H.S. Baseball: North Collins takes hold of league
North Collins has won seven of its last eight games and put an early stranglehold on the Cattaraugus D division crown with an 11-3 victory over visiting West Valley. The Eagles currently sit at 7-4 overall and 4-0 in league play with four more Cattaraugus D games left, including a home game on Friday against defending league champion Ellicottville.
Outstanding pitching has been the catalyst of the Eagles’ run, according to head coach Paul Kellner. Joe Kasper, the team’s ace, was strong on the mound against West Valley, scattering four hits and walking only one batter in picking up his third straight win. Behind Kasper, Wyatt Hausner and Mike Minton have been equally as good and provided depth to the starting pitching.
Kellner said the bats have also come alive of late during the latest victory and in an 8-7 loss to Class A Pioneer on April 30 and 16-2 win over Class B Cleveland Hill on May 1. North Collins’ turnaround after an 0-3 start to the season was most evident against Cleveland Hill, a team it lost to 17-4 back on April 8.
“We’ve made some progress and really found ourselves,” Kellner told The Sun. “Early on, there was no consistency in our lineup. We’re senior-laden, return five starters from last year and have a lot of kids who played summer ball, but it’s also been the underclassmen who have given us solid production.”
Against West Valley, North Collins was forced to come-from-behind after some sloppy play pitted the Eagles in a 3-1 hole. However, an explosive fifth inning, in which North Collins plated nine runs, put the finishing touches on West Valley. The Eagles collected six hits in the inning. Leading the offense were Kasper, who finished the game with two hits and a pair of RBIs, and John LoBianco, who collected two hits, two RBIs and scored three times.
In the fifth inning, Dan Kehr came up with a pinch-hit two-RBI single to give North Collins the lead for good. LoBianco added his two RBIs in that inning, while Troy Gier, Ethan Cerne and Kasper also posted an RBI in the fifth.
Against Pioneer, the Eagles tied the score at seven apiece with a four-run bottom of the sixth before allowing the winning run to cross the plate in the seventh. Minton threw five innings and Cerne and Kasper, one each, in combining to hold Pioneer to a respectable five earned runs, but the Eagles’ usually-reliable defense posted six errors.
The comeback in the sixth began with a leadoff hit by Troy Gier, followed by a walk to LoBianco and a single by Ron Dole. Ryan Gates drove in Gier with a fielder’s choice and then Cory Bzibziak laced a two-run triple to put the Eagles within one. A Hausner sacrifice fly scored Bzibziak to tie the game. The Eagles scored once in the first on a Cerne RBI-single, scoring Brandon Judson, who started the rally with a single. North Collins scored two more in the fourth thanks to RBI singles from Minton and Tim Youngman.
St. Francis back to winning ways
St. Francis is rolling once again. The Red Raiders have won four straight games, including avenging their only league loss with a 4-3 nine-inning win at St. Mary’s on May 2, to improve to 16-4 overall and take over first place in the Monsignor Martin Association with an 8-1 mark. In the latest New York State sportswriter’s poll, Saint Francis was ranked ninth among Class AA schools. Over the past week, St. Francis has also beaten Nichols 11-0 on May 5 and St. Joe’s 5-2 on May 1.
After throwing seven solid innings but getting a no decision against St. Mary’s, senior Drew Pijacki still proved to be the difference as he scored the winning run in the top of the ninth when he reached base on a single and eventually scored when Joe Pantano walked with the bases loaded. The Red Raiders came from 2-0 back to score a pair of runs in the top of the sixth then took the lead in the seventh before a single run from St. Mary’s sent the game into extra innings. Senior catcher Cory Gotowka drove home Pantano and Nick Jasinski with two outs in the sixth. St. Francis tallied the go-ahead run in the top of the seventh when Jon VanRemmen knocked in Nolan Skipper who had singled to lead off the inning and moved over to second base on a bunt from Ted DiRienzo. VanRemmen threw the final two innings to pick up the win in relief.
Against St. Joe’s, Jasinski picked up the win and added two hits and two RBIs. Third baseman Tyler Matecki was stellar defensively and also scored and drove in a run. Pijacki took over for Jasinki in the fifth and shut the Marauders down to pick up the save. VanRemmen chipped in offensively with two stolen bases and two runs scored. Against Nichols, Pantano and Steve Mariglia combined on a two-hit shutout, while DiRienzo led St. Francis offensively with three hits, two runs scored and three RBIs.
Frontier wins extra-inning game
Frontier’s up-and-down season continued with a wild 13-11 win in extra innings over Williamsville North on May 5 in a Erie County Interscholastic Conference I contest. The Falcons, who improved to 4-3 in league play, are now also 4-3 over the past seven games.
Frontier also defeated Lancaster 8-3 on April 30, Fredonia 6-3 in nine innings on April 26 and West Seneca West 8-0 on April 22, while losing to Orchard Park 12-6 on May 1, Jamestown 4-3 on April 25 and Clarence 12-2 on April 21.
Against Lancaster, Frontier played a solid game in all areas, including receiving a strong effort on the mound from Grant Wrap, who threw six-plus innings allowing just one earned run and three hits. Offensively, Ryan Balbierz finished with three hits and scored three runs, Jason Norsen added two hits, two runs and three RBIs and Mike DiRosa contributed two hits and a pair of RBIs. Wrap also helped his own cause knocking in two RBIs.
In an extra inning win over Fredonia, Mike DiRosa came in the game in relief and earned the win. The offense was led by the two doubles and two runs scored from Christian Shaul and two RBIs each from Balbierz and Brian Zimmerman. Evan Lease also pitched four innings of three-hit ball while striking out two. In a pitcher’s duel against Jamestown, Balbierz went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs, striking out four and walking just one. Brian Fennell finished with three hits and DiRosa, two, each with a double, while Mike Grundtisch added a double and two RBIs.
Against West Seneca West, Garrett Cortright threw six shutout innings allowing just one hit while striking out three. Balbierz pitched in the seventh without allowing a hit to end the game, while offensively, finished with four hits, including a triple, and scored two runs. Wrap and Zimmerman each finished with two hits and a pair of RBIs. Fennell recorded two hits and scored two runs and Norsen added two hits. In the game prior on April 21, Wrap had 2 RBIs.
Eden at 6-2 in ECIC IV
Eden lost two close league games last week but rebounded with a key 5-3 win over East Aurora in ECIC IV action on May 5. Before that, the Raiders lost to ECIC IV foes Springville 3-1 on April 30, then JFK 10-9 two days later after winning their first five league games. Eden is now 7-4 overall.
In a rematch with East Aurora after the Raiders won the first game between the two in the bottom of the seventh two weeks ago, Eden’s Eric Bermingham went 3 for 4 on the day with 2 RBIs and Jarrett Carroll added three hits. Eddie Sarcione also contributed a pair of hits and Steve Klein, an RBI double, in the win. Kiernan Harris pitched a complete game with 10 strikeouts, and the Raiders’ defense behind him was solid, picking up inning ending double plays in the first and fourth. Justin Lilga also scored twice for Eden.
“I was pleased that the team stepped up their defensive play after our last two games,” Eden head coach Eric Cooper said. “Offensively, we picked up the runs we needed, and Harris was outstanding on the mound.”
On May 2, Eden staked JFK to a seven run lead after two innings but fought its way back. The Raiders scored four runs in the third inning and five in the sixth. However, the errors committed early in the game were insurmountable. Lilga notched two hits in the game and scored twice, as did Bermingham, who hit a two-run double. Brandon Knight also added a two-RBI double and Steve Klein hit a two-run triple. Alex Shea added an RBI in the loss. Against Springville, the Raiders committed seven errors and could not capitalize on chances throughout the game.
Around the Diamonds
Hamburg lost for the second time this season to Iroquois, damaging its hopes for a possible regular season ECIC II title. The Bulldogs are still in second place in the league with a 5-2 mark. Before the loss to Iroquois, Hamburg had extended its winning streak to four games after upending Williamsville South 7-1 on May 2 and Sweet Home 10-2 on April 30. Derek Zemla earned the win and struck out seven, while Ryan Brunner recorded two RBIs against Williamsville South and Matt Ross led Hamburg against Sweet Home with two hits and a pair of RBIs.
After stringing together three straight ECIC II wins, Lake Shore has lost its last two, 2-1 to West Seneca East in eight innings on May 5 and 11-3 to Iroquois three days earlier. In a 12-3 victory over Williamsville South in the game before on April 30, Lake Shore’s Jason Radwan finished with three RBIs and Matt Boye added two hits. Lake Shore (3-3 ECIC II) will travel to play against league rival Hamburg in a make-up game on May 9.
St. Francis junior varsity defeated St. Joe’s 14-1 on April 26 as freshman pitchers Brian Barry and Bob Harrington combined on a one hitter. Barry also added two hits, including a triple. A day before, the Red Raiders lost a hard fought contest to Cardinal O’ Hara 4-3 to fall to a 1-5 mark. St. Francis relief pitcher A.J. Direnzo came in during the second inning and didn’t give up any runs, giving the Red Raiders a chance to catch up. The Red Raiders’ lone win was against St. Joe’s II 11-7 on April 14. Dylan Feldt and Keegan Flynn each recorded three hits. Feldt’s triple in the bottom of the sixth put the Red Raiders ahead to stay.
North Collins junior varsity played one of its best games of the season on April 30, despite losing to Class A Pioneer 10-7 and falling to 4-4. The young Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead behind the dominant pitching of Mitch Williams, who struck out five through five innings. Stevie Rae Foit collected four hits, including a triple and double, in the loss.
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