BASEBALL ROUNDUPWyoming Area forces playoff for WVC Division 2 title

Wyoming Area extended the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 baseball race with a strong surge to end the regular season while Pittston Area remained in title contention until the final week before falling short in the WVC Division 1 race.

The Warriors finished 9-3 in Division 2 to tie Holy Redeemer and force a playoff for the championship. At presstime, the date, site and time were not known.

Pittston Area went 11-3 in Division 1 where it will finish second, either alone or in a tie for Dallas.

Wyoming Area 12, Hanover Area 1

Matt Rusinchak tossed a two-hitter and did not walk a batter Thursday when Wyoming Area defeated host Hanover Area in six innings to finish in a first-place tie in Division 2.

The Warriors led just 2-1 before scoring four times in the fourth inning and three times each in the fifth and sixth.

The bottom third of the order led the way, combining to go 5-for-7 with four walks, seven runs and three RBI.

Matt Rusinchak also contributed offensively with two doubles and a team-high three RBI. He had a two-run double in the fifth.

Ben Rogish had two hits and scored three times from the seventh spot in the order. Chris Speicher followed him and went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Mitchell Rusinchak, who bats ninth, was 1-for-1 with three walks and three RBI.

David Fath drove in two runs while Brady Noone scored twice.

The Warriors are 11-8 overall and assured of a berth in the District 2 Class 4A playoffs.

Dallas 5, Pittston Area 0

Sam Barrouk and Connor Healey combined on a four-hit shutout to lead Dallas past Pittston Area Thursday.

Drew DeLucca had two of the hits for the Patriots, who are 15-4 overall and third of eight teams in the seeding race for the District 2-4 Class 5A Subregional playoffs.

Hazleton Area 8, Pittston Area 0

HAZLE TWP. – This seemed to be the year to catch Hazleton Area and end its long reign atop Division 1 of Wyoming Valley Conference baseball.

Instead, the Cougars disposed of their final challenger in a fashion so impressive that even the opposing coach lauded their performance Wednesday.

Hazleton Area jumped out early and rode the strong pitching from lefty Antonio Doganiero to an 8-0 victory over Pittston Area.

Hazleton Area finished 13-1 in the division and improved to 15-4 overall. The Cougars have won five consecutive WVC Division 1 championships. Pittston Area has been the runner-up in four of those seasons.

“The game of baseball today, the way they played those first four innings, that’s how you play baseball,” Pittston Area coach Paul Zaffuto said. “We wish for games like that.”

The Cougars barreled up some hits and used some small-ball tactics to take an 8-0 lead. That was more than enough the way Doganiero, a Pitt commit, was baffling Pittston Area batters.

Doganiero’s curveball was outstanding. He started it high at times and at others about waist level. Either way, it dropped off the table and led to 11 strikeouts against a Patriots team known for putting the ball in play.

Doganiero pitched against Pittston Area in a 5-4 loss on April 9. He had a no decision, pitching 3.2 innings and giving up four hits and striking out only two. He didn’t deviate from his style Wednesday.

“It doesn’t change at all,” Doganiero said. “You stick with what’s good.”

Doganiero walked the bases loaded in the sixth before departing. Right fielder Chris Florentino preserved the shutout by ending the inning with a running catch to the fence.

Silvio Giardina had two hits for the Patriots.

Wyoming Area 8, Holy Redeemer 7

WEST PITTSTON — Three Wyoming Area batters came to the plate with the bases loaded in the seventh inning Tuesday, all seeking a hit.

All three failed to get one, but the alternative was just enough to give the Warriors a victory.

Noah Smith, Jeremy Layland and Chase Speicher drew bases-loaded walks to push Wyoming Area ahead and the Warriors held off Holy Redeemer 8-7 in a key Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 baseball game.

“That’s what we talked about every day, going up there with a plan and making sure what our job is at hand,” Wyoming Area coach Rob Lemoncelli said. “And sometimes your job changes every pitch, let alone every at-bat.

“These guys have a pretty good idea of the strike zone. We don’t have guys that hit the ball over the fence, so we have to make sure we have guys who can handle the bat whether it’s a bunt, a fake bunt, slash. Whatever it might be.”

Holy Redeemer finished its Division 2 season at 9-3 and fell to 13-5 overall.

Based on the emotion from both teams during the game and some fans from both teams afterward, the playoff game that Wyoming Area later forced could be quite interesting.

Holy Redeemer led 6-5 going into the seventh and recorded a quick out. Wyoming Area then had Jacob Snyder walk, Matt Rusinski single and David Fath get plunked by a pitch to load the bases.

Smith, who had a drive to left caught near the fence in the third inning, walked to tie the score. An out later, Layland and Speicher walked to give Wyoming Area an 8-6 lead.

The Royals didn’t go quietly in the bottom of the seventh. Neither did some fans after the game.

First the baseball aspect. Cody Quaglia led off with a walk and then scored from first on groundout combined with a throwing error to move the Royals within 8-7.

Snyder, though, got two of the next three batters he faced — in between Redeemer coach Ryan Knowles and an assistant getting ejected — to end the game. Snyder struck out seven and allowed one hit in four innings of relief.

“He threw really well for them,” Knowles said. “Jake is a really good pitcher. Credit to him. He made all the right pitches and they played good defense behind him.”

Knowles was ejected after coming in from the third-base coaching box to get an explanation on his assistant’s ejection. Then after the game, fans from both teams exchanged some heated words — with a few vulgarities sprinkled in to spice things up — behind the backstop.

Holy Redeemer looked like it was going to pull away with a four-run third, taking a 5-1 lead. Alex Gordon’s groundout brought in two runs, one via RBI and the other on an error on the play. Zach Schultz plated a run with a sacrifice fly and DJ McDermott scored on a wild pitch.

Wyoming Area responded with three runs in the bottom of the third, with Tom Carlin’s RBI triple the only hit of the inning for the Warriors. An error with two outs brought two runs across the plate.

Fath was 2-for-2 with three runs scored. Carlin tripled and singled.

Pittston Area 3, Dallas 2

HUGHESTOWN — Locked in a stalemate with Dallas, Pittston Area finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh Monday.

The Patriots temporarily kept their divisional title hopes alive in the process.

Dom Innamorati singled home Elijah Mead with one out as Pittston Area walked off Dallas 3-2 in a key Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 baseball game.

The teams played three scoreless innings — both missing chances to break the 2-2 tie — entering the seventh.

Dallas got a one-out single from Kaden Coyne in the top of the seventh, but a fielder’s choice and popout ended the threat.

Pittston Area didn’t have a hit since the fourth inning when Mead led off the seventh with a single. Drew DeLucca used a sacrifice bunt to move Mead to second and he scored when Innamorati’s grounder leaked through the left side of the infield for the game-winning hit.

The Mountaineers loaded the bases in the third, but the threat ended when Pittston Area second baseman Beau Widdick made a backhanded stab of a grounder to get a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

Pittston Area took a 1-0 lead in the first as Silvio Giardina rocketed a double to right-center to score Innamorati, who reached on an error.

Dallas took a 2-1 lead in the second. Connor Healey and Ethan Tinner led off by getting hit by pitches. Healey eventually scored on a groundout and Tinner scored on a wild pitch.

Pittston Area knotted the game in the third on three consecutive singles. Only one left the infield. Innamorati singled up the middle and went to third on an error on Giardina’s bunt single. Jake Aftewicz’s high chopper to short scored Innamorati.

Mead, Dom Innamorati and winning pitcher Giardina each had two hits for the Patriots.

MMI Prep 10, Wyoming Area 1

A day after losing by 11 runs to Wyoming Area, MMI Prep turned the tables on the Warriors the morning of May 4.

MMI scored six runs in the first inning and three more in the third to defeat Wyoming Area 10-1 in a WVC Division 2 game.

Wyoming Area had defeated MMI 12-1 in five innings May 3. The teams played consecutive days due to a rainout in early April.

Andy Burns led MMI’s offense, going 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI. He was also strong on the mound, striking out 11 and surrendering two hits in 6 1/3 innings. The Preppers had just four hits, but worked out 10 walks and had two batters hit by pitches.

David Fath had both Wyoming Area hits and drove in a run in the first inning.