Check out the recaps for baseball teams in action Friday.
SOL Liberty Division
Quakertown 1, Upper Dublin 0 (8 innings)
Three days after it began, the Panthers brought an end to a scoreless ballgame that was suspended by lightening with one out in the top of the eighth inning on Tuesday.
They certainly didn’t waste any time, winning it in the bottom of the eighth when – with one out and the bases loaded – Cole Reich grounded a single to left that plated Anthony Pellegrini for the walk-off win.
Reich’s game-winner was set up when Jackson Gilman was hit by a pitch, Brady Martin drew a base on balls, and Dan Qualteria legged out a bunt single to load the bases – all with one out.
The Cardinals were up to bat when the game was halted in the eighth, and when play resumed Macen Probithon – who had retired the first batter he faced on one pitch Tuesday – was back on the mound Friday. He struck out the first batter he faced for the inning’s second out and picked up the third out on a fly ball to center field.
“Macen did a great job finishing the inning he started Tuesday,” said Quakertown coach Jon Pallone. “He got a win and a save in back-to-back days. That doesn’t happen often.”
Probithon threw just seven pitches – six for strikes – to earn the two-out win in relief. He entered the game Tuesday when Cooper Natisin reached his allowed pitch count after allowing just one hit in seven stellar innings. Natisin struck out five and walked two.
For the Cardinals, Austin Dahl threw a gem of his own on Tuesday, allowing three hits in seven shutout innings. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter.
Quakertown (12-5, 11-2 SOL) will travel to Wissahickon on Tuesday, and Upper Dublin (10-5, 8-3) will be on the road at Abington on Monday.
Upper Dublin 000 000 00 0-1-2
Quakertown 000 000 00 1-5-0
Non-league
Central Bucks West 6, Quakertown 3
The Panthers – fresh off a walk-off win in the resumption of a suspended game earlier in the day – wasted little time before jumping out to a lead in Friday’s nightcap, plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Quakertown scored both runs on squeeze bunts.
“The game started out in the wrong direction for us,” West coach Brian Weaver said. “We gave them two freebies to start the game – a hit-by-pitch and a walk.
“This Quakertown team isn’t one you can do that against. They stole a few bases, executed two perfect safety squeezes, and basically took every free 90 feet we gave them. It’s no wonder they’re sitting where they are in the standings right now. That’s the stuff that wins games in late May and June, and Jon’s got them doing it incredibly well.”
The Panthers’ lead turned out to be short-lived.
In the top of the second, Blake Hager and Michael Koldhoff hit back-to-back singles, and Collin Murphy drew a walk to load the bases. One out later, Connor Grzywacz hit an RBI single, and Koldhoff scored on Gavin Shiffler’s sac fly to center. The Bucks took a 3-2 lead when Michael Graban singled to center.
Neither team scored again until the top of the fifth. Graban reached second on a two-base error lead off the inning, He moved up to third on a passed ball and scored when Ernie Sanchez lined an RBI double to left field, giving the Bucks a 4-2 advantage.
In the top of the sixth, Connor Bannon singled to lead off the inning and stole second. He scored when Shiffler lined a one-out double to center. Shiffler stole third and scored on Graban’s groundout to put the Bucks on top 6-2.
The Panthers scored a run in the bottom of the seventh when Dan Qualteria, who was hit by a pitch, scored on a single by Carl Weiss for the 6-3 final.
Carter Benson settled into a groove after a tough first inning and earned the complete game win, allowing five hits and three runs while striking out 11 and walking two.
“After (the first inning), Carter Benson dialed in and threw the best we’ve ever seen him throw,” Weaver said. “He’s been in tough spots this year, usually a guy we go to in dirty innings to try to put the fire out, but tonight we had him slotted to start and hoped he could give us four or five good frames before we had to hit the bullpen. Instead, after the first, he was in control, inducing weak contact and throwing innings that were just fantastically efficient.”
Leading the Panthers eight-hit attack was Hager, who was 2-for-4 with a run scored. Shiffler and Graban both had two RBIs.
“Offensively, we’ve really struggled to score throughout the whole game lately,” Weaver said. “It was great to see our guys answer right back in the top of the second, but even better to see us tack on some runs when we got to the later innings. We got some timely hits and forced some timely errors. Just putting the ball in play and adding a little pressure was critical for us to see from our guys.
“We also got some other big plays that helped to move things along, too. Blake Hager had a nice night. Connor Bannon went 1-for-3, got a bunt down for us, and made a web gem going over his shoulder from second base into the shallow outfield. He and Gavin Shiffler had a really good feel on the bases and swiped bags. It was a good night for a lot of different guys, and Benson didn’t let any of those efforts go to waste.”
For the Panthers, Freddie Steinmetz (2-for-2) and Gunner Rahn (2-for-4) contributed multi-hit games.
A trio of pitchers saw action for the Panthers.
“CB West is a solid team and well coached,” Quakertown coach Jon Pallone said. “We came up a little short tonight.”
Central Bucks West (7-8, 5-7 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks South on Tuesday, Quakertown (12-5, 11-2 SOL) will travel to Wissahickon on Tuesday.
Central Bucks West 030 012 0 6-8-0
Quakertown 200 000 1 3-6-2
Pennridge 11, Hatboro-Horsham 3
The Rams scored three runs in the first and added three more in the second on their way to an early 6-0 lead in Friday’s non-league win. They never looked back.
“It was awesome to see some guys step up when their number was called,” Pennridge coach Danny Long said. “Today’s win was a true team effort, and it was a good step for us heading into a very busy week next week.”
In the bottom of the first, Noah Keating hit a one-out single to right field and moved up to second on a passed ball. He scored when Matt Atchley lined a double to right field. Ryder Olson singled, and with two outs, Joey Gregoire hit a two-run double to left field, putting the Rams on top 3-0.
In the second, Keating singled in a run, and when Atchley drove home a pair on a single, the Rams led 6-0 on their way to the convincing win.
Contributing multi-hit games for the Rams were Keating (2-for-2, RBI, 2R), Will Munley (2-for-2, 2B, RBI, R), Atchley (2-for-4, 2B, 4 RBIs, R), Olson (2-for-4, RBI, R) and Gregoire (2-for-2, 2B, 2 RBIs). Zach Swanson was 1-for-2 with a triple and two runs scored.
Three pitchers saw action on the mound for the Rams. Connor Smith started and did not allow a hit in two shutout innings, striking out a pair and walking a pair. Gavin Forrester followed and threw two innings, allowing three hits and one run (unearned) while striking out three and walking one. AJ Plizska threw three innings to close it out, allowing two hits and two runs (one earned) while striking out two and walking one.
For the Hatters, Matt Jasper was 2-for-3 with a double and RBI.
Pennridge (8-6, 4-6 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks East on Tuesday, and Hatboro-Horsham (8-7, 7-6) will host Plymouth Whitemarsh on Tuesday.
Hatboro-Horsham 001 011 0 3-5-3
Pennridge 330 221 x 11-12-2
Springfield Twp 15, Germantown Friends 1 (6 innings)
The Spartans scored single runs in the second and third innings to take a lead they would not lose, capping a 3-0 week that saw the Spartans outscore their opponents 39-4.
“It’s just good to see the offense still aggressive,” Spartans’ coach Dennis Primavera said. “We don’t want to get stale or into contagious bad habits, and this bodes well for their baseball psyche.”
Four pitchers combined on the abbreviated one-hitter. Jack Massari started and threw four shutout innings to earn the win. He did not allow a hit while striking out five and walking two. Grayson Quinn closed it out with one-and-two-thirds shutout innings. He struck out one batter and walked none.
At the plate, the Spartans collected 10 hits, and nobody had a bigger day that Jack McKittrick, who was a perfect 5-for-5 with one RBI and two runs scored. John Lynch was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and three runs scored. Mike Capoferri doubled and drove in three runs. Anderson Kerper was 0-for-1 with two RBIs, and Jon Matthews also had one hit and a pair of RBIs.
Springfield Twp (8-7, 7-6 SOL) will host Upper Moreland on Tuesday.
Springfield Twp 011 229 15-10-1
Germantown Friends 000 010 1-1-4
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