NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – Clarion continued to fire on all cylinders moving into the PIAA Class 1A semifinals for the second time in school history with a 10-0, five-inning win over Saegertown Monday afternoon at Westminster College.
“It’s definitely not easy,” Clarion manager Rob Jewett, whose team has won a pair of PIAA playoff games by a combined score of 25-0, said. “They just put the work in, and it is nice to see it pay off. That team over there, Saegertown, is the real deal. We just played all three phases of the game. Devon (Lauer) did a good job mixing it up, hitting his corners and spots. He knows he has a good defense behind him, and we played the ball well. And, I think everybody hit, and you throw some small ball in there, a little bit of pressure on the other teams and it’s nice to see that all work out.”
Rewatch the game
Lauer, who threw a three-inning no-hitter in a 15-0 first-round win over Harmony Monday on just 44 pitches, came back on two days rest and was nearly as effective giving up just two hits and two walks in five shutout innings lowering his ERA to 0.58 on the season.
Devon Lauer catches a pop up to end the first inning. Lauer threw five shutout innings allowing two hits. Photo by Nathan Girvan
“I was hitting my spots,” Lauer said. “My curveball was working really good today, just weak contact to the other side and (my defense) was making plays.”
Lauer induced five groundball outs and two more weak popups among his 15 outs.
“He was just pounding the zone,” Saegertown acting manager David Bradley said. “He started 0-1 a ton, 0-2 a ton. It wasn’t like we had a ton of positive counts as hitters. He was just throwing it over the plate, and we weren’t putting good swings on the ball.”
While Lauer was shutting down the District 10 runner-up bats, Clarion was putting good at-bats against three different Panther pitches knocking out 12 hits.
“We play small ball really well,” Lauer said. “Whenever someone needs to get a hit, we do hit and get clutch hits every time.”
Examples of the Bobcats playing small ball included a bunt single by Bryce Brinkley in the first inning that helped set up the game’s first run when Lauer hit a sacrifice fly that scored Dawson Smail, who led off the inning with a single to right.
That was one of two sacrifice flys for Clarion running the team’s total to 15 in 23 games this season.
“We preach just put the ball in play and see what happens,” Jewett said. “They play enough baseball that they know to hit to the right side or if a guy on third just hit it into the air. Like I said, but a bunt down when your number is called. It could be anybody at any point. Just enough to keep tacking on runs. We say it’s never enough, and they keep piling them on.”
After taking the 1-0 lead in the first, Clarion added a pair of runs in the third when Sagertown starter Wyatt Burchill gave up three walks and a single after one out ending his outing.
Clarion scored on a Noah Harrison single and a Tanner Miller sacrifice fly. Miller’s sac fly came against reliever Joe Grundy on the first pitch thrown by Grundy and gave the Bobcats a 3-0 advantage,
Prior to the Bobcats taking the 3-0 lead, a heads-up play by Clarion third baseman Matt Alston and Lauer ended a Saegertown threat in the top of the third.
After two outs, Sully Zirkle walked and went to third when William Shaffer singled to right and right fielder Gary Matus bobbled the ball.
But before DeMarcus Manning had a chance to try to tie the game, Lauer picked off Zirkle at third.
“That was all Matt Alston,” Jewett said. “We practice pickoff plays, but Matt saw that before I could even call anything.”
Clarion put the game away in the fourth when it scored four runs on four hits and took advantage of a pair of Sagertown errors.
“I hate to say it, but our youth showed today,” Bradley said. “But, that’s alright. I thought we competed. That was a good baseball team. Hopefully, we get another crack at them in the future.”
The Bobcats sent nine batters to the plate in the fourth with No. 8 hitter Daunte Girvan getting the rally started with a leadoff single to center.
Girvan went to third when Hayden Weber half-swung a ball to third base and beat the rap at first, Girvan ended up at third on a throwing error.
Dawson Smail then hit a ball up the middle to score Girvan and reached safely when shortstop Henry Shaffer bobbled the ball. Courtesy runner Wyatt Watterson, who had stolen second, went to third on the play and then scored on a bunt single by Bryce Brinkley making it 5-0.
Dawson Smail takes a swing during Clarion’s 10-0 win Thursday. Smail was 2-for-4 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBIs. Photo by Nathan Girvan
After Derek Smail was intentionally walked for the second time in the game, Lauer made Saegerstown pay with a two-run single to right making it 7-0.
Needing three runs to end the game on the 10-run Mercy Rule in the fifth, Clarion wasted little time doing so.
Girvan led off with a husting double before Weber reached on an infield single. Dawson Smail then brought home a run with an infield single and stole second before Brinkley singled home Watterson, courtesy running again, to make it 9-0. Harrison then ended the game with a base hit to left.
Clarion (19-4) is in the PIAA semifinals for the second time in school history and the first time since finishing second in 2017. The Bobcats will play the winner of a 4:30 p.m. game Thursday between District 5 champion Southern Fulton and District 10 champion West Middlesex Monday, June 12, at a time and place to be announced.
“It feels great,” Lauer said.
Watch Lauer’s postgame interview
Saegertown finished the season 19-4.
“They have nothing to hang their head on,” Bradley said. “They (the seniors) had a fantastic career. They’ve won their entire career with a District 10 title last year and a runner-up this year and a state playoff win. Those guys are great leaders. They are going to be truly missed as players but they are going to be truly missed because they were humble. They have great character and are great leaders.”
