Norwin baseball mounts wild 7th-inning rally to beat Central Catholic

By: Sean Saputo
Monday, May 18, 2026 | 10:49 PM

Purchase Photo Options

Norwin took five innings to get a hit and didn’t score after loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the sixth, but still managed to beat Central Catholic, 4-3, by scoring four runs in the bottom of the seventh of a WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal Monday night.

“I’m in disbelief,” said Norwin coach Craig Spisak. “We stacked good at-bats in the seventh inning and our eight and nine hitters grinded out good at-bats and led things off.”

In the do-or-die seventh inning, the fourth-seeded Knights opened with a leadoff single by Ethan McMullen, followed by a walk from Dante Marino. They advanced to second and third base on a balk.

Trevor Vitsas drove in the first run with a groundout, followed by a hit by pitch of Tristyn Tavares then a Caden Sivrich RBI single, making the score, 3-2.

A strikeout put Norwin down to its final out, then a hit batter loaded the bases. An infield single by Josh Funk tied the score, 3-3.

The ninth batter of the inning, Ryan Helphenstine, ended the night as the hero, winning the game with a walk-off hit by pitch, the third hit batter of the inning by Vikings reliever, Nate O’Leary.

“We talked two-thirds of the way through the game that we needed to change our approach,” said Spisak. “We wanted to make the pitchers work and our kids do a great job helping each other out with the pitcher’s tendencies.”

No. 5 Central Catholic had taken control of the game early, capitalizing on a Norwin error that would’ve ended the top of the first with a two-run homer by Chase Gelpi, then added its third run in the top of the third on an RBI single by pitcher Josh McFadden.

McFadden had the Knights on their heels throughout the night and pitched a dazzling game, allowing just three hits and three walks with eight strikeouts through 5 1/3 innings. He was pulled after 82 pitches halfway through the third time through the order.

“McFadden pitched really well and keep us off balance,” said Spisak. “It was the best I’ve seen Josh throw in his four years.”

Norwin began to find its offensive rhythm in the sixth inning, loading the bases with no outs. But the Knights left the bases full after three consecutive strikeouts by the Vikings pitching, one from McFadden and the other two by O’Leary.

“Submarine like O’Leary throws, there aren’t too many kids that throw that Kent Tekulve-like action, so that arm angle will run in and it affected the eye angle to end the sixth,” said Spisak.

On the mound for Norwin, Matt O’Neil pitched what Spisak called a gutsy performance, working out of multiple jams to keep the Knights in the game.

“Matt got stronger as the game went on,” said Spisak. “There was some bad luck for him in that first inning, but he didn’t let it bother him. He stayed focused, had composure and stayed poised.”

With the victory, Norwin (13-8) returns to the Class 6A semifinals for the second consecutive season and must take down top-seeded Butler to make a return trip to the WPIAL championship game.

“They have two Division I arms, so I know they’re going to be very good,” said Spisak. “We saw (Nolan) Stefaniak in the first round last year, and they have (Kyle) Casteel, so we have to get ready for them. They’re a good team.”

As for Central Catholic, the season ends at 9-12 overall. The Vikings had an up-and-down season, having started 1-3 before rallying to start 5-1 in section play, moving to 6-4 overall.

The tides turned when they were swept consecutively by North Allegheny and Butler, falling to 6-10, but they managed to reel off three of four to close the regular season before Monday’s loss.

Tags: Central Catholic, Norwin