Riverview baseball team looks to keep good vibes going in state tournament

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, May 27, 2026 | 5:03 PM

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While the Raiders players and coaches began the playoffs with a clear goal of wanting to go for gold at the home of the Washington Wild Things, they still found themselves with a lot to achieve.

From the first batter in the Class 2A third-place consolation against South Side, Riverview wasn’t going to be stopped in its quest for a berth in the PIAA playoffs.

Junior Lukas Duncan led off the game with a walk and scored on a two-run homer from twin brother Miles.

In all, 21 Riverview plate appearances resulted in a batter reaching base safely through a hit, a walk or an error. The Raiders put up a double-digit run total for the sixth time in a 12-2, six-inning victory over the section rival Rams, which propelled Riverview into the state tournament for the second year in a row.

“I was super excited to help my team get this win,” said Miles Duncan, the team’s starting catcher who also drew two walks and scored a pair of runs.

“It was my first high school home run. That was my goal this year, to hit a home run. I was smiling all the way around the bases.”

A main goal for the Raiders all season was to establish early leads. Riverview did that with five runs in the first, a run in the second and two in the third for an 8-0 lead. The Raiders led 12-0 before South Side scored twice in the sixth.

“We came into the game with a lot of confidence that we could hit the ball and score runs,” Miles Duncan said. “We kept building on that throughout the game. We knew how tough their pitchers (Ryan Shaw and Dawson Frasier) were, but we just wanted to deliver good at-bats.”

The first five Riverview batters reached safely in the top of the first with three hits and two walks against Shaw, the South Side starter. Shaw was pulled after those five batters.

Coach Bill Gras said his team needed a day or two after the semifinal loss to Fort Cherry, the No. 1 seed, to get refocused and back in the right mindset for the consolation game. But he soon was able to see the energy and drive from the players.

“Saturday morning, we always have a specialty practice, whether it be hitting or a specific aspect of our defense,” Gras said. “Going in Saturday morning, you could see the guys were ready to work. It was starting to click. It carried over to a batting practice Monday and when we hit a little bit before leaving the school (Tuesday). It continued to carry into the game.”

Riverview collected 13 hits, with junior Owen Metz leading the way with three singles, an RBI and a run scored. He reached on an error in his fourth at-bat in the sixth inning and scored to make it 10-0.

Junior Ashton Saunders added a pair of hits, and sophomore designated hitter Dom DelRosso broke free from an 0-for-3 day with an RBI double in the sixth.

Sophomore Owen Orbich led off the third with a triple and scored on a suicide squeeze bunt from freshman Jake Sprajcar.

Lukas Duncan settled into his pitching performance and gave up just five hits while walking four and striking out seven.

“The guys worked hard to be ready for this game, and it showed,” Gras said.

Riverview (15-7) finished the WPIAL playoffs 3-1 with additional wins over No. 13 Frazier, 5-4, and No. 5 Laurel, 4-2.

Now, the Raiders are gearing up for a state-tournament rematch with District 10 champion Mercyhurst Prep. It is Riverview’s third trip to states in the last six seasons, also reaching in 2021.

The Lakers defeated Saegertown, 9-1, on Monday for the program’s ninth district title.

Riverview and Mercyhurst Prep will meet Monday afternoon at a location in Erie, most likely at Mercyhurst University. However, the PIAA has yet to set the location and time for the game.

The Lakers (20-2) have won 18 games in a row. They own a collective .405 team batting average.

While the particulars are worked out, Gras said his players are ready for the challenge of a long bus ride and a chance to make some noise in the state tournament. They are aware of what the 1983 Riverview team accomplished, finishing third in the WPIAL tournament before going on a run to the state championship.

Gras said it’s a good feeling for the guys to be playing in June for the second year in a row.

“They have the same pitcher as last year,” Gras said of Lakers senior ace Hunter Krahe, a Charleston Southern (Division I) commit who helped lead Prep to a 5-3 win over Riverview in last year’s first round.

“We hit him OK last year. If we hit like we did (Tuesday), we can do it again. They are a very good team, but they are not unbeatable. It looks like they struggled a little bit in their semifinal game (7-6 win over Wilmington). We’re definitely looking forward to this game.”

Lukas and Miles Duncan, Saunders and junior Rex Roberts started for Riverview in last year’s state-tournament game against Mercyhurst.

Miles Duncan said he’s excited for those new to the lineup to experience a PIAA playoff game.

“Hopefully, we can make another great memory on Monday,” he said. “I am really happy for the younger guys like Dom and (freshmen) Jake (Sprajcar) and Liam (Tomlinson). They have stepped up in a lot of games to help us get to where we are.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

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