Butler, Pa. - After recording two conference wins over Penn State York, 7-3 and 10-0, the Penn State Greater Allegheny men's baseball team moves their overall record to 22-9, 14-0.
Friday afternoon, Penn State York came to Pullman Park to make-up two games re-scheduled outings from earlier this season. In game one, Greater Allegheny came out on top after the first inning. Freshman infielder Brian Casiano (San Juan, Puerto Rico/International Baseball Academy) led off for GA, getting to first on a single up the middle. Casiano stole second before sophomore outfielder Jose Pablo Bonilla (Coto Laurel, Puerto Rico/Academia Santa Maria) singled to the shortstop, advancing Casiano to third. Freshman designated hitter Francisco Del Rio (Vega Baja, Puerto Rico/Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy) hit a sacrafice fly to center field, sending Casiano to score. Junior outfielder Gianmarco Concepcion (Bayamon, Puerto Rico/Mercyhurst North East) singled to right center field, batting in Bonilla to put Greater Allegheny ahead by two.
Senior right-handed pitcher Braedon Pennington (Punxsutawney, Pa./Mercyhurst) sat down five batters through the next two innings on strike-outs to keep York scoreless. York got on the board in the bottom of the third inning before GA nailed down the lead in the top of the fourth. Both senior infielder Sam Weightman (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) and freshman outfielder Mark Hollis (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) reached base on hit by pitches. Sophomore John Nusser (Pittsburgh, Pa./Brashear) came in to pinch run for Weightman, eventually scoring from a Casiano single. Junior infielder Aaron McGee (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) reached base on a fielder's choice, batting home Hollis. Bonilla hammered a double down the left field line, pushing home McGee before Bonilla went home on a Del Rio single to left center, Greater Allegheny leading 6-1.
York notched another run in the bottom of the fourth before two complete innings went silent on both sides of the ball. Senior infielder Adam Wehr (Orefield, Pa./Northwestern Lehigh) reached base on a hit by pinch before advancing to second on a wild pitch. Sophomore infielder Tommy Williams (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) doubled to center field, batting in Wehr. York's Quinones added another in the bottom of the inning, finishing the game with Greater Allegheny ahead 7-3.
Senior right-handed pitcher Eric Schell (Linesville, Pa./Mercyhurst North East) earned his second win on the mound as he pitched three innings allowing just two hits. Both Casiano and Williams went 2-for-3 with one RBI apiece, Casiano scoring once. Bonilla hit 2-for-4 from the plate and crossed home twice with one RBI.
Greater Allegheny came out big in the top of the first in game two, as GA swelled to a 5-0 run. Junior catcher Troy Ambros (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./West Browar) singled through the right side before sophomore Bill Carter (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport Area) came in to courtesy run. Wehr walked to first base before Bonilla singled through the right side, advancing to second on the throw, and pushing Carter to tally the first run of the new game. Del Rio singled to center field, batting in both Bonilla and Wehr. Concepcion doubled to right center field before sophomore infielder Jonathan Reyes Cartagena (San Juan, Puerto Rico/International Baseball Academy) reached first base on an error, sending Del Rio home. Concepcion stole home to notch the fifth run of the first inning.
Greater Allegheny notched two more runs in the top of the second to extend their lead to 7-0. Williams singled to right center before he stole second base. Wehr came up to bat and doubled down the left field line, sending Williams home. Bonilla drove a ball to the center field wall, putting the wheels on to get to third base and scoring Wehr.
The next five innings came and went for each team until Greater Allegheny came to the plate in the top of the seventh. Concepcion singled up the middle before Nusser walked to first base. Reyes singled up the middle to advance Nusser and send Concepcion across home plate. Freshman Joshua Arroyo (Toa Alta, Puerto Rico/Levittown Baptist Academy) came in to pinch hit for Casiano as Nusser came home on a passed ball. Arroyo went on to hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Reyes and notching the tenth unanswered run for Greater Allegheny.
Sophomore left-handed pitcher Zach Krivda (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport Area) threw four scoreless innings on the mound for Greater Allegheny, allowing just two hits on 15 batters faced. Throwing 37 K's, Krivda sat down six batters on strike-outs. McGee came in for Krivda in the top of the fifth, closing the final three innings of action and earning his second win on the hill.
Bonilla went 4-for-4 at the plate, highlighting the field with a triple, one run and two runs batted in. Wehr hit 2-for-3 recording a double, two runs and an RBI. Both Concepcion and Williams hit 2-for-4, scoring three runs total.
Greater Allegheny, now 22-9 and a perfect 14-0 in the Penn State University Athletic Conference, host a non-conference double-header, Sunday afternoon. Westmoreland County Community College comes to Woodland Hills for two games; first pitch is set for 1 p.m.
