CENTRAL NEW YORK – Though a great deal of pressure may have come off the Westhill baseball team in the wake of its first defeat of the season to Baldiwnsville on May 13, that doesn’t mean it was happy – far from it.
Annoyed at the seven errors that proved so costly against the Bees, Westhill took out that annoyance last Monday in a fearsome display against Hannibal that resulted in a 33-0 victory.
It included a 12-run second inning and nine-run third inning as Aiden Kerr homered and got five RBIs. Anthony Pagano also drove in five runs, with Dom Zawadzki getting four RBIs as Grady Pens, Trey Dillobaugh and Collin White got three RBIs apiece.
A wild 19-11 win over Syracuse City followed on Wednesday, Westhill using six runs in the fifth inning to wipe out a 9-3 deficit and then, down 10-9, erupting for 10 runs in the top of the seventh.
Mike Madigan’s home run was part of an attack where Anthony Sampo had three hits and three RBIs. Dillobaugh, Kerr and Peter Stroman joined Madigan driving in a pair of runs.
Westhill had another big showdown on Thursday against Christian Brothers Academy, but found itself shut down in a 5-1 defeat to the Brothers.
Not wasting time, CBA got three runs off Ryan Campbell in the bottom of the first , then tacked on single runs in the fourth and sixth as pitcher Casey Vaughn, in 5 2/3 innings, held Westhill to two hits and a lone run in the second driven home on Dillobaugh’s double.
Skaneateles saw its five-game win streak halted by its fellow Lakers from Cazenovia in an 8-3 decision.
Never in front, Skaneateles surrendered four runs in the first inning and three runs in the fourth as Cazenovia ace Jack Byrnes not only pitched, he got a home run, single and four RBIs. Cade Lamphere and Keelan Maren drove in runs for Skaneateles, who only got three hits off Byrnes.
Quickly turning around, the Lakers pounded Mexico 17-7 a day later, with a five-run first inning and 10 total runs in the sixth and seventh innings that put the game out of reach.
Chad Lowe led the way, going four-for-four and scoring five runs as he joined Hugh Carroll and Torin Bennett with two RBIs apiece. Scott Scherrer drove in three runs as Casey Kenan and Carter Corbett both scored twice.
Then Skaneateles handled Port Byron 12-2 on Wednesday, scoring multiple runs in every inning except the second. Mike Blowers hit a solo home run as Corbett went three-for-three and Patrick Herr drove in three runs. Carroll and Cal Anna had two RBIs apiece.
When the Lakers took its turn against Hannibal on Thursday, it won 11-0, with Scott Scherrer and Ben Underhill giving up just two hits between them as Kenan had three hits and three RBIs. Anna and Herr each drove in two runs.
Solvay lost 9-3 to CBA last Monday, a 3-3 tie forged early as Jordan Dippold scored twice, Max Overend had two hits and Aaron Trendell an RBI, but the Brothers scored three times in the fourth and sixth innings to win it, Jack Landau hitting a home run and Luke Boule getting four hits as Overend took the loss.
Having dropped five in a row, Solvay broke the skid Wednesday with a 14-3 win over Jordan-Elbridge where Sam Gonzalez had a home run, double and four RBIs.
And it looked like the Bearcats would upend Cazenovia on Friday, breaking out to a 5-0 lead through two innings and still up 7-3 through five as Overend scored three times and Gonzalez scored twice.
But Cazenovia overcame all this and, with five runs in the top of the seventh, pulled it out 10-7, dropping Solvay’s overall record to 8-11 as the playoffs loomed.
Marcellus defeated Phoenix 11-1 last Tuesday night, peaking with a five-run second inning. Ethan Dilmore cleared the bases twice with a double and triple that led to five RBIs, while Ian Potter went four-for-four, including two triples, and drove in three runs. Ryder Donahue scored three times and Ethan Snyder scored twice.
A wild 12-10 win over Chittenango followed on Thursday afternoon, which allowed the Mustangs to finish the regular season with a 9-11 mark and, as the no. 15 seed in the Section III Class B playoff bracket, know that, if it beat no. 18 seed Mexico on Monday, it would get a shot at no. 2 seed Westhill.
Solvay would also go through an opening-round game, the no. 16 seed Bearcats hosting no. 17 seed Phoenix with a berth against unbeaten top seed South Jefferson on the line as Skaneateles, the no. 8 seed, meets no. 9 seed Homer.
