Downingtown East shocks Cedar Crest in state baseball tourney

Casey Roche drove in three runs and also handled the pitching chores for Downingtown East, which pulled off a first-round surprise in the PIAA state Class AAAA baseball tournament with a 4-3 win over Cedar Crest on Monday at Wenger Field in Fredericksburg.

Cedar Crest (21-6) won the District 3 playoffs and Downingtown East (19-5) was the fifth seed from District 1, but the Cougars will play in the quarterfinals against Ches-Mont League rival West Chester Henderson on Thursday.

Roche threw a complete game with five strikeouts, and delivered a key bases-loaded single that drove in two runs in a three-run fifth inning that gave East a 4-2 lead.

Ryan O'Connell also drove in a run in the fifth. Two of Cedar Crest's five hits were bases-empty home runs from Derek Fisher.

Cedar Crest   1010010 - 351

Downingtown East   1000300 - 442

WP: Casey Roche. LP: Logan Fullmer. HR: CC-Derek Fisher 2.

Great Valley pitcher Chris Duclos retired 16 of the last 17 batters he faced to put the finishing touches on the Patriots' 4-1 first-round win over Monsignor Bonner at Richie Ashburn Field in South Philadelphia.

Duclos, struck out eight, walked one and allowed singles to Bonner's Josh VanHorn and Matt Ruggieri.

Freshman Jordan Vallinino doubled home Adam Strouss and Chance Griffith in the fourth inning for the Patriots, the No. 4 seed from District 1, and Jack Meeker and Kevin Falcone added RBI singles in the fifth for insurance against the District 12 champions.

Monsignor Bonner   0100000 - 121

Great Valley   0002200 - 491

WP: Chris Duclos. LP: Anthony DiGalbo. 2B: GV-Jordan Vallinino.

West Chester Henderson brothers Sean and Chas McCormick combined to fuel an 11-1 five-inning success against Central at Glen Mills.

Sean McCormick, a senior, drove in two runs and handled the pitching with six strikeouts, while Chas McCormick, a freshman centerfielder, slapped a single, double and triple for six runs batted in.

W.C. Henderson   30206 - 11110

Central   00010 - 150

WP: Sean McCormick. LP: Pete Rowe. 2B: WCH-Sean McCormick, Chas McCormick, Cooper Redding, Kyle Hooven. 3B: WCH-Sean McCormick, Chas McCormick.

Owen J. Roberts piled up a 16-0 romp over Pleasant Valley in a five-inning contest at Pocono Mountain East.

Rob Patete hit a bases-empty homer, David Vining ripped a two-run homer and Steve Piskai added a three-run shot as part of the Wildcats' 14-hit offense.

Piskai was 2 for 4 with four RBIs, and Brandon Englehart went 3 for 5 with five RBIs behind winning pitcher Tim Ponto (10-2), who struck out six batters.

Pleasant Valley   00000 - 021

Owen J. Roberts   02617 - 16142

WP: Tim Ponto. LP: Hammond. 2B: OJR-Brandon Englehart, Paul Kochu. HR: OJR-David Vining, Rob Patete, Steve Piskai.

District 1 champion Council Rock North (23-3) dropped a 5-3 stunner to District 3's No. 3 seed, Lower Dauphin, at Upper Merion.

Mike Tentilucci homered for North.

Lower Dauphin   0040100 - 581

Council Rock North   0002010 - 341

WP: Casey Kulina. LP: Jared Weed. HR: LD-Zee Crawford, Clay Thrasher. CRN-Mike Tentilucci.

State Class AAA. Strath Haven's Jake Enterlin struck out nine batters, but allowed one run and suffered a 1-0 first-round loss to Twin Valley at Sun Valley.

Twin Valley scored in the fifth inning on a two-out RBI single off the bat of Jesse May. Brad Smith fanned 10 to get the win, but had runners on first and second base in the bottom of the seventh inning before getting out of the jam with a pop-up to second base.

Strath Haven (15-7) had three hits, including a double by James DeVita.

Twin Valley   0000100 - 171

Strath Haven   0000000 - 032

WP: Brad Smith. LP: Jake Enterlin. 2B: SH-James DeVita. TV-Price.

State Class AA. Sal DiPrinzio's one-out single in the bottom of the seventh inning scored Rob Barth with the game-winning run as Kennedy-Kenrick ousted Delone Catholic, 2-1, in a first-round contest at Richie Ashburn Field.

Barth singled in Matt Moloney with the game's first run in the fifth inning, and Barth led off the seventh with a walk. After a sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk, DiPrinzio lined his single.

Joe Harvey pitched a complete game with three hits allowed, 10 strikeouts and no walks.

Delone Catholic   0000010 - 132

Kennedy-Kenrick   0000101 - 271

WP: Joe Harvey. LP: Matt Kaehler.

Devon Prep finished an 18-5 season with a 10-2 loss to Catasauqua at Balliet Stadium in Coplay.

Kevin Raftery scored on an error in the third inning and Mike Rafterty scored on Ian Smith's fifth-inning single for the District 1 champion Tide.

Catasauqua, the District 11 winner, plated four runs in the first inning and five in the sixth.

"It was a great year for us. Devon Prep coach Mark Aquilante said. "The kids did a great job. Andrew [Carroll] threw a good game, but they can hammer you at the plate."

Devon Prep   0010100 - 262

Catasauqua   400015x - 10121

WP: Hammel. LP: Andrew Carroll. 2B: C-Hammel, Caves, Smith.

Bermudian Springs blanked Esperanza, 11-0, on Jason Cline's five-hit pitching. For Esperanza, Franklin Mejia had two hits, and Jacknier Tripari, Nardo Rosa and Felix Torraca had one each.

Esperanza   00000 - 052

Bermudian Springs   7112x - 11100

WP: J. Cline. LP: Carlos Gil. 2B: B-D. Denison, C. Davis, N. Emlit. 3B: B-C. Davis.