HS Baseball: Dawgs strike early, Eagles surge late to set up league final
Marian's Noah Bauder (right) stands at his third base defensive position, while Blue Mountain's Brady Strause (left) leads off third base (Photo by Eli Doyle).
PINE GROVE — Tri-Valley struck early and never eased up, while Blue Mountain followed with an offensive avalanche to send both Division I powers to the championship stage.
The Dawgs rolled past Williams Valley 14-5 in the opener of Monday’s Schuylkill League baseball semifinal doubleheader at Stump Stadium, with the Eagles following with a 12-3 victory over Marian in the twinbill nightcap.
Blue Mountain (18-4) will take on Tri-Valley (17-4) for the crown at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Pine Grove’s Stump Stadium, weather permitting. Thursday is the tentative rain date.
In Game 2, Sonny Amato and Evan Setlock delivered in every big moment, and Blue Mountain’s lineup followed suit late in the game.
Amato went 4-for-5 with four RBIs and Setlock went 3-for-4 with a pair of runs knocked in as the Eagles took control with a seven-run sixth inning.
“The bottom of the order came through again,” Blue Mountain manager Jarrod Kramer said. “The top and middle of the order really produced. We didn’t have a run till the fourth inning, so it took a little longer, but they didn’t panic. These guys don’t press; they have confidence in themselves and in what they can do. Hitting is contagious and now we have to keep it going into Wednesday.”
Marian (16-4) struck first with two runs in the opening inning, getting an RBI single from Rocco Griguoli and a run-scoring groundout from Brayden Grant to grab early momentum.
Blue Mountain answered gradually, finally breaking through in the fifth to tie the game before turning the contest on its head in the sixth. That’s where the Eagles took control.
Blue Mountain erupted for seven runs on seven hits in the sixth inning, with Aiden Finn delivering a two-run single and Amato adding a key RBI knock as part of the surge. Setlock and Brady Strause also contributed in the frame as the Eagles flipped a tight game into a comfortable lead.
On the mound, Riley Sebastian was sharp after a shaky first inning, striking out 11 over six innings while allowing just four hits. He worked around early trouble and settled in, highlighted by an immaculate inning in the second where he struck out the side on nine pitches.
Ryan Clemas handled the final inning to close things out.
Blue Mountain piled up 13 hits in the win, with Amato leading the charge and Setlock, Strause and Sebastian each adding multiple hits. Finn scored three runs and swiped two bases as the Eagles stayed aggressive on the basepaths.
Marian managed just four hits, with Griguoli collecting two, and couldn’t generate sustained offense after the first inning as Blue Mountain’s pitching and defense took control.
Before the game, the Colts were presented with the Schuylkill League Division II championship trophy.
Wednesday’s final will be the third meeting of the season between Blue Mountain and Tri-Valley, with the Dawgs sweeping both Schuylkill League Division I contests.
“The first couple times we played (Tri-Valley) we were kind of sloppy defensively,” Kramer said. “We compounded that with some walks and hit by pitches. If we could play a clean game defensively and throw strikes, it’s hard to beat a team three times.”
Game Summary
Schuylkill League Semifinals
At Stump Stadium
BLUE MOUNTAIN (12) — Sebastian p 4 2 2 1, Bensinger 1b 0 0 0 0, Finn lf 4 3 1 2, Kirby 3b 4 0 0 1, Strause 2b 4 2 2 1, Amato c 5 1 4 4, Russo rf 4 0 0 0, Setlock ss 4 1 3 2, Hoover cf 4 1 0 0, Clemas 1b-p 0 0 0 0, Blehm dh 3 1 1 0, Huben ph 0 1 0 0. Totals 36 12 13 11.
MARIAN (3) — Quinn-Gutsie cf 3 0 0 0, Marsch ph 1 0 0 0, Bauder 3b-p 2 1 0 0, Bednarek p-ss 2 1 0 0, Labenburg c 0 0 0 0, Reaman c 0 0 0 0, Griguoli dh 3 0 2 1, Jordan 1b 1 0 0 0, Ashfield ph 1 0 0 0, Grant 2b 3 0 1 2, Lemus ss-3b 1 0 0 0, Diaz rf 1 0 0 0, Grier rf-p 1 0 0 0, Derr ph 1 0 0 0, Knock 3b 0 0 0 0, Defrancisco lf 2 0 0 0, Cannon ph 1 0 0 0. Totals 23 3 4 3.
| Teams | 123 | 456 | 7 | — | Runs |
| BM (18-4) | 000 | 117 | 3 | — | 12 |
| Mar (16-4) | 200 | 001 | 0 | — | 3 |
E — Blue Mountain 1, Marian 5
DP — Blue Mountain 1, Marian 0
LOB — Blue Mountain 8, Marian 5
2B — Setlock, Amato
SB — Finn 2, Strause, Sebastian, Amato
CS — Knock
SAC — Russo
Blue Mountain
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Sebastian W (5-0) | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
| Clemas | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Marian
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Bednarek L (5-1) | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Grier | 1 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 1 |
| Bauder | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
WP — Sebastian 2, Bednarek. PB — Labenburg. T — 2:13.
Umpires: Home — Boyer. 1B — Barndt. 2B — B. Onushco. 3B — Gerald Misstishin.
Tri-Valley 14, Williams Valley 5
PINE GROVE — Tri-Valley wasted no time delivering the decisive blow, erupting early for eight runs in the first inning and never giving Williams Valley a chance to recover.
The Dawgs first-inning surge set the tone. Peyton Schley added a two-run single, and Jaxon Bruso and Riley Kaslavage each drove in runs as the Dawgs sent waves of hitters to the plate and built an 8-0 cushion before the Vikings could settle in. Owen Miller ripped a three-run triple in his second at-bat in the first, and Jason Stewart followed with a run-scoring triple of his own.
The offense didn’t slow down there.
Tri-Valley tacked on another run in the second on a sacrifice fly from Schley, then put the game out of reach in the sixth with a five-run frame. Stewart delivered a two-run single, Gavin Klock added an RBI double, and Schley drove in another run with his second sacrifice fly of the game.
Schley earned the win on the mound, working five strong innings while allowing just two hits and one run, striking out four. Daxton Maurer handled the final two innings in relief.
Behind them, the Dawgs were aggressive on the bases, with Miller and Stewart each swiping multiple bags as part of an eight-steal effort.
Miller finished with three runs scored and three RBIs, while Stewart and Klock each collected multiple hits. Schley drove in four runs to pace the lineup as Tri-Valley produced throughout the order.
Williams Valley (14-8) battled back late, scoring four runs in the sixth, with Mason Bowser driving in two and Cam Berger adding an RBI. Fletcher Thompson also knocked in a run for the Vikings, who finished with five hits but couldn’t overcome the early deficit.
Before the game, the Dawgs were presented with the Schuylkill League Division I trophy.
Game Summary
Schuylkill League Semifinals
At Stump Stadium
WILLIAMS VALLEY (5) — Hubler cf-p 3 0 0 0, Thompson c 4 0 1 1, Witmer ss 4 0 0 0, Rautzahn 2b-p 4 1 1 0, Deiter lf 2 1 0 0, Trawitz 1b 2 1 1 0, Green rf 2 0 0 0, Mihalick 3b 0 1 0 1, Bowser p-cf-rf 3 0 1 2, Berger 3b-2b 2 1 1 1. Totals 26 5 5 5.
TRI-VALLEY (14) — Miller cf 3 3 1 3, Stewart ss 3 2 2 2, Doyle 1b-3b 4 0 0 0, Klock 2b 3 3 2 1, Schley p-1b 2 0 1 4, Leitzel cr 0 2 0 0, Bruso lf 4 1 1 1, Troutman c 0 0 0 0, Zettick dh 2 1 0 0, Kaslavage 3b 2 1 1 1, Maurer p 0 0 0 0, Scheib rf 2 0 0 0, Lesher pr 0 1 0 0. Totals 24 14 8 12.
| Teams | 123 | 456 | 7 | — | Runs |
| WV (14-8) | 000 | 014 | 0 | — | 5 |
| TV (17-4) | 810 | 005 | x | — | 14 |
E — Williams Valley 0, Tri- Valley 1
DP — Williams Valley 0, Tri- Valley 1
LOB — Williams Valley 5, Tri- Valley 1
2B — Klock 2
3B — Miller, Stewart
SB — Miller 3, Stewart 2, Lesher, Leitzel, Bruso
SF — Schley 2
Williams Valley
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Bowser L (1-1) | 0.1 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| Hubler | 2.2 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Rautzahn | 2.1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| Green | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Tri-Valley
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
| Schley W (7-0) | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Maurer | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
