Fifteen long years had passed since the Marcellus baseball team last claimed a Section III title – but that wait is over.
Phil Zdanowski pitched a complete game, with 11 strikeouts, and the Mustangs struck for all of its runs in the first two innings to beat Watertown IHC 7-2 in Monday’s Class B-1 title game at DeLutis Field in Rome.
Head coach Pete Birmingham said the win was a tribute to his team’s work ethic, something honed not just during the season, but even in January, when players do various amounts of training to keep themselves fresh.
“This was a legacy game,” said Birmingham. “They’ve worked hard, and now they’ve got something to show for it. ”
Zdanowski said the win carried a greater personal satisfaction because his older brother, Dan, was part of the Marcellus team that made the sectional finals in 2007, only to lose to Westhill on the same Rome grass where it would prevail on this day.
Of course, Marcellus got here by finally getting past Westhill, the reigning two-time state Class B champions, in a 3-0 semifinal on May 28 where Tim Schneider pitched a shutout. Zdanowski would not pull that off, but he was plenty good.
He also got all kinds of help from IHC ace Anthony Magovney. A pitcher who has appeared in many big games (he led the Cavaliers to last year’s state Class C final), Magovney was way off in the first and second innings, issuing six walks that Marcellus would turn into seven runs. Birmingham said his team refrained from chasing high pitches, which led to baserunners of all sorts.
It was Zdanowski putting Marcellus ahead in the top of the first with an RBI single that scored Taylor Vile. A wild pitch from Magovney brought Zdanowski home, and when Kyle Hastings’ grounder was mishandled, two more runs scored, making it 4-0.
Nothing worked for Magovney in the second, either, as Marcellus tacked on three more runs. Vile singled and Sinay brought him home with an RBI double, and another wild pitch made it 6-0 as Marcellus ran at will, getting a series of stolen bases, including one that allowed the final run to score.
Somehow, Magovney settled down and blanked the Mustangs the rest of the way as he earned 14 strikeouts and just one more walk. Yet Zdanowski, playing with a broken (non-pitching) hand, had enough of a cushion, despite seven IHC hits and single runs in the second and fifth innings. To wrap up the B-1 title, Zdanowski, even with a pitch count well past 100, truck out the side in the seventh, fittingly striking out Magovney to end it.
“Phil had a man-sized performance,” said Birmingham.
Marcellus goes to Alliance Bank Stadium Thursday to face B-2 champion Clinton in the overall Class B final. Clinton handled Ilion 6-0 in the B-2 final thanks to a pitching gem from Rob Hardy, but will have to depend on someone else in the mound.
Meanwhile, the Mustangs debate whether to start Schneider or Jordan Smith, the left-hander. Either way, Marcellus has to beat the Warriors to finish on top – which may have a familiar ring to it.
