Weather has forced Pittston Area to bunch its baseball games together this season.
The Patriots have played nine games, completing three in four days three different times this season, March 26-29, April 7-10 and again Monday through Thursday.
Pittston Area gets better in each of the stretches. The Patriots have won six in a row overall, including beating this week’s three opponents by a total of 36-1.
All three of this week’s games were Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 victories, improving the first-place Patriots to 5-0. They lead the division by a game over Dallas (4-1) and will not face the Mountaineers until two games in a four-day stretch in May.
Pittston Area took an 8-1 overall record and was third of eight teams in the District 2-4 Class 5A Subregional playoff seeding race going into Saturday’s scheduled road game against La Salle College High School in Philadelphia.
Pittston Area 9, Berwick 0
Beau Widdick combined with Brady Baldrica on a four-hitter and also was one of the offensive leaders in Thursday’s road victory.
Widdick walked two and struck out six in six innings while earning the win. Baldrica walked one and struck out one in a hitless, scoreless seventh inning.
Silvio Giardina and Widdick each had a single and double. Widdick drove in two runs and scored one while Giardina drove in one run.
Dom Innamorati, Rich Tonte and Elijah Mead also had two hits. Innamorati scored three times.
Jake Aftewicz doubled and drove in two runs.
The Patriots scored in five of seven innings, breaking the game open with four runs in the top of the seventh when Giardina, Aftewicz and Widdick produced three straight RBI doubles.
Pittston Area 11, Wyoming Valley West 1
HUGHESTOWN — Put the ball in play and see what happens.
The idea worked well for Pittston Area in the first inning Tuesday and not so well for Wyoming Valley West.
Pittston Area scored four times in the first inning, using two hits and three Valley West errors, jumping to a lead in its 11-1, six-inning victory over the Spartans in a WVC Division 1 game.
Dom Innamorati and Jake Aftewicz had RBI singles in the first inning, but fielding errors on Drew DeLucca’s flyball and Jacoby Harnen’s grounder, along with a throwing miscue, gave the Patriots a 4-1 lead.
“That’s all we’re looking to do,” Pittston Area coach Paul Zaffuto said. “Put the ball in play and see if the other team can defend what we do. Strikeouts and lazy flyballs don’t win baseball games.
“We put the ball in play and see what happens. If the team makes the play, you tip your cap to them.”
The Patriots also received solid innings on the mound from two pitchers. Starter T.J. Johnson held Valley West without a hit in four innings of work, although he had a few issues with control which accelerated his pitch count. Reliever Logan Laskowski gave up a triple to Johnny Roberts to start the fifth and single to Tanner Ragukas in the seventh, but struck out five in two innings.
Pittston Area boosted its lead to 7-1 in the fourth. DeLucca and Innamorati hit consecutive two-out singles and Silvio Giardina followed with a double into the left-field corner.
A four-run sixth inning where Aftewicz had an RBI double and Beau Widdick had a two-run single ended the game via the 10-run rule.
Valley West scored its only run in the first inning.
Widdick drove in three runs while Innamorati had three hits. Giardina, who doubled, and DeLucca each combined 2-for-3 efforts with three runs scored.
Jake Aftewicz doubled, singled and drove in two runs.
The Patriots outhit the Spartans 12-2.
Pittston Area 15, Tunkhannock 0
Pittston Area scored four runs in the fourth and three runs in each of its other at-bats in the five-inning romp at Tunkhannock Monday.
The Patriots led 3-0 three batters into the game.
Drew DeLucca led off with a single, then Dom Innamorati doubled.
Silvio Giardina, who finished with five RBI, followed with a three-run homer.
Innamorati went 4-for-4 with two doubles and scored four times.
Giardina, Beau Widdick, Jacoby Harnen and Jake Aftewicz each had two of the team’s 14 hits. Harnen, who doubled, and Widdick each drove in three runs.
Drew DeLucca scored three runs.
Nick Innamorati tossed a two-hitter with five strikeouts and just one walk.