WA’s Pass prevails in pitchers’ duel

Indians score run in first inning, make it stand up in win against Fox Chapel

Anthony Pass wasn’t the first pitching option for West Allegheny going into the season — heck, he wasn’t even the second option.

On Tuesday night against Fox Chapel, though, Pass was the right option.

The Indians have two of the WPIAL’s most talented pitchers on their roster in seniors Gavin Miller (Auburn recruit) and Devin Zirwas (VCU), but both players are injured and unavailable for the playoffs. Their absence has thrust Pass into the role of No. 1 starter — and he sure looked the part Tuesday night.

Pass pitched a completegame shutout while allowing only three hits and no walks and striking out 10 for the Indians (16-4) in a 1-0 win vs. the Foxes (10-10) in a WPIAL Class 5A first-round matchup at Burkett Park in Robinson.

The senior right-hander outdueled Fox Chapel’s Jake Patterson, who allowed one run on two hits with nine strikeouts and four walks in six innings of work.

“We were hopeful to pitch like that,” said West Allegheny coach Bryan Cornell. “We knew Anthony was going to give us a good outing, and we played good defense behind him.

“But we’ve got to be better on the basepaths and we’ve got to hit the ball.”

Senior Colin Marinpetro tripled with two outs in the bottom of the first inning, then came home to score on a wild pitch to give the Indians a 1-0 lead they would not relinquish.

Nate Nolan singled in the following at-bat, and West Allegheny did not record a hit after the first inning — but Pass made the 1-0 lead hold up.

“Honestly, there’s no pressure for me,” Pass said. “It’s been the same thing all year, pressure-filled games all year long. I’m accustomed to it. We play in a good section, we play against good teams all year.

“I felt the same all game, up until the end. Just stayed even-keeled and kept my cool.”

For his part, Patterson did everything he could to keep the Foxes in the game, including striking his way out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the sixth inning to keep it a one-run game.

“There was no doubt in my mind that I wasn’t taking him out,” said Fox Chapel coach Jim Hastings. “We were going to live and die with him, and he came through again like he normally does.

“He’s a great kid, tremendous worker, and a great competitor.”

The Foxes had their best opportunity to get on the board in the top of the fifth, when Vincent Reiber laced a sharp single to left field with a runner on second and two outs. Benny DeMotte raced around third base looking to tie the score, but West Allegheny’s Austin Buzza fired a laser of a throw that onehopped into catcher Will Gooba’s glove just in front of home plate, beating DeMotte by several feet for the final out of the inning.

“I knew that I had to be ready to come up gunning,” Buzza said. “I’m just happy I could make that play and support [Pass]. He threw a heck of a game.”

WIth the nail-biting win, the Indians advanced to the Class 5A quarterfinals to take on Shaler, which defeated Plum, x-x, on Thursday.

West Allegheny has now won five games in a row, with only two more wins separating the Indians from a trip to the WPIAL title game.

“It’s a credit to the rest of the team and the program that we have. Kids just step up,” Cornell said.

“Anybody can beat anybody. That’s what I keep telling the guys.

“We can beat anyone in the WPIAL, in my opinion, and we can also lose to anyone in the WPIAL.”