ALBION — Gabe Watts and Carson Whiteman combined for eight scoreless innings pitched in the Pennsylvania Region 8 Legion baseball championship game.
Unfortunately for Wilcox Post #467, however, French Creek Valley Post #205 pitching held Wilcox scoreless for nine.
A walkoff single by Brock Cunningham in the bottom of the ninth gave FCV a 1-0 extra-inning, walk-off victory at John Light Field, sending Post #205 to the state playoffs and ending Wilcox’s nearly unblemished season.
Wilcox’s pitching had been its strength all season, and a quartet of arms nearly carried the team to two victories in Tuesday’s Region 8 playoff bracket. Wilcox had emerged from ‘Pool A’ at 3-0, setting up a semifinal date with West Erie County.
Wilcox jumped out to a 5-2 lead over West Erie as Luke Zimmerman tossed 4+ innings, allowing two hits and four walks while striking out two. Colin Porter relieved Zimmerman in the fifth, eventually inducing a game-ending double play with the bases loaded in the seventh. The final read 5-2.
That saved Watts and Whiteman, Wilcox’s top two pitchers, for the final.
Watts turned in six scoreless innings to begin the game, striking out nine while allowing two hits and four walks. Whiteman relieved him, holding serve in the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings while Wilcox’s offense struggled to muster a rally.
It wasn’t for a lack of opportunities — Wilcox left 12 runners on base in the game.
After Wilcox stranded two in the top of the ninth, back-to-back walks by Whiteman put FCV in business in the bottom half of the frame. Whiteman was then called for a balk, prompting an intentional walk to load the bases and set up a potential force out.
Whiteman forced a pop-up for FCV’s second out. Cunningham followed with a base hit back through the middle of the infield, however, as the first hit Whiteman allowed was decisive.
Wilcox finishes its season with a 15-2 record, its only blemish prior to Tuesday coming via a regular season loss to Bradford Post #107. The team, composed largely of players from Johnsonburg, Ridgway and Kane, featured many of the same team members that carried Johnsonburg High to the PIAA Class 2A quarterfinals in the spring.
While Wilcox will lose a handful of players due to the American Legion’s 19-and-under age restriction, much of the team will be eligible for another year of play. Some will be eligible for two, others three.
FCV advances to this weekend’s Pennsylvania state tournament, which will span from July 24-28 and feature eight teams from the state’s respective regions. All games will be played at Ephrata War Memorial Field in Ephrata, located in Lancaster County.
