Local squads take positives from regional tournament experience
BOYERTOWN » Berks County League representatives Norchester and Boyertown and Schuylkill-Berks League teams Muhlenberg and Post 625 certainly had their work cut out for them in the Pennsylvania American Legion Baseball Region 2 Tournament at Bear Stadium that concluded on July 23. Among the eight teams in the field were undefeated South Parkland and Souderton, which featured the bulk of the players from the PIAA Class 6A championship team.
Those two powerful squads, who eventually made it to the championship game, proved to be the class of the tournament with South Parkland taking a 3-0 win and earning a berth in the state tournament.
But Berks County champion Norchester played well while finishing third and Boyertown certainly had some encouraging moments after suffering a disappointing loss in the opening round.
“We came out and competed,” said Norchester manager Rick Harrison. “In the five-day tournament, we used nine pitchers and every player had significant playing time. All I’m going to do is look at the tournament as a positive outlook. I’m proud of the guys.”
“I think there was a lot of parity with five or six teams,” said Boyertown manager Rick Moatz. “I consider us right on the cusp of that. South Parkland and Souderton are very good hitting teams. On top of that, they have excellent top pitchers and depth besides. That’s a formula for success in a tournament.”
Berks County champion Norchester (30-8) defeated Northampton County champion the Wanderers 7-3 in nine innings in the opening round last Friday. The Bulldogs allowed a tying run in the bottom of the seventh inning, but Jordan Siket singled home the go-ahead run with two out in the ninth, Ryan Sayers knocked in two with a single and Jack Rinehimer singled in another.
Then Sam Morris, the Berks County MVP, threw a four-hitter with nine strikeouts in a 3-0 win over BuxMont regular season and playoff winner Souderton, sending Norchester into the winners’ bracket final against 22-0 South Parkland, the Lehigh Valley champion.
The Bulldogs led by a run heading into the bottom of the seventh as Ryan Glenn and Brad Pryor combined to hold the Trojans to four hits and an unearned run. But South Parkland scored two for a 3-2 win with the help of a leadoff hit batter and an outfield error. Alex Oliver lofted a game-winning sacrifice fly to right with the bases loaded and one out.
Norchester bounced back with a 7-1 win in eight innings against the Wanderers after again allowing a tying run in the bottom of the seventh. Jake Iyoob lined a two-run double to break the tie, Siket and Sayers singled home runs and Rinehimer finished the big inning with a two-run single. Jack Schnell threw six innings in relief for the win in a game that had been suspended due to rain the day before.
Then Norchester couldn’t take advantage of its scoring opportunities on Tuesday in a season-ending 4-1 loss to Souderton.The Bulldogs stranded 10 runners, including three in the fifth after loading the bases with one out and then having the next two batters strike out against Jake Horton.
Norchester still had a chance in the top of the seventh after a leadoff walk to Iyoob and a one-out single by Norris, but a pop to first and a strikeout ended the game.
“I felt we were in the game until the very end,” said Harrison. “I felt we were going to pull it out.”
The Bulldogs had also made it to the final four teams in 2016 and 2017.
“It’s pretty devastating,” said 19-year-old pitcher Dan Stofko, who started the
opening game. “So close, lost again. We can say we did everything we could. I think the talent was what we expected it to be. I think this is the best (regional) we’ve played in.”
But Stofko can look back at a lot of good things in his Legion career, including three Berks County championships.
“Just the memories with the guys,” he said. “A lot of other players go to the beach and cookouts. I think about baseball and playing with the guys. I wish I could do this every summer.”
“We seriously just came together as a team,” said Siket, who was the starting catcher and pitched the first five innings in the final game. “We won as a team every single game. Everyone did their job and it worked out for us. I’m not going to say we surprised people. We gave people a show this season. That’s for sure.”
Harrison also saw a lot of bright spots during the tournament and the season.
“We have nothing to hang our heads about,” he said. “Glenn pitched in game three with a bad arm. Jordan gave us five after catching four games. We had some other ailments. It just speaks volumes for the kids. We have guys like Stofko who have won three Berks championships in four years. Others have won two.
“We’ve been together for a few months and played 38 games. The commitment and dedication level is what it’s all about for me. That’s why our players are successful in college baseball, their careers and life in general. I’m very proud of them and proud to see their progress as players and young men. The program certainly set the bar high for baseball in our area.”
Host Boyertown’s tournament did not begin as hoped with a 5-3 loss to Fleetwood Post 625 after the Bears scored two in the bottom of the third to take a 3-2 lead.
“Friday night’s game was a disappointment,” said Moatz. “We pretty much played ourselves out of that game. Defensively, we didn’t make the plays we should have made. We walked six out of seven leadoff hitters in an inning.”
The win over the hosts was the highlight for Post 625 with pitcher Adam Schultz racking up 10 strikeouts.
The Wildcats have eventual champion South Parkland a run for its money on Day 2 but surrended two run in the top of the seventh in a 5-4 defeat.
Post 625 carried a 4-3 lead into the final inning, but a leadoff walk, a single and a pair of errors led to two runs. The winning run scored with two outs.
The Wildcats had taken the lead with three runs in the fifth, the big blow a three-run double by Tom Hegedus. Josh Rehr and Timothy Hornbuckle each went 2-for-3 in the game.
Post 625 couldn’t recover from the heartbreaker a day later, exiting the tournament against Wanderers from Bethlehem in a 5-1 loss. The Wildcats completed a 20-8-1 season. Final-year players included Nick Sager, Hegedus and Rehr.
Meanwhile, SchuylkillBerks tournament champion Muhlenberg went 0-2, a 10-0 defeat to Souderton being followed by a 3-0 loss to Wanderers on July 20.
The Bears (23-11) rebounded from the loss to Post 625 with a 6-3 win over Bux-Mont League runner-up Quakertown, which had handed Souderton its only two losses during the regular season. Jared Waldman, winner of the Berks Outstanding Pitcher Award, threw a six-hitter with no walks and Pat Wieand knocked a two-run double to give Boyertown the lead during a five-run fifth.
Then Boyertown ran into Souderton and ace pitcher Jordan Morales, who struck out 14 in a 4-1 elimination of the Bears.
“I’m extremely proud of the way the kids played in that game,” said Moatz. “We had some steals, put some guys in scoring position, just couldn’t push them through. Nolan Kline pitched a whale of a game against them. We just got beat that day.”
Moatz hopes that the Bears, who will host the state tournament in 2020 in his last season as manager, learned from the experience.
“Hopefully, it’s a bright thing,” he added. “I hope the guys coming back are able to learn from the things we didn’t do too well.”
The Bears’ seven outgoing players include Davis, Waldman, Caleb Harrison, AJ Kline, Dustin Graber, William McDevitt and Sean Sutterby.
South Parkland, which won its second title in three years, opened play in the state tournament in DuBois on July 27 against Region 3 champion Bristol.