What started for the Westhill baseball team in its perfect 4-0 run through Myrtle Beach continued back home in a most emphatic manner.
The Warriors, who surged to no. 15 in the state Class B rankings, went to Skaneateles last Wednesday afternoon and put on a complete display in a 17-0 shutout of the state no. 17-ranked Lakers.
These same teams had met at Myrtle Beach a week earlier, Westhill winning 6-1 as John Geer pitched and held then-unbeaten Skaneateles to two hits and a first-inning run, the Warriors using two runs in the third inning and three runs in the fifth inning to seize control.
It was Geer’s turn in the rotation again for the rematch, and again he threw a two-hitter, this time holding Skaneateles off the scoreboard while watching his teammates unload on four Skaneateles pitcher.
The Warriors ruled from the outset, gaining a 5-0 lead by the second inning, adding four runs in the third and then scoring seven times in the top of the fourth inning.
Brad Canavan had three of Westhill’s 13 hits, including a double, and earned two RBIs while scoring three runs. Galen Hayes and Chris Coates each managed a team-best four RBIs as Ryan Roland drove in three runs. Joe Carello and Brian O’Mara had two RBIs apiece.
Off until Saturday, Westhill didn’t let the rest bother them too much as it routed Hannibal 14-0. Between them, Roland, in relief, combined with starter Connor Tackley on a two-hitter, the pair getting eight strikeouts between them.
It was 9-0 after three innings, and Westhill finished with 16 hits, three of them by C.J. Walsh, who doubled and drove in two runs. Coates and Joe Sweeny also had two RBIs, with O’Mara scoring three runs. Roland, Luke Sekowski, Jacob Furco and Jesse Chester had one RBI apiece.
Solvay did not let last Monday’s rains keep them off the field. Rather, it moved its home game with Bishop Grimes to the turf field at Onondaga Community College, where the Bearcats completed a regular-season sweep of the Cobras by an 8-2 margin.
Wednesday’s game with Hannibal was rained out, but it got made up Thursday and the Bearcats routed those other Warriors 20-1, scoring six runs in the third and sixth innings and, in between, netting five runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Through it all, Colin Lucio gathered up three hits and drove in four runs. Sammy Kippen and Jake Dippold also had three-hit outings, combining for five RBIs as Mike Yaizzo, Brett Peterson and Nate Vona drove in two runs apiece. Peterson and Vona spilt up pitching duties and limited Hannibal to four hits while getting nine total strikeouts.
Now came a high-profile game Saturday night against defending Section III Class A champion Vernon-Verona-Sherrill. Despite a fourth-inning run, the Bearcats could not add to its lead, seeing the Red Devils tie it an inning later and then prevail, 2-1, when it netted the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.
Bishop Ludden, whose game with Westhill at NBT Bank Stadium on Friday was rained out, visited Cazenovia two days earlier, and all looked fine – until the bottom of the seventh inning, when a three-run lead disappeared in a 7-6 defeat to the Lakers.
Ludden scored four runs in the top of the first inning off starting pitcher Matt Regan. But Regan would settle down, only allowing four hits for the entire game –and as he did, Cazenovia climbed back with single tallies in the first, third and fifth innings.
Still, when Ludden got a run in the fifth and another in the top of the seventh, the Lakers’ deficit grew to 6-3. By then, Jason Hoffman, Austin Hoyt and Matt McGinn had all driven runs, and Dan McGarvey was handling his relief duties after replacing starter Ian Quinn in the fifth.
Just when it mattered, though, Cazenovia solved Quinn, putting put up three runs in the bottom of the seventh, and then won it when Quinn’s wild pitch allowed the decisive run to score. Judson Spaulding led the Lakers with two hits, three runs scored and an RBI as Eric Ketcham drove in a pair of runs.
Jordan-Elbridge got a satisfying 7-5 win over Cazenovia last Thursday afternoon, overcoming a 5-2 deficit by scoring three runs in the fifth inning and then adding a pair of runs in the sixth to get out in front.
Zach Pangaro had two of the Eagles’ six hits, earning a pair of RBIs. Dan Kuehnle (who walked three times), Zach Fabrize and Jonah Patrick had one RBI apiece. George Richardson scored a run and also pitched two scoreless innings of relief after Pangaro started.
