NA Edged By Pine-Richland In Section Finale, 9-8
Junior Jake Waddell’s walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the seventh lifted Pine-Richland to a 9-8 win over North Allegheny in the rubber match of a three-game series on Thursday afternoon. In a seesaw affair reminiscent of last year’s section finale with the Rams, the outcome secured a Section 1-6A title for the Rams.
After Pine-Richland took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, North Allegheny put up a crooked number with a five-run top of the second to gain a 5-3 advantage. The big inning included an RBI single by senior David Posey, a balk, a two-run triple by junior Mason Smith and a squeeze bunt by senior Matthew Parreaguirre.
Four errors hampered the Tigers and helped the Rams respond with a five-run bottom of the third inning, putting PR back on top, 8-5. Both starting pitchers were chased in the early innings. Pine-Richland hurler Nathan Kush lasted only 1.1 innings, serving up five runs. North Allegheny’s Jackson Walsh was a casualty of the errors behind him, going 2.2 innings and allowing eight runs, with only one earned run.
Undaunted, the Tigers clawed back with a two-run single by Parreaguirre in the top of the fourth, trimming the deficit to 8-7. North Allegheny knotted the score at 8-8 in the top of the sixth on senior J.D. Costanzo‘s RBI double. Despite a valiant comeback effort by the Tigers, the host Rams secured the victory on Waddell’s walk-off single in the seventh.
Junior Tristan Farrar picked up the win for PR with 2.1 innings of relief and one run allowed. North Allegheny sophomore Lucas Manczka pitched well and was the hard-luck loser, working four innings with one run allowed and striking out five.
North Allegheny falls to 13-5 overall and 9-3 in Section 1-6A, while Pine-Richland improves to 16-4 overall and locks up the section crown with an 8-2 record. The playoff-bound Tigers return to action on Tuesday for a non-section contest against Latrobe.
Line Score - Baseball vs. Pine-Richland - 05/02/2024
| Score by Innings | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Allegheny | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 9 | 4 |
| Pine-Richland | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 2 |