The Great Gillott
Connellsville senior named H-S All-Area Baseball Player of the Year
Jonathan Guth | Herald-Standard
Connellsville baseball advanced to the quarterfinals of the WPIAL playoffs for the first time in 19 years before running into a “buzzsaw.”
The Falcons’ season ended in the district playoffs to East Carolina recruit Colby Weber and Shaler.
Weber was fantastic in recording 14 strikeouts and the Titans earned a 6-1 victory. Shaler went on to win the WPIAL championship in Class 5A before finishing its season as the PIAA runner-up.
Connellsville had trouble getting contact against a pitcher who had a velocity that topped out in the 90s, but the Falcons’ Grayden Gillott was able to come through against Weber with a triple. He was hit-by-pitch and grounded out in his other at-bats against one of the top pitchers in the WPIAL.
Gillott’s season was more than just one game, as the senior and future Garrett College player had a .435 batting average in 20 games. Gillott had 27 hits, 21 RBIs and scored 22 runs. He hit four doubles and two triples while playing the entire season at shortstop.
Gillott’s contributions against Class 5A opposition, in addition to his leadership qualities, were enough to edge Waynesburg Central’s Alex VanSickle as the Herald-Standard All-Area Area Baseball Player of the Year.
“It was tough,” said Gillott in reference to facing 5A pitching. “(Colby) Weber from Shaler was tough, but he wasn’t the only one. There were a lot of good pitchers in 5A that we played this year. It was very competitive, and I think I did pretty well against the type of pitchers I went against. It is better to play against great competition.”
Although he has pitched when playing for Connellsville’s American Legion team, Gillott was the Falcons’ catalyst at shortstop.
“I wasn’t anything but shortstop this season,” Gillott said. “I was put at shortstop at a young age, and I really liked playing there, so I just stayed there. I am not sure what position I will play in college. That will all be determined when I get there.”
Connellsville completed its season at 14-6. The Falcons were the only team to defeat Class 4A WPIAL and state champion Indiana in a 10-1 triumph on April 24 at Indiana.
Gillott will be reunited with several Connellsville players in college, as the recent Connellsville Area High School graduate will head to the Lakers with another 2025 senior in Matthew Firestone, as well as former Falcons, Jake Lee, Logan Lowery and Kace Shearer at Garrett College.
Despite moving on to the next level, Gillott will remember his time with the Falcons for many years to come.
“I have been playing with or against a lot of these guys since Little League,” Gillott said. “I have been around baseball for a long time. I believe Connellsville will continue to do well in college. I am excited about the campus. It is in Maryland near the Pennsylvania border in the mountains, so it isn’t too far from home. I would say a little over an hour, which is great, because my family and friends can attend my games, and if I want to go home, it isn’t like I will need to make a long drive or take a flight.”
VanSickle was a force for the Raiders, and the decision to pick a player of the year was not an easy one. The Indiana University of Pa. commit helped lead Waynesburg to a Class 3A Section 4 championship and a berth in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL playoffs.
Gillott and VanSickle highlight the first team of the Herald-Standard All-Area Baseball Team.
The remaining seven players that make up the first team are: Connellsville’s Mason Miller and Chase Sankovich; Waynesburg’s Tyler Groves and Austin Surber; Belle Vernon’s Parker Lind; Carmichaels’ Robbie Wilson-Jones; and Frazier’s Chase Fulmer.
For guiding the Mikes to the WPIAL championship final in Class A, Dickie Krause has been selected as the Coach of the Year.
The members of the second team are: Albert Gallatin’s Jason Myers and Geno Valenti; Belle Vernon’s Cole Matusik; Beth-Center’s Luke Amon and Eli Wright; Brownsville’s Hunter Pelehac and Gene Thorpe; California’s Chase Cicchitto, Logan Hartley and Caden Monticelli; Carmichaels’ Colin Andrews and Jase Zdravecky; Connellsville’s Firestone, Jonathan Kelly and Ethan Porreca; Frazier’s Dailan McManus; Geibel Catholic’s Eahn Stevenson; Jefferson-Morgan’s Jaymison Robinson and John Woodward; Laurel Highlands’ Noah Lion and Sevi Vecchiolla; Mapletown’s Spencer Yeager; Mt. Pleasant’s Cole Chatfield, Jacob Kitz and Santino Marne; Southmoreland’s Brendon Geho; Uniontown’s Luke Gresh and Brayden Hinzy; Waynesburg Central’s C.J. Corwin, Jacob Stephenson and Derek Turcheck; and West Greene’s Lane Allison.