters mercy-ruled visiting Quakertown (0-1) – 10-0.
Chris Hens, who blasted a homerun and a double and collected four RBI, fueled the offense. Tyler Zingle chipped in with a double in the seven-hit Hatter attack.
Quakertown Panthers 000 00 - 0 0 2
Hatboro-Horsham Hatters 045 1x - 10 7 1
Central Bucks South (1-0) opened its conference schedule with a victory as the Titans collected a 9-6 win over visiting Pennridge (0-1).
The Titans offense generated 12 hits and was led by three-hit games of both Chris Coia and Dylan Glassmire. Ben Moller, Kyle Lewis had two-hit games for the Titans, while Brian Happ collected a pair of RBI.
Ricky Dennis notched the win for South by throwing five innings and permitting just three earned runs.
Pennridge Rams 200 030 1 - 6 12 0
Central Bucks South 216 000 0 - 9 12 0
Central Bucks West (1-0) opened its conference schedule with a victory as the Bucks held off host Souderton (0-1) – 9-5.
The Bucks took a 6-0 lead after two innings but saw the Indians climb back into the game at 6-5. A three-run seventh inning sealed the deal for the winners.
A trio of CB West players collected two RBI each – Nick Martino, Marty Martens, and Jake Poeske. Martens earned the win for the Bucks, while Nick Heller threw a pair of scoreless innings to collect the save.
Central Bucks West Bucks 510 000 3 - 9 8 5
Souderton Indians 004 100 0 - 5 5 2
Council Rock South Opens Title Defense With Victory
Council Rock South (1-0) opened its SOL National Conference title defense with a 6-0 victory over visiting Truman (0-1).
“It was a perfect day to play baseball, and Truman scrapped with us the first four innings and it was pretty much anyone’s game,” said Council Rock South head coach Greg Young. “We played solid defensively, and we got strong starting and relief pitching. The four-run inning in the fifth inning broke open the game.”
The Golden Hawks scored a pair of runs in the fourth inning on a two-run single by senior catcher Dan Callahan. Callahan smoked a two-run double in the fifth inning, and Zach Gross also collected a pair of RBI with a single.
Bret DiStefano threw the first five innings for Rock South – struck out nine hitters – and allowed four base hits. Brian Donnelly fired the final two innings – struck out three – and allowed three hits.
“We have off the next week with spring break, but our pitchers will stay on schedule throughout the week,” said Young. “This was a great way to start the season.”
Harry S Truman Tigers 000 000 0 - 0 7 2
Council Rock South Hawks 000 240 x - 6 11 1
The Rest of the Story in the SOL National Conference
Bensalem (1-0) scored a run in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Owls edged Pennsbury (0-1) – 3-2.
The winning pitcher for Bensalem was Zach Hizer, while the Owls received extra base hits from both Harry Daut and Andy Moser.
Pennsbury Falcons 000 001 10 - 2 4 4
Bensalem Owls 100 001 01 - 3 8 3
Council Rock North (1-0) opened its conference schedule with a victory as the Indians captured a 7-0 win over visiting William Tennent (0-1).
Jake Drossner collected the victory for Rock North with a four-inning stint that included six strikeouts. The offense was sparked by Arden Tully (three hits), Max German (three hits and a triple), and Brett Newman.
William Tennent Panthers 000 000 0 - 0 3 0
Council Rock North Indians 111 022 x - 7 12 0
Neshaminy (1-0) earned a share of first place in the conference as the Redskins captured a 10-0 victory over visiting Abington (0-1) in a mercy-rule game called after five innings.
The win was the first varsity coaching win for first-year Neshaminy head coach Chris Tenaglia.
Abington Ghosts 000 000 - 0 1 0
Neshaminy Redskins 060 202 - 10 8 0
Trojans March To Victory
In the only SOL American Conference game, Wissahickon (3-1) moved closer to the head of the class as the Trojans captured a 7-1 victory over visiting Upper Merion (1-3).
“We have talked all season about timely hitting, and we were able to accomplish that today,” said Wissahickon head coach Shannon Gunby. “We only had six hits, but we were able to play smart baseball and scored seven runs. It is important for us to pick up these important league wins this early in the season.”
Matt Oruch and Brennan Weiss each collected a pair of runs batted in for the Trojans, while Joe McGinley and Randy Frankenfield each collected solo RBI. Billy MacFarland was the winning pitcher for the winners.
“We have the rest of the week off, but we have a couple of huge league games next week against both Upper Moreland (3-1) and Upper Dublin (4-0),” said Gunby. “It would be great for us to win both of those games.”
Upper Merion Vikings 100 000 0 - 1 4 3
Wissahickon Trojans 021 202 x - 7 6 1
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