CENTRAL NEW YORK – Though it wants a lot more, the West Genesee baseball team was quite happy to lock up the Salt City Athletic Conference Metro division regular-season title early last week.
It took a seventh-inning run for the Wildcats to edge Liverpool 8-7 in the league clincher, which helped avenge, at the time, WG’s lone defeat of the season on April 20.
A five-run third inning seemed to put the Wildcats in control, but Liverpool fought back with three runs in the fourth, a run in the fifth and, after WG it 7-4 in the bottom of the fifth, putting up three runs in the top of the seventh as Jack Hoppe’s three RBIs led the comeback.
That 7-7 tie did not last, though, WG winning on Talon Ellkins’ run-scoring single in the bottom of the seventh off Chris Baker, the eighth different player to drive in a run.
Elkins and Vince Firenze had two hits apiece as they joined Jacob Severson, Jason Clifton, Cameron Noce, Landon Spencer, Anthony Augello and Ryan Saroney in the RBI column. Charlie Searle and Ryan Tabaczyk both pitched in relief after Clifton started and went four innings.
All of this made what happened in the rematch with Liverpool at Onondaga Community College a bit easier to take, though its 7-3 loss meant that WG had gone 1-2 against LHS and 15-0 against everyone else.
Liverpool jumped on freshman pitching ace Colin Crinnin and took a 3-0 lead, only to have the Wildcats tie it in the bottom of the third, with Saroney, Elkins and Firenze scoring the runs.
From there, though, Liverpool pitcher Jack Hoppe blanked WG, only surrendering three hits, while a run in the fifth chased Crinnin and three more followed against reliever Gabriel June and Landyn Shaw.
Home again on Friday to face Cicero-North Syracuse, WG prevailed 4-2, completing a regular-season sweep of the Northstars by jumping out to a 3-0 lead through two innings and letting the pitchers protect it.
Aside from tripling and scoring a run, Elkins went six innings, striking out seven and allowing just five hits before Searle closed it out. Firenze, Saroney, Noce and Jared Jaeger each had one RBI.
Bishop Ludden also was locking up a league title in the OHSL Patriot American division, helped by last Monday’s 10-4 victory over Port Byron.
Eight unanswered runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings established control for the Gaelic Knights. Joe Dunham, who pitched six innings and amassed 14 strikeouts, also doubled and got three RBIs, with Joey Adamo, Tom Cervantes and Jimmy Westers driving in two runs apiece
Then Ludden unloaded on Marcellus 22-1 on Wednesday, scoring at least four runs in four different innings, including a six-run third and seven-run seventh.
Tim Dunham doubled, singled and got a season-best five RBIs. Joe Dunham and Parker Pichoske each drove in three runs, with three hits apiece, Spencer James and Nolan Feldt both getting a pair of RBIs.
Though Thursday’s game with Fabius-Pompey was closer, Ludden still won it 8-1, Tim Dunham pitching a complete game as Purdy and Andrew Pullano both went three-for-four and combined for three RBIs. Adamo and Mike Masterpole both scored twice.
Ludden would find out Sunday that it had the top seed for the Section III Class C playoffs, entering the post-season Tuesday against the winner of Monday’s opening-round game between no. 16 seed Thousand Islands and no. 17 seed Onondaga.
As for West Genesee, as the top seed in Class AA, it plays in its sectional quarterfinal Tuesday against the winner of Monday’s first-round game between no. 8 seed Baldwinsville and no. 9 seed Rome Free Academy, with the semifinals Thursday and the final Sunday at Onondaga Community College.
