Tall task ahead for pitchers in state semis
6-footers Williamson, Potock likely to square off with state final bid on line
He’s a towering presence on the pitcher’s mound. At 6-foot-2, North Penn’s Kellen Williamson will usually be the taller of the two starters. However this is June baseball. Both teams at this point have 20 wins under their belt, both teams are one win away from the PIAA Class AAAA title games, and both teams have a tall right hander in their arsenal.
There is a chance 6-foot-5 Jake Potock pitches for Shaler. The District 7-third seed knocked off their own District 7 champion Central Catholic behind the West Virginia recruit’s performance in the opening round of the state final.
In the 3-1 win over a team that had already beaten them three times, Potock fanned 11 and kept his team alive for another day. Williamson pitched four innings in the first game of the PIAA play and helped his team take a 5-0 win over Olney Charter.
While the expectations at 4 p.m. in Scotland on the Greene Township Park Field will be a showdown of the two sixfooters, Knights coach Kevin Manero and Titans coach Brian Junker are not going to be afraid to pull out all the stops.
Any sign of struggle and the
two teams will get into their bullpens. They are looking to reach Penn State on Friday against either Parkland or Wyoming Valley West (District 11 and District 2 champs respectively). It means have a short lease and show confidence in pitchers such as Colin Healey and Paul Haynie on the Knights side and Sam Ireland for the Titans or even Gavin Cannon who started and threw five innings in the 8-5 win over State College in the quarterfinals.
Either way teams should probably go in expecting a low-scoring game and adjust i n the bats come alive after the schools finally wake up from their two and three hour bus trips. It may take only one clutch hit to win a game and reach the state final.
The Knights will have to hope senior and La- Salle recruit Jared Melone steps to the plate with a chance to bring a runner around. The District 1 runner-ups have been at their best when Mike Christy and Alex Peterson have gotten on base before Melone has come to plate. He has been nearly impossible to get out throughout the postseason, but all year long for that matter.
The Titans are similar to the Knights, not only with experience, but their fearless and aggressive approach at the plate. Outfielder Noah Hernandez and Andrew Mueller hit in the middle of the order, but like Knights and their three-hole hitter Mason Nadeau, they are not afraid to lay down a bunt at any time with anybody.
Even 20-wins are bound to make a mistake or two under the pressure of the state semifinals. Maybe a mistake can be brushed off, but two could be too many.