Pack, Krause headline GCM boys baseball team
Carmichaels coach Dickie Krause congratulates the Mikes’ Liam Lohr after he hit a solo home run in a game against Jefferson-Morgan at Carmichaels this past season. Krause is the Greene County Messenger All-County Baseball Team Coach of the Year. Lohr was named to the second team.
Mapletown’s AJ Vanata pitches against Avella during a game this past season. Vanata was named to the Greene County Messenger All-County Baseball Team Top 5. (Photos by Jim Downey)
Jim Downey | Herald-Standard
Carmichaels’ Patrick Holaren pitches against Jefferson-Morgan at Carmichaels during a game this past season. Holaren, who was 5-0, was named to the Greene County Messenger All-County Baseball Team Top 5.
There is one constant in Greene County high baseball: Carmichaels will contend for a section title and make the WPIAL playoffs.
This season was no different.
The Mikes tied California for first place in Section 1-A and while any other year that would mean a share of the section championship, a change by the WPIAL for the 2022-23 school year specified if one team beat the other twice in head-to-head matchups then only that team would be rewarded with a section plaque.
The Trojans swept their regular season series with Carmichaels and thus claimed the hardware for the section crown.
Even so, the Mikes qualified for the WPIAL playoffs once again and romped over Cornell, 11-0, in the first round before falling for a third time to California, 3-0, in the quarterfinals. Besides the Trojans, the only other team to defeat Carmichaels this past season was Chartiers-Houston in a non-section game.
Mikes coach Dickie Krause was an easy choice for the Greene County Messenger All-County Baseball Team Coach of the Year.
While Carmichaels has been one of the most consistent programs in the WPIAL, Krause thought his 2023 team may have been a bit over-hyped entering the season.
“Coming into this year, I think everybody thought they were great the year before, they’ll be great again this year, but they didn’t realize we lost several players who played a considerable role on that team,” Krause said. “I was happy with our year because we only had four starters back and I don’t think people realized that. We lost five senior starters who hit in the middle of the order, they were the pitchers, they were the focus of that team, and they were great leaders.
“We ended up 15-4 but unfortunately we were 0-3 against California. That was the disappointing part. But after California beat us they went on to beat the No. 1 seed Union and they made it to the finals, so I think our section was a little better than what everyone thought.
“I was proud of our kids. We won a lot of tight games. We have a lot of seniors coming back so we’re certainly looking forward to next year.”
The only other Greene County baseball team to reach the postseason was Waynesburg Central, which finished third in Section 4-AAA and lost to East Allegheny, 6-0, in the first round of the playoffs.
The Raiders featured one of the WPIAL’s leading hitters in senior infielder Lincoln Pack, a West Virginia recruit who batted .579 during the regular season with 20 RBIs and 25 runs scored and an on-base percentage of .643.
Pack is the GCM Player of the Year and a member of the GCM Top 5.
Also included on the Top 5 list are a trio of Carmichaels players in junior pitcher/infielder Patrick Holaren, senior catcher Jacob Fordyce and senior centerfielder Tyler Richmond, along with Mapletown junior pitcher/infielder AJ Vanata.
Vanata, one of the lone bright spots for the Maples, batted .458 with five home runs, 22 RBIs and 22 runs while recording 41 strikeouts on the mound. Holaren was the county’s best pitcher with a 5-0 record and 45 strikeouts but the WPIAL ruled him ineligible for the postseason after he transferred from Jefferson-Morgan.
The complete GCM All-County Baseball Team follows:
Players of the Year
Lincoln Pack, Waynesburg Central
Coach of the Year
Dickie Krause, Carmichaels
Top 5
Lincoln Pack, Waynesburg Central
Patrick Holaren, Carmichaels
AJ Vanata, Mapletown
Jacob Fordyce, Carmichaels
Tyler Richmond, Carmichaels
Second Team
Liam Lohr, Aydan Adamson, Dominic Colarusso, Carmichaels; Alex VanSickle, Waynesburg Central; John Woodward, Jaymison Robinson, Jefferson-Morgan.
Honorable Mention
Mason Switalski, Waynesburg Central; Daren Knight, West Greene; Brock Bayles, Drew Adams, Dayten Marion, Brody Ross, Jefferson-Morgan.