Baseball
2014 MSA Sports Diamond Studs Baseball All-Star Team
June 18, 2014
Blackhawk’s Brendan McKay and Norwin’s J.J. Matijevic were history makers. They did things this baseball season that hadn’t ever been done in the WPIAL before. McKay and Matijevic were so dominant and so terrific that the MSA Sports staff had trouble separating the two for Player of the Year honors. So, MSA decided to do a rare thing. They picked McKay and Matijevic as co-Player of the Year. McKay and Matijevic lead MSA’s Diamond Studs team, which is made up of the top 10 players in the WPIAL. The team is heavy with pitchers, but some of the pitchers also excelled in the field and as hitters. Here is a look at the MSA Sports Diamond Studs team as well as the co-Player of the Year. CO-PLAYER OF THE YEARThis Week on the MSA Sports Network – 06/16/2014
June 16, 2014
After honoring all of the Dad's, our attention turns to another busy week of pro baseball and pro softball action as we say so long to spring and hello to summer this week here on the MSA Sports Network. The Washington Wild Things hit the road for three games before returning home this weekend for three games at CONSOL Energy Field, which will also be the site of two home games for the Pennsylvania Rebellion pro fast pitch softball, plus the 2014 Ken Lantzy High School Football All-Star Classic along with another edition of Rappin on Racin ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, June 16th:2014 PIAA BASEBALL PLAYOFF RESULTS
While it was a forgetful state baseball postseason for WPIAL teams, it was a golden run for District 1. Three D-1 teams ended up winning baseball championships at Penn State University including Conestoga in Quad-A, Pope John Paul II in Triple-A and Devon Prep in Single-A. The fourth state champion came from District 4 as Loyalsock Township was able to repeat as Double-A champs. Here are ALL the final results from the 2014 PIAA Baseball Playoffs 2014 PIAA CLASS AAAA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: LaSalle College Explorers 4 - Conestoga Pioneers 2 in 8 innings PIAA CLASS AAAA Semifinals: Conestoga Pioneers 3 - SENECA VALLEY RAIDERS 2This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 01/10/2014
June 10, 2014
The 2013-2014 high school sports season continues to wind down with the baseball and softball state playoffs coming to an end this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have Semifinals and Championship Game action from Penn State University from the 2014 PIAA Baseball and Softball Playoffs as well as pro baseball with the Washington Wild Things and pro softball with the Pennsylvania Rebellion, plus the 2014 BeeGraphix High School Football Classic along with another edition of Rappin on Racin ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, June 9th: TALK SHOW - Rappin on Racin at 6:00pm on MSAsports.netPIAA Semifinals Monday Recaps
June 9, 2014
It had been a tough state postseason for District 7 teams heading into the state Semifinals on Monday with only three WPIAL teams reaching the Final Four. Now that Seneca Valley, Greensburg-Salem and Neshannock have lost, there will be no district representation in the PIAA baseball and softball championships for the first time since 1979. Here are recaps from the one baseball and two softball PIAA Semifinals games on Monday which ended the high school year for WPIAL teams. PIAA BASEBALL CLASS AAAA SEMIFINALS:WPIAL Baseball All-Star Game Recaps
June 8, 2014
There was a new venue this year of rthe annual WPIAL Baseball Coaches Association All-Star games as they took the top seniors from District 7 to the turf of Kelly Automotive Field, formerly Pullman Park in Butler as the Class AA and Class AAA stars picked up victories. Here is a recap from both contests Sunday heard here on MSA Sports. Class AA All-Stars 8 – Class A All Stars 12014 MLB Draft: Multiple Former and Current WPIAL Players Selected on Day 3
On day three of the Draft, former North Allegheny and Kent State pitcher Eric Dorsch was selected in the 15th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Dorsch, while at North Allegheny, won the 2009 WPIAL AAAA Baseball Championship and was a runner up finisher in 2010. At Kent State, Dorsch was moved to the role of closer and thrived in his Redshirt Junior Season, posting ten saves with a 3.56 ERA.Scholastic Notebook – 06/06/2014
June 6, 2014
Connor Coward’s right arm has been a major part of Seneca Valley’s turnaround story and march through the postseason. But Coward’s bat is also starting to be a big factor. Coward is a senior pitcher-shortstop for Seneca Valley. He is one of the top pitchers in the WPIAL, but he pitched only one inning in the regular season because of a stress fracture in his back.2014 MLB Draft: EF Alum Dan Altavilla Drafted by Seatttle on Day 2
It wasn't a lefty but a right handed pitcher that was the first Western Pennsylvania player selected in the Major League Baseball Draft on Friday. Mercyhurst College Junior Dan Altavilla was taken with the 141st overall pick in the fifth round by the Seattle Mariners. The Elizabeth Forward product has moved up the boards in the last few weeks, sporting a fastball in the mid 90's and good movement as the top starter for the Lakers this season.Scholastic Notebook – 06/03/2014
June 3, 2014
WPIAL baseball champions took it on the chin three times in the first round of the PIAA playoffs Monday. But history shows WPIAL champs often have trouble in the PIAA playoffs. Take a look at past years and the statistics say that WPIAL champs have only a slightly better than 25 percent chance of making it to a PIAA title game. The PIAA championships started with one class in 1977, expanded to two classes in 1979, three classes in 1999 and four classes in 2005. Since the PIAA playoffs started in 1977 and through last year, there were 96 WPIAL champs. Only 26 of those 96 teams (27 percent) made it to a PIAA title game.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 06/01/2014
June 1, 2014
With the spring district postseason now in the books, the focus switches to the spring high school sports state playoffs starting this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have First round and Quarterfinals action from the 2014 PIAA Baseball and Softball Playoffs as well as pro baseball with the Washington Wild Things and pro softball with the Pennsylvania Rebellion, plus the season finale of the WPIAL Baseball Show on a special night on Wednesday along with another edition of Rappin on Racin and The WPIAL Baseball Show...championship edition on a special night ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, June 2nd:2014 WPIAL BASEBALL PLAYOFFS RESULTS
May 30, 2014
There is no question that the District 7 baseball postseason was an historic one up and down each of the classifications. A #16 seed which is still a sub-500 team has walked away with another Quad-A title...a #10-seed shocked the work by first scoring, then beating one of the best pitchers in WPIAL history...a #3-seed captured diamond gold for the first time in school history and the only top-seed to win a championship this spring did so with a perfect record. Few will soon forget the efforts put forth in this postseason which led to baseball titles for Seneca Valley, West Allegheny, Steel Valley and California. Here are ALL of the results from the 2014 WPIAL Baseball Playoffs.
Sweet Sixteen Run Ends for Seneca Valley With 3rd Title in 4 Years
May 29, 2014
16-seeds are not supposed to be still playing in late May. Teams with overall records under .500b 20 game in are only supposed to see the district championship game if they purchase a ticket. Don't tell any of that to Seneca Valley. The Raiders bucked all odds by beating Baldwin 5-2 Thursday to win the schools third WPIAL Quad-A baseball title in the last four years.WPIAL Baseball and Consolation Recaps for Thursday, May 29th
While many eyes were on both CONSOL Energy Field for the baseball finals and California University of Pennsylvania for the softball championships, five spots in the upcoming PIAA state playoffs were up for grabs at W&J College Sports Complex and at West Mifflin High School. Here are recaps from those three baseball and two softball WPIAL consolation games. A special thanks to Pete Blais, Dennis Fischer, Greg Kuntz and Sean Meyers for their help on these recaps. BASEBALL: Class AAAA Consolation Game:
Steel Valley Rallies to Beat Seton-LaSalle for First WPIAL Baseball Title
May 27, 2014
It takes 21 outs to complete a 7 inning baseball game, but sometimes the final out is the hardest one to get. Seton-LaSalle came within 1 out of the WPIAL Class AA Championship at Consol Energy Park, but third seeded Steel Valley had other ideas, getting a game tying 2-run single from second baseman Bryce Varhola in the bottom of the seventh inning and an RBI base hit from designated hitter Jesse Cantley to complete the comeback with three runs to defeat the Rebels 6-5 to capture the school’s first ever WPIAL Baseball Championship.WPIAL Consolation Tuesday Baseball & Softball Recaps
Stormy weather played a part in what was scheduled to be six WPIAL consolation baseball and softball games on Tuesday. Two games were postponed, one was suspended and three did go final despite a delay or two. Here are summaries from the three District 7 consolation games that did make it into the books as finals. A special thanks to Pete Blais, Mark Schaas, Bob Gregg and Aaron Thompson for their help on these recaps. BASEBALL: WPIAL CLASS AA Consolation:
2014 WPIAL Baseball Championship Game Previews
May 26, 2014
Consol Energy Field is the home of the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League but this week, the WPIAL Baseball Championships take center stage as four new champions will be crowned. Upsets(and rain) were the story of this championship tournament, who will come out on top. Here are previews of all four games, all of which can be heard right here on The NETWORK:This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 05/26/2014
Championship Week is upon us as we conclude the final district playoffs of the 2013-2014 school year as May shifts into June this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have EXCLUSIVE coverage of all eight of the 2014 WPIAL Baseball and Softball as well as the eight consolation games and some of the District 6 diamond title games, plus we Washington Wild Things baseball, the debut of Pennsylvania Rebellion softball, another edition of Rappin on Racin and The WPIAL Baseball Show...championship edition on a special night ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, May 26th:MSA Sports Baseball Playoff Recap for Friday, May 23rd
May 24, 2014
Seven Final Four baseball games took place on Thursday as the winners celebrated a berth in the finals while the losers began to regroup and prepare to play for a berth in the state playoffs. That left one missing piece to the district championship puzzle and that played out Friday afternoon at West Mifflin High School. Here is the recap. A special thanks to Dennis Fischer for his help on this recap. WPIAL CLASS AAA Semifinals:Scholastic Notebook – 05/23/3014
May 23, 2014
The perfect championships don’t happen often in WPIAL softball. But for the Deer Lakes Lancers, they’ve been in the perfect storm before. Deer Lakes is 18-0 and will play Beaver (15-0) for the Class AA championship Thursday at California University of Pennsylvania. It is only the third time in 17 years that a softball title game will match two undefeated teams. But it’s the second year in a row for Deer Lakes. In 2013, Deer Lakes and Riverside both took undefeated records into the title game before Riverside came away with a 5-1 victory. The only other time in the past 17 years that two undefeated teams met in a final was 1998 when Carmichaels beat Sto-Rox for the Class AA crown.
