DISTRICT LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL: Starting pitchers lead GPT National, GWA to titles

EDWARDSVILLE — Two teams that mashed their way through the district met in the District 16 Little League 8-10 Baseball title game.

Greater Pittston Township National scored 47 runs through their first three games and Mountain Top scored 48 — so naturally, when the two imposing offenses squared off for the championship, a pitchers’ duel broke out.

Rocco Skula and Connor Yonki combined on a no-hitter, allowing just one run on a combination of walks and errors as GPT National defeated Mountain Top 4-1 to win the district championship at West Side Little League.

After using seven pitchers to get through the semifinals three days earlier, GPT National needed just two to win a championship.

Skula went 4 1/3 innings to start things off, striking out 11 hitters and allowing just one unearned run. Yonki came on in the fifth for a five-out save, tacking on two more strikeouts and getting the final out on a liner to second base to clinch the title.

“Rocco throws so hard, it does throw off hitters,” GPT National manager John Cerasaro said. “Great velocity, good control, he battled today.”

Skula helped his team get started offensively, as well. After Kaysen Simmons reached on a leadoff walk, Skula doubled to right-center to bring Simmons home, giving GPT National a 1-0 lead.

It was one of just four GPT National hits off the Mountain Top pitching combo of William Gagliardi and Henry Arcangeli, who both worked hard to prevent a big inning from occurring.

While it wasn’t lighting up the hit column, a patient approach from the GPT National lineup would do enough to put a few runs on the board.

Lukas Verdekal led off the third inning with a walk and later scored to make it 2-0. Simmons led off the fourth inning with his second walk of the day, later scoring to make it 3-0.

“They seemed composed and relaxed up there the entire game,” Cerasaro said.

GPT National tacked on its final run in the fifth, with Santino Rynkiewicz singling to start the inning and scoring on an RBI groundout from Anthony Cerasaro.

Yonki and Colston Talerico added singles for GPT National in the win.

Mountain Top scored its lone run with a leadoff walk of its own, this one drawn by Matthew Dutrow in the fourth. He would come around to score later in the inning.

GPT National advanced to the Section 5 Tournament, which it was scheduled to open Saturday afternoon against host Abington.

District 31 8-10-year-olds

Five clean, scoreless innings from Greater Wyoming Area’s pitching and defense gave way to a shaky sixth with the team trying to close the books on a District 31 championship.

It wasn’t pretty, but it wouldn’t matter in the end: GWA found the final out it was searching for, and the championship that came with it.

A large lead, built up over the course of the game, held up for GWA, weathering a Kingston/Forty Fort rally in the final inning to win 8-4 July 5 in the District 31 Little League 8-10-year-old championship game at West Side Little League.

GWA looked well on the way to a third shutout in four tournament games, leading Kingston/Forty-Fort 8-0 heading to the sixth inning and getting the first two outs in order.

Four base hits and a couple errors later, and Kingston/Forty Fort had cut the lead clean in half. Eric Keiper had an RBI single, Jackson Post brought home another run on a smashed grounder to shortstop and Lucas Janov looped one into center to plate two more runs.

Cash O’Connor singled to keep the game alive, but GWA kept the next hitter’s bat in his hands and threw out O’Connor trying to steal second, bringing a roller-coaster of an inning to a close.

“These guys have been working so hard … they were hungry, and they stayed hungry until the end,” GWA manager Frank Ramiza said. “It got a little wild at the end, but we hung in there.”

Christian Cavalieri earned the win for GWA with 4 1/3 scoreless innings of work, allowing just three hits and a pair of walks while striking out seven.

Cavalieri was staked to a lead right out of the gate, as GWA came to the plate for its first turn at bat in the first inning and immediately got to work.

A one-out single from Bryce Bauman started things off, with Cavalieri getting hit by a pitch right after. Francisco Ramiza singled to score Bauman and put GWA on the board.

Cavalieri scored on a wild pitch, and Ramiza would come around on a base hit from Carter Pacchioni to make it 3-0 before Kingston/Forty-Fort could get out of the inning.

The GWA offense attacked early counts, didn’t wait to look for walks and put a ton of balls in play, making the Kingston/Forty Fort defense have to work overtime to find three outs each inning.

“We told the guys we were going to be aggressive with hits, we’re going to be aggressive on the basepaths,” Coach Ramiza said. “We’re going to be aggressive with everything, and the kids really came through.”

Cavalieri drove in two runs himself, and Ryan McKernan drove one in with a base hit in the fourth. Gavin Johnson had two singles, and Dom Giordano added a single and a run scored while also closing out the game for GWA on the mound.

The win put GWA in the Section 5 Minor Baseball Tournament, which started Saturday at Abington with GWA meeting Lakeland in its first game of the four-team, double-elimination event.

Pacchioni went 2-for-2 while Johnson and Bauman also had two hits. Bauman scored twice.