PW & Wissahickon were winners in SOL baseball action Thursday. Check out the recaps.
SOL Liberty Division
WISSAHICKON 5, UPPER DUBLIN 4 (9 innings)
Some wins stand out above the rest.
Thursday’s was one of those wins. Trailing by as many as four – and three going into the seventh, the Trojans rallied for the come-from-behind road win.
“Today was a big moment for our program, and I couldn’t be prouder of our guys,” Wissahickon coach Andy Noga said. “We always preach resiliency and a never say die attitude, and our kids embraced that today.
“(Luke) Caron is a great pitcher, and he was really on today. He had our kids off balance and mixed his pitches well, and we knew we’d have to battle to get him off the bump.”
And battle the Trojans did, rallying with three runs in the top of the seventh to extend the game to extra innings and then winning it with a run in the top of the ninth.
In the ninth, Jack Weiss drew a leadoff walk, and the Cardinals had a pair on board after Nate Binkley lined a double to center field. An intentional walk to Nate Hammond loaded the bases. Weiss tagged up and scored the go-ahead run when Matt Press hit a fly ball to center field.
Hammond – who was superb in relief – allowed a one-out single to Eddie Stoffel in the bottom of the ninth, but Stoffel never advanced beyond first. The freshman reliever retired the next two batters he faced – the first on a fly ball to center and then put an exclamation point on the win with a strikeout for the game’s final out.
Hammond, a freshman, earned the win with six shutout innings in relief, scattering five hits, walking one and striking out three in stellar outing.
Caron, who reached his pitch count and was lifted after six, allowed three hits and two runs while fanning 12.
By the numbers: Wissahickon: Chase Neumeister (2-for-4, 1R), Nate Binkley (2-for-4, 2B, 3B, 2RBIs, 1R)
Nate Hammond (W) (6.0 IP, 5H, 0R, 1BB, 3K)
Upper Dublin: Eddie Stoffel (3-for-5, 1R), Noah Watson (2-for-4, 1RBI, 1R)
Luke Caron (6.0 IP, 3H, 2R, 2ER, 2BB, 12K)
Key inning: Top of seventh – Trailing 4-1, the Trojans rallied to knot the score with a gutsy comeback. Chase Neumeister legged out an infield single to open the inning, and with one out, Eugene Kwon was safe on an error, setting the stage for a booming two-run triple to left field by Nate Binkley. Binkley scored the tying run on a two-out error.
Wissahickon coach Andy Ngo:
--The game: “Our success in the seventh and eighth was made possible by all of the little things that make Wiss Baseball Wiss Baseball. Chase Neumeister hustling out of the box to put pressure on their defense to start the rally in the seventh, hitting behind runners, running the bases aggressively. I couldn’t have been more proud of our guys.
“Big time stuff out of our freshman Nate Hammond on the bump. Thomas Puerzer started the game for us and pitched great as he had to make a bunch of pressure pitches early and often. We don’t come back in that ball game if Thomas wasn’t able to keep that score where it was. Then Nate took the ball and took control of the game, throwing up zeros for us and continued keeping us in the game down the stretch. This series was a dogfight and winning the first series of the year over an incredibly strong program like Upper Dublin is great for our program, and we are looking to build on this early success going into next week versus Abington.”
Up next: Wissahickon will travel to Abington Monday for the first game of its three-game series. Upper Dublin will host Archbishop Carroll Saturday (12:30pm) in a non-league game.
Wissahickon 000 001 301 5-5-2
Upper Dublin 103 000 000 4-10-3
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 5, HATBORO-HORSHAM 4
The Colonials recognized the 50th anniversary if the program’s 1976 team in a pregame ceremony and then went out and notched a much-needed win. Thursday’s win came on the heels of dropping their first two games of the series, and this win was anything but easy as the Hatters refused to go down quietly.
“I don't think we can underestimate how important it was to get a win today,” PW coach Chris Manero said. “After a strong start in league play last week, we really dug ourselves into a hole over the last two days.
“We needed a strong outing on the mound today, and I can't say enough about Spencer Rosen and how he stepped up today. He gave us the start that we absolutely had to have.”
Hatboro-Horsham had the early momentum after Kenny Lutz hit the first pitch of the game for a solo home run to left field.
That 1-0 lead stood until the Colonials put a pair on the board in the bottom of the third when they staged a two-out rally. Cole Reilly singled, and Michael Bongard drew a five-pitch walk, setting the stage for a clutch Brody Stump two-run double to center field that gave PW a 2-1 lead.
The Colonials stretched that to 5-1 in the fifth and then withstood a late rally by the Hatters.
Spencer Rosen notched the win on the mound, and Nate Quirus closed it out.
By the numbers: Plymouth Whitemarsh: Brody Stump (2-for-3, 2B, 3RBIs, 1R), Mason Eagland (2-for-3, HR, 2RBIs, 1R), Cole Reilly (2-for-2, 2B, 2R)
Spencer Rosen (W) (5.2 IP, 5H, 4R, 4ER, 2BB, 1K), Nate Quirus (1.1 IP, 2H, 1BB, 2K)
Hatboro-Horsham: Kenny Lutz (3-for-4, 2B, HR, 1RBI, 2R), Ryan Remaily (1-for-3, 2B)
Chase Canney (6.0 IP, 6H, 5R, 5ER, 3BB, 8K)
Key inning: Bottom of fifth – Clinging to a 2-1 lead, the Colonials scored three runs to go on top 5-1 on their way to the one-run win. Cole Reilly doubled to center field to open the inning, and he moved up to third on Michael Bongard’s sacrifice bunt. Brody Stump following with an RBI single to left field, and that was followed by a two-run home run by Mason Eagland.
Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Chris Manero:
--Props: “We had some big hits from Brody Stump and Mason Eagland. Those are two guys that are crucial to our offense, and we definitely have more success when they produce.”
--A piece of history: “Today we held a pregame ceremony recognizing our 1976 team for the 50th anniversary of their season. It was a real nice day for our program. Fourteen guys from that team came back to PW today and our players got to see a glimpse into the history of their program.
“High school sports are special because they provide opportunities like these. We have a rich history at Plymouth Whitemarsh, and I hope that the players in our program today get to have events like this decades from now.”
Up next: Plymouth Whitemarsh will host North Pocono in a non-league game Saturday at 12 noon, and Hatboro-Horsham will host Quakertown Monday in the first game of its three-game series.
Hatboro-Horsham 100 003 0 4-7-0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 002 030 x 5-6-0
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