HS Baseball: Blue Mountain, Williams Valley advance to Schuylkill League semifinal round
Blue Mountain's Frankie Russo (left) throws the ball toward the pitcher Evan Setlock (right) during a Schuylkill League Division I clash with Pottsville (Photo by Eli Doyle).
PINE GROVE — Josh Hoover and Aiden Finn sparked a relentless Blue Mountain offense that kept answering after every punch.
Williams Valley took control early in Game 2 and rode patience at the plate and timely defense.
The Eagles and Vikings advanced to Monday’s Schuylkill League baseball semifinals with quarterfinal victories Sunday night at Pine Grove’s Stump Stadium. In Game 1, Blue Mountain outlasted Schuylkill Haven 9-5. In Game 2, Williams Valley knocked off Pottsville 6-3.
In Monday’s semifinals, Williams Valley (14-7) will face Division I champion Tri-Valley (16-4) in the opener at 4:30 p.m. Blue Mountain (17-4) will take on Division II champion Marian (16-3) in the nightcap at 7 p.m.
Hoover and Finn were the leaders of Blue Mountain’s 15-hit attack as the Eagles surged late to put away Schuylkill Haven.
“That was big,” Blue Mountain coach Jarrod Kramer said of Hoover and Finn. “Hoover was struggling a few weeks ago, but he made some adjustments and taking them into the games. He had some really good at-bats today. Finn’s been doing it all year. We just want to hit the ball hard and that’s what we did. I’m really proud of all of these guys for getting us to tomorrow.”
The Eagles wasted little time getting started, jumping ahead with two runs in the first inning when Brady Strause lined a single to bring home a pair. Blue Mountain added on in the second and third innings, with Finn collecting hits in both frames and Evan Setlock delivering an RBI single to build a 4-0 cushion.
Schuylkill Haven didn’t go quietly.
The Hurricanes chipped away before erupting in the fourth, taking advantage of traffic on the bases as Alan Evans ripped a bases-clearing double and later scored to give Haven a 5-4 lead. Evans finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs, while Chase Yoder added two hits and drove in two runs as the Hurricanes (12-9) briefly seized control.
Blue Mountain answered immediately in the bottom half.
Sonny Amato delivered a clutch double to even the score, setting the stage for a decisive fifth inning. Hoover came through with an RBI single, Andy Blehm lifted a sacrifice fly, and Cohen Kirby capped the rally with a two-run double to push the Eagles back in front 9-5.
From there, the Eagles leaned on their pitching.
Setlock worked six innings to earn the win, striking out six while navigating five runs on five hits. Ryan Clemas took over in the seventh and shut the door, retiring the side to secure the victory.
“He competed,” Kramer said of Setlock. “In the middle innings he kind of lost it a little bit, but to his credit he competed. He didn’t hang his head when they scored runs. When I went to talk to him in the sixth, I could tell he wanted to finish the job.”
Finn led the charge with a perfect 4-for-4 day at the plate, while Hoover added multiple hits and a key RBI. Amato, Setlock and Kirby also contributed multi-hit efforts as Blue Mountain’s lineup produced from top to bottom. The Eagles also stayed aggressive on the bases, swiping several bags to keep pressure on Haven’s defense throughout the afternoon.
Schuylkill Haven finished with five hits, with Evans and Yoder accounting for all of the team’s RBIs. Despite the fourth-inning surge, the Hurricanes couldn’t match Blue Mountain’s sustained offense over the final innings.
“We have got to keep the offense going,” Kramer said. “We’ve got to keep getting contributions in all aspect of the game offensively. We know Marian is a decent team so it should be fun. You always want the other team’s best, and they’re going to get one of our best. These are the games you want to be in. This is what you work all year to get towards, so it should be fun.”
Game Summary
Schuylkill League Quarterfinals
At Stump Stadium
SCHUYLKILL HAVEN (5) — Evans p-ss 4 1 3 3, Gerber cf 2 1 0 0, Yoder ss-p 4 0 2 2, Hinnershitz 3b 4 0 0 0, Maley 2b 2 1 0 0, Terefencko rf 3 0 0 0, Bayer pr 0 0 0 0, Wehr lf 0 0 0 0, Houck dh 2 1 0 0, Diehl c 3 0 0 0, Trostle 1b 1 1 0 0. Totals 25 5 5 5.
BLUE MOUNTAIN (9) — Sebastian c 2 2 0 0, Finn lf 4 2 4 1, Kirby ss-3b 3 0 2 2, Strause 2b 3 1 1 2, Amato rf 4 1 2 1, Russo 3b 3 0 0 0, Bensinger 1b 0 0 0 0, Setlock p-ss 3 0 2 1, Pritiskutch cr 0 1 0 0, Hoover cf 4 2 3 1, Clemas 1b-p 0 0 0 0, Blehm dh 3 0 0 1. Totals 27 9 15 9.
| Teams | 123 | 456 | 7 | — | Runs |
| SH (12-9) | 002 | 300 | 0 | — | 5 |
| BM (17-4) | 211 | 140 | x | — | 9 |
E — Schuylkill Haven 0, Blue Mountain 1
LOB — Schuylkill Haven 5, Blue Mountain 8
2B — Yoder 2, Evans, Amato, Setlock, Kirby
SB — Strause, Finn, Amato, Setlock
CS — Amato
SAC — Gerber, Russo
SF — Blehm
Schuylkill Haven
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Evans L (6-3) | 4.2 | 12 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 1 |
| Yoder | 1.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Blue Mountain
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Setlock W (6-2) | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| Clemas | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
WP — Evans, Yoder 2, Clemas. PB — Diehl. T — 2:34.
Umpires: Home — Erie. 1B — Dean. 2B — Phillips. 3B — Kostishak.
Williams Valley 6, Pottsville 3
PINE GROVE — The Vikings capitalized on walks and early opportunities, defeating Pottsville in a Schuylkill League quarterfinal contest.
“Anytime you can jump out in front of another team you put yourself in a better spot,” Williams Valley coach Steve Barner said. “That allowed Cayden (Witmer) to kind of settle into the game right away.”
Williams Valley set the tone in the first inning, taking advantage of free passes and an error before Cayden Witmer delivered an RBI double. The Vikings added another run in the second on Fletcher Thompson’s RBI single, then broke things open in the third when Cam Berger lined a two-run double as part of a three-run inning that pushed the lead to 6-1.
Walks proved costly for the Crimson Tide throughout, as Williams Valley worked nine free passes and consistently created pressure without needing a high hit total.
The Vikings finished with five hits but made them count, pairing them with aggressive baserunning and disciplined at-bats.
Defensively, Williams Valley came up with a momentum-building play in the fifth. John Rautzahn ranged deep into the hole on the right side, made a full-extension diving stop, then fired from his knees to Gavin Trawitz at first to rob Landon Trout of a hit and halt a potential rally.
“It was a total team effort,” Barner said. “Timely hits, the great plays on defense, solid pitching — it was a total team effort. When we can do that, we can play with anybody.”
Pottsville (13-8) pushed back late, scoring twice in the sixth behind an RBI double from Andrew Allen and continued pressure from the middle of the lineup, but couldn’t get any closer.
Trout led the Crimson Tide with two hits, while Allen drove in two runs and Christian Alvarez added a hit.
On the mound, Witmer worked 5.1 innings to earn the win, striking out seven while working through traffic, and Mason Bowser closed it out to record the save.
With the win, Williams Valley advances to the Schuylkill League semifinals, where it will face Division I champion Tri-Valley today at 4:30 p.m. back at Stump Stadium.
The Dawgs and Vikings met twice this season in non-league play with Tri-Valley sweeping the contests by scores of 12-2 and 10-1. They could meet again for a fourth time in the District 11 Class AA playoffs, where Tri-Valley is seeded No. 1 and Williams Valley is right now in fourth.
“This will be the third time playing Tri-Valley this year, and we hope there is a fourth time,” Barner said alluding to the District 11 playoffs. “The first two matchups didn’t go too well for us, but if we could avoid shooting ourselves in the foot in the first inning — cause that’s what we’ve done the last two times — have a clean first inning or two, we can play with anybody.”
Game Summary
Schuylkill League Quarterfinals
At Stump Stadium
POTTSVILLE (3) — Trout rf-2b-lf 4 0 2 0, Eroh cf-rf 2 0 0 0, D. Rynard p-cf 2 0 0 0, Clews 3b 4 1 1 0, Hess 2b-p 1 1 0 0, Ciavarella c 3 0 0 0, Allen ss 3 0 1 2, Welsh lf 0 0 0 0, Markus 2b 0 0 0 0, N. Rynard dh 3 0 0 0, Alvarez 1b 3 1 1 0. Totals 25 3 5 3.
WILLIAMS VALLEY (6) — Hubler cf 1 2 0 0, Thompson c 4 1 1 2, Witmer p-ss 2 0 1 1, Rautzahn 2b 3 0 1 0, Deiter lf 3 0 0 0, Trawitz 1b 2 1 0 0, Green 3b-rf 2 1 0 0, Bowser rf-p 1 1 0 0, Schaeffer ph 1 0 0 0, Berger ss-3b 3 0 1 3. Totals 19 6 4 6.
| Teams | 123 | 456 | 7 | — | Runs |
| Po (13-8) | 001 | 005 | 0 | — | 3 |
| WV (14-7) | 213 | 000 | x | — | 6 |
E — Pottsville 1, Williams Valley 0
DP — Pottsville 1, Williams Valley 1
LOB — Pottsville 7, Williams Valley 8
2B — Trout, Allen, Berger, Rautzahn
SB — Hubler 2, Thompson 2, Deiter, Bowser
SF — D. Rynard
Pottsville
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| D. Rynard L (5-2) | 2.1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 3 |
| Hess | 3.2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
Williams Valley
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Witmer W (6-1) | 5.1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| Bowser S (2) | 1.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
