Dragons’ PIAA trek still on track
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By John Hartsock
jhartsock@altoonamirror.com
MARTINSBURG -- Central's very talented baseball team had a trip to the PIAA Class 3A state championship game in its crosshairs last season before losing a heartbreaker to eventual champion Tyrone in the state semifinals.
The Scarlet Dragons are spending this spring doing the most they can to make up for last year's missed opportunity.
Senior left-hander Jonah Snowberger pitched five scoreless and hitless innings, and the Dragons' explosive lineup pounded out 11 hits in just five innings, en route to a 10-0 mercy-rule victory over Bald Eagle Area in a District 6 Class 3A semifinal game Tuesday at the Central High School baseball field.
By winning Tuesday, top-seeded Central improved to 22-0, clinched a berth in this year's state tournament, and also punched its ticket into this Saturday's 4 p.m. District 6 Class 3A championship game against Penns Valley at Altoona's Peoples Natural Gas Field.
Seventh-seeded Penns Valley advanced to the district championship game with a 3-2 victory over sixth-seeded Tyrone in Tuesday's other semifinal.
"Bald Eagle Area has a nice team - I'm glad that we were ready to play today,'' said Central coach A.J. Hoenstine, whose team broke out to a 5-0 lead after one inning. "Getting to the district championship game is big, but winning this one today gets us into the state tournament, where anything can happen.''
The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Snowberger, who will play college baseball on the Division II level at Millersville University next year, was almost flawless in striking out eight batters and walking just two in five innings.
"My fastball was definitely moving as well as it ever has, and my offspeed stuff was there, too,'' Snowberger said. "When we got our early lead, I was able to feed off that momentum, for sure.''
Snowberger has been Central's mound ace for the past two seasons, and Hoenstine saluted Snowberger's work ethic.
"He and the rest of our program lost the season to COVID two years ago, and he has worked really hard all year around in the weight room and on the field to turn into the pitcher that he has become,'' Hoenstine said. "He has really worked hard in the offseason, and he is reaping the benefits of that.''
Sophomore catcher Hunter Smith knocked in the final two runs of the game with a fifth-inning double to bring the mercy rule into effect and clinch the victory for Central, which enjoyed a balanced offensive attack.
Junior shortstop Jeff Hoenstine collected three singles and scored three times, senior rightfielder Ty Helsel chipped in a pair of run-scoring singles, and sophomore third baseman Griff Snowberger stroked a two-run double to highlight Central's five-run first inning against BEA starting pitcher Wyatt Coakley.
LSU commit Paxton Kling started the first inning with a single, and moved to third on Jeff Hoenstine's single to right field. Jeff Hoenstine stole second, and Central's other senior Division I baseball commit, Radford-bound first baseman Devon Boyles, walked to load the bases with nobody out.
Smith walked to force in Kling with the first run of the inning, and Snowberger's double to left-center knocked home Jeff Hoenstine and Boyles, and moved Smith to third base.
Helsel's single to right field scored Smith from third, and moved Griff Snowberger to third, from where he scored on Jonah Snowberger's well-placed bunt to complete the rally.
"We had some real good at-bats in that first inning, and getting five runs there was huge,'' A.J. Hoenstine said.
Helsel, who also had an RBI single in Central's two-run second inning, also pointed out the fine offensive balance that Central has enjoyed.
"We're hitting well from 1 through 9 in our lineup,'' Helsel said. "Everybody is doing their job. When one guy gets going, we all get going. It's like a domino effect.''
Fifth-seeded BEA finished its season at 14-8.
"We had a fine season, but we know that Central is an outstanding team with outstanding athletes,'' BEA coach Jim Gardner said. "We knew they would present a difficult challenge for us.''
Central will now try to defend the district championship that it won last spring.
"We set a lot of goals as a team this year, and winning the district championship is one of them,'' A.J. Hoenstine said. "I'm just glad that we willhave the opportunity to play for it.''
BALD EAGLE AREA (0): Burns ss 200, Gavlock 2b 200, Vaughn rf 100, Heverly 1b 200, Serb lf-p 200, Snyder lf 000, Coakley p 200, Quick dh 000, Kresovich 3b 200, Koleno c 100, Nagle cr 000, Watkins cf 200. Totals - 16-0-0.
CENTRAL (10): Kling cf 422, Hoenstine ss 433, Boyles 1b 221, Smith c 111, Biesinger cr 010, G. Snowberger 3b 211, Helsel rf 202, J. Snowberger p 300, Gregg lf 301, Metzger 2b 200. Totals - 23-10-11.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Bald Eagle Area 000 00X X--0-0-1
Central 520 12X X--10-11-0
E--Kresovich. 2B--Smith, G. Snowberger. RBI--Smith 2, G. Snowberger 2, Helsel 2, J. Snowberger, Gregg. SAC--J. Snowberger. SB--Hoenstine, Kling. LOB--Central 9, Bald Eagle Area 3. HBP--Metzger by Serb.
PITCHING
Bald Eagle Area: Coakley (L) 1+IP, 5H, 7R, 6ER, 2BB, 0 SO; Serb 3+IP, 6H, 3R, 3ER, 4BB, 2SO.
Central: J. Snowberger (W) 5IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 2BB, 8 SO.
WP--Serb. PB--Koleno.
Records: Bald Eagle Area (14-8); Central (22-0).
Umpires: Matt Cursio (plate); Bill Wolf (1b); Steve Oakes (3b).
Time of game: 1:19.