Given the topsy-turvy nature of the entire regular season, no one had any idea what to expect once the Section III Class AA baseball playoffs got underway.
So it perhaps only made sense that a no. 7 seed in a seven-team field made the finals, while Cicero-North Syracuse and Liverpool, both of whom carried championship aspirations, got left behind.
C-NS entered as the no. 3 seed, meeting no. 6 seed Utica Proctor in last Wednesday’s quarterfinals at Onondaga Community College, where the Northstars fought past the Raiders 3-1.
They were scoreless until the top of the fourth, when Proctor’s Robert Conley singled and scored off Justin DelVecchio, but that was all DelVecchio would allow as he held the Raiders to four hits and did not surrender a walk.
C-NS tied it, 1-1, in the bottom of the fourth, and then got to Proctor pitchers Brandon Peterson and Felix DelaCruz for two decisive runs an inning later. Cole Rockwell was credited with a double and RBI as he, along with Drew Bristow and Mike Wieczorek, each scored once.
A day later, at Falcon Park, it was C-NS against no. 7 seed Fayetteville-Manlius in the semifinals after the Hornets pulled out its own 3-1 win over no. 2 seed West Genesee in the quarterfinals that required 10 innings.
Having won two of three from F-M in their series early in May, the Northstars may have expected F-M to let down – but instead, it was C-NS that never got going in a 5-0 defeat.
Justin Persse got the start and worked through two quiet innings, while fellow left-hander Max Parker only surrendered an infield hit in those pair of frames.
So it was 0-0 when, in the top of the third, F-M went in front. Ben Delmarsh led off with a single, Mitchell Seabury reached on an error and Parker delivered a perfect bunt single down the third-base line to load the bases with nobody out.
Sean O’Connor’s sacrifice fly scored Delmarsh. Itai Spinoza walked to again load the bases before Sean Arthur’s fly ball brought Seabury home and Tom Coleman’s two-out RBI single made it 3-0.
Trying to answer, C-NS instead had Parker retire 10 batters in a row at one point, before and after a a 90-minute rain delay in the fifth inning.
Then the Hornets added to its margin in the top of the sixth against C-NS pitchers Noah Wieczorek and Carter Wisely, again loading the bases with nobody out. John Egnaczyk walked to force in pinch-runner Matt Vaccaro and Seabury added a sacrifice fly.
Despite allowing two runners to get on base in the sixth and seventh innings, Parker got out of both jams to preserve his shutout and send F-M along to the sectional final.
Back on Tuesday night, at OCC, Liverpool entered the playoff fray, facing no. 5 seed Rome Free Academy and getting another strong effort on the mound from ace Luke Harder in a 3-0 victory.
Harder allowed just one hit and overcame six walks by striking out nine Black Knights to constantly escape trouble. RFA pitcher Justin Swavely matched those zeroes through three innings.
Then, in the bottom of the fourth, the Warriors grabbed a 1-0 lead, adding two runs an inning later. Sam Sgroi singled and doubled, with Harder, Adam Marsh and Shane Hazelmyer getting one RBI apiece.
This gave Liverpool the chance to knock off top seed and defending champion Baldwinsville in a sectional semifinal at Falcon Park Thursday that started late due to the rain delay of the F-M-West Genesee game and didn’t end until after 11:30.
By then, the Warriors’ fate was long sealed, B’ville having topped them 11-4 in large part due to two big rallies that tore up the Warriors’ pitching plans.
Jake Wheeler never recorded an out as the first six Bees batters reached base and four of them scored, three on Jeb Farneth’s bases-clearing double.
Liverpool did cut it to 4-3 in the top of the third on Hazelmyer’s RBI single and pinch-hitter Aaron Sisto’s two-run double, but B’ville answered with five runs in the bottom of the third, all with two outs, and never got caught.
