Mustangs throttle Falcons on Senior Day
Laurel Highlands' Colin McKee is safe at third as Connellsville third baseman Ryan Huey awaits the throw on Kody Thomas' run-scoring double in the first inning of Saturday morning's game at Laurel Highlands High School.
Connellsville's Dakota McWilliams relieved Michael Durstine during the first inning after the Mustangs were up by five runs in Saturday morning's game at Laurel Highlands High School.
Christine Pocratsky
Laurel Highlands’ Drew DeBerry steals second as Connellsville’s Evan Onusko awaits the ball at the bag during Saturday morning’s game at Laurel Highlands High School.
Christine Pocratsky
Laurel Highlands’ Nick Lancaster pitches against Connellsville during Saturday morning’s game at Laurel Highlands High School.
It turned out to be a beautiful day for baseball and Senior Day festivities for Laurel Highlands Saturday.
For Connellsville, it was just another day.
The Mustangs sent 11 batters to the plate in a 7-run first inning and cruised to a 13-1 win over the Falcons in non-section baseball action.
The first five LH batters and six of the first seven got hits. By the time it was over, everyone in the starting lineup for LH had hit safely. Drew DeBerry led the 14-hit barrage with three hits and two RBIs, while Corey Dascenzo drove in three runs on two hits, and Giuseppe Schiano’s two-run double was the key blow of the first inning.
Laurel Highlands dresses 11 seniors and nine of them started.
“I don’t look at it as losing good ball players. I look at it as losing kids I’ve watched grow up,” LH coach Scott DeBerry said. “I’ve been watching these seniors since they were eight years old.
“Now, they go off to make something of their lives. It’s nice to know that, with this group of kids, you can almost bet on them being successful.”
Besides honoring the 11 seniors, LH also paid tribute to Tom Landman, who resigned as baseball coach when he was elected to the LH school board. Landman had served as coach for 35 years and sent four Mustangs — Terry Mulholland, Jason Bowers, Ethan Mildren and Zach Dascenzo — to pro baseball.
“These guys are playing very well,” Landman said of the current LH team. “This is an excellent senior class, and I want to wish them and coach DeBerry good luck in the playoffs.
“I really enjoyed my years coaching at Laurel Highlands. I was fortunate to be around good players and better people.”
On this cool but pleasant Saturday, the Mustangs scored six in the fourth and finished the game in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Senior Nick Lancaster got the pitching win after allowing two hits and an earned run in three innings. Senior Kody Thomas finished up, giving up two hits in two innings.
Connellsville’s lone highlight was Jacob Wiltrout, who had half of the Falcons’ four hits and drove in their only run on a double to right-center in the second inning.
“He’s been pretty hot lately,” coach Rob Orndorff said of Wiltrout. “Unfortunately, he was the only one.
“We just got outplayed today. They out-hit us, out-ran us. Laurel Highlands was well prepared, they hit the ball solid. They hit, they catch and they throw, which is why they are undefeated in their section.”
Connellsville (7-11) closes its Section 2-AAAA schedule Monday at Albert Gallatin and finishes the season at home to Gateway Wednesday. LH (14-3) travels to Uniontown Monday and to Albert Gallatin Tuesday before closing the regular season at home to McKeesport Wednesday.