CENTRAL NEW YORK – Area high school baseball teams tried to squeeze in as many games as possible to enhance their records and get game experience in advance of this week’s Section III playoffs.
But persistent rain affected games on Monday through Wednesday, significantly decreasing the schedule and forcing some catch-up work later in the week.
One head-to-head match last Monday had Marcellus taking on Solvay and the Mustangs, improving to 6-11 on the season, doubled up the Bearcats to prevail 8-4.
Westhill had endured a fair share of struggles not typical of its program, but it was starting to round into winning form and, right at week’s end, got a valuable win against another local rival when, fueled by a big sixth inning, it beat Skaneateles 7-2.
Much of the game was a pitcher’s duel, Luke Pickett and Peter Stroman combining to contain the Lakers but a series of Skaneateles hurlers doing the same as Calvin Richards went 2 2/3 innings and Colton McDonald 2 1/3 innings.
Trailing 1-0, the Lakers scored twice in the top of the sixth when Sean Olley doubled home Hugh Carroll and Cody Crane. Yet Westhill countered by batting around in the bottom of the sixth and plating six decisive runs.
Dom Zawadzki’s triple was a big blow as he got two RBIs. Taden Chester tripled, singled twice and drove in a run as RBIs also went to Mike Madigan, Trey Dillobaugh and Anthony Sampo.
Before all this, Westhill performed well at the plate last Monday in an 11-6 win over Mexico.
Building a 5-1 edge through four innings, the Warriors would then hint at what it would do against Sknaeateles when it scored six runs in the top of the fifth.
Accumulating 15 hits, Westhill saw Kellen Pens hit a home run as Chester went three-for-three and scored three times. Mike Madigan, Dillobaugh, Picketta and Ryan Campbell had two hits apiece, Madigan joining Pens in driving in a pair of runs as Sampo, Zawadzki and Peter Stroman had one RBI apiece.
They had to move Wednesday’s rematch to the turf at Onondaga Community College, where a great pitcher’s duel between Zawadazki and Mexico’s Brayden Mack went 1-0 in the Warriors’ favor.
Zawadzki limited the Tigers to four hits and two walks, striking out seven, but Mack was, at times, even better, running his total to 10 strikeouts.
However, Westhill managed six hits and, in the bottom of the third, moved out in front when Stroman reached base and raced home on Campbell’s single, the only run that Zawadzki would need. Pens led the offense with two hits and a walk.
In the lead-up to the Westhill game, Skaneateles suffered a 9-4 defeat to Phoenix on Thursday afternoon, this despite getting 12 hits. Sean Olley had two hits and two RBIs as Declan Pfau, Hugh Carroll, Keelan Maren and Torin Bennett also gained two hits, with Carroll scoring twice.
Then, completing a game halted earlier in the week against Cazenovia, Skaneateles twice led, 2-0 and 3-2, and both times saw those other Lakers come back in a long battle that extended to extra innings.
Eventually, Cazenovia scored three times in the top of the ninth and prevailed 6-3. Pfau, in defeat, pitched eight innings and amassed 10 strikeouts, while Carroll, Maren and Nate Latrelle got two hits apiece and Carroll drove in a pair of runs.
J-E, as the no. 16 seed in the Section III Class B playoffs, would try to upend top seed Holland Patent on Tuesday just as no. 13 seed Skaneateles challenges no. 4 seed Cazenovia. Holding the no. 10 seed, Marcellus visits no. 7 seed Adirondack and Solvay, holding the no. 14 seed, meets no. 3 seed Lowville.
Westhill is away from all this, hoping to repeat its Class B success from 2023 in the sectional Class A tournament where, as the no. 4 seed, its hosts no. 13 seed Chittenango in Tuesday’s opening round, the winner to face Cortland or Carthage in Thursday’s quarterfinal round.
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