BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The repeat dream is still alive.
Newly minted staff ace Aiden Snowberger threw his second consecutive complete game, and defending PIAA Class 1A champion DuBois Central Catholic beat District 1 champion Dock Mennonite, 4-2, in the PIAA Class 1A semifinal game Tuesday afternoon at Central Columbia High School.
“It feels great,” Snowberger said. “My emotions are so high right now. I am so proud of these guys. We fought through this game really hard. That’s a really good team. They can really hit the ball.”
Watch Snowberger’s full postgame interview
Snowberger, who was thrust into the No. 1 pitcher role when Carter Hickman injured his arm in the District 9 title game loss to Clarion, came up big in the biggest game of his career allowing two runs, one earned, on six hits and one walk while striking out three.
“For Snowy to lead our staff in this position has been huge,” DCC manager Adam Fox said. “It doesn’t surprise me because of the type of kid he is, the type of worker he is, what he brings to the table day in and day out. He is just a warrior, an absolute warrior.”
Perhaps the biggest play of the game with Snowberger on the mound wasn’t a pitch but instead a throw to second base.
In the bottom of the sixth, with a run already in for Dock Mennonite to cut the DCC lead to 4-2, the Pioneers looked to be in business with runners on first and second and a 3-2 pitch coming to Matt Miles, who already had a double in the game.
But before delivering the pitch, Snowberger turned and fired to shortstop Kaden Berzenski catching Zach Frederick, who had an RBI single in the inning, flatfooted for a pickoff.
“I am praying for a strike,” Fox said. “I’m praying that Snowy gives on elevated under the hand and he swings and misses. The next thing I know we have the guy picked off at second, the kid stone foot like you never knew it was coming. Panda (Berzenski’s nickname) and Snowy put that on themselves. I was looking for it the whole game, but in that situation, I didn’t want to throw a ball into centerfield and you get second and third, and the tying run is at second. But if the players put it on themselves, they see something, that is high baseball IQ.”
While it worked, Snowberger didn’t have the ultimate confidence in the play and was just hoping he didn’t balk.
“I was not ready for that pickoff,” Snowberger said. “I thought I was going to balk or something. But it worked out. I was so happy. That’s a really big pickoff. I think if I don’t get that, I have to throw more pitches and I don’t come back out (for the seventh inning).”
Dock Mennonite manager Erik Kratz, a former major league catcher, said the runner has to make sure the pitcher goes home on that pitch.
“It wasn’t like a crazy good move,” Kratz said. “He (Frederick) took a step the other way and they picked him off. That is not what we are looking for there.”
The pickoff was even bigger when Snowberger got Miles to swing at strike three on the next pitch giving him a chance to go for the complete game at 94 pitches going to the seventh with a limit of 105 by PIAA rule.
He got the first out quickly in the seventh before giving up a single to the No. 9 hitter, Josh Masico to turn the lineup over the Pioneers.
But, Snowberger got Nathan Lapp to fly out to left field and Brayden Kratz to ground out to third base to send DCC back to the title game.
Watch the final out
“They want it,” Fox said. “They want the challenge. They accept the challenge day in and day out. We hold our kids to a higher standard, and those guys stick together day in and day out. I am super proud of these guys.”
DCC grabbed a 4-0 lead in the game scoring twice in the second before adding solo runs in the fourth and the fifth.
In the second, Hickman led off with a single and Brezenski reached on an error by third baseman Cooper Brannon.
Blake Pisarcik, who is now 5 of 11 in the PIAA playoffs with seven RBIs, ripped a double over the head of centerfielder Zach Neff scoring both runners.
Hickman then led off the fourth inning with a solo shot over the leftfield fence before Brayden Fox’s RBI groundout in the fifth scored Andrew Green from third to make it 4-0. Green had led off the inning with a double.
Watch Green score the run
“I am so proud of Andrew Green for just staying the course, and trusting, and keeping his faith,” Adam Fox said. “He is doing everything he can to be a special part of this team. When Carter went down, it’s your time now Andrew. And he has been nothing but spectacular for us. I am so happy for him and his teammates because that is a big deal. When a role player comes in and steps in the way he has, doesn’t get all the accolades in the paper, but he is just as bit a part of this team and a huge part of this team and made a difference on this team as every single player has. That’s what creates wins. That’s why we get to this point. It’s not one or two guys. It just doesn’t happen that way.”
Carter Hickman hit a solo home run in the fourth inning to give DCC a 3-0 lead. File Photo by Carlie Gritzer
Dock Mennonite didn’t go into the late afternoon sun without a fight.
The Pioneers got a run back in the fifth when Miles opened with a double and scored on a Lapp sacrifice fly after reaching third on a passed ball.
Then, in the sixth, Sam Laux opened with a triple and scored on a one-out single by Frederick, who went to second on a base hit by Neff before the key pickoff play stopped the inning in its tracks.
Still, Erik Kratz believed his team got itself in position to have a chance.
“As long as you have outs to give, with our lineup, we can hit the ball hard,” Kratz said. “When you hit it at guys and they are a good team, they are going to make the plays. That is how you get to this point in the season. You don’t necessarily ride the wave of the best pitcher. You have to be able to do what Snowberger did, what Lapp did. They threw strikes. When you make your plays in the field, you’re looking for a good game. And that’s what we got today.
“We had our chances, they had their chances. They pushed four across, we pushed two across. That’s what I expected. I expected us to come out on the winning end, and we didn’t. This is what you get to when you are at this point in the season.”
DCC’s win sets up a rubber match with Clarion, who beat Southern Fulton in the other semifinal game Monday, in the PIAA title game at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, June 15, at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park on the campus of Penn State University in University Park (State College), Pa.
DCC scored four times in the top of the seventh to beat Clarion, 5-2, in a regular-season matchup May 11 before Clarion turned the tables in the D9 title game May 28 scoring five times in the top of the seventh to stun the Cardinals, 6-3, to win its first-ever D9 title.
“It’s great for District 9,” Fox said. “It’s great for the media. It’s great for the fans. But, honestly, we are not looking at who we are playing. We are looking at how we are going to play the game and how we are going to go about our business. We know they are a great team. They have done great things. Congratulations to them. I am super happy for them and super happy for District 9. District 9 is absolutely the best district in baseball (in the state). I’ll say it right now, and I’ll say it again. Because right now the way these District 9 teams play each other, the way they take pride in themselves and battling and playing tough schedules, we look for it, we look to better ourselves. We’re all in this together. So, I’m super happy for District 9, super happy for our guys. Congratulations to Clarion, but we are coming for you.”
