Westmoreland WPIAL baseball playoff capsules for May 24, 2021

By: Paul Schofield
Sunday, May 23, 2021 | 4:07 PM

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Class 6A

Semifinals

Tuesday

2-Norwin (14-3) vs. 3-Hempfield (14-7)

6:30 p.m. at Latrobe

Coaches: Mike Liebdzinski, Norwin; Tim Buzzard, Hempfield

Winner plays: Winner of 1-North Allegheny (18-3)/5-Butler (14-6) on June 1 or 2 at a time to be determined at Wild Things Park, Washington in the finals

Players to watch: Eric Chorba, Sr., OF, Norwin; Phil Fox, Sr., OF/P, Hempfield

Extra bases: Norwin and Hempfield finished as co-champions of Section 2-6A, and they split their season series with the Knights winning 3-0 at home and the Spartans returning the favor three days later, 4-1. Norwin used a two-run home run by Jayden Walker, and Ty Stecko added a two-run single as Norwin defeated Seneca Valley, 4-2, in the quarterfinals Saturday at West Mifflin. Pitcher Jake Bazala earned his eighth win of the season. … Hempfield used a three-run home run from sophomore Gage Wheaton to rally the Spartans from a 3-1 deficit in a 6-4 victory against Central Catholic. Christian Zilli pitched the final two innings to earn the win. He also went 2 for 4 with three RBIs. Hempfield has never reached the finals.

Class A

Quarterfinals

2-Greensburg Central Catholic (13-4) vs. 7-Riverview (9-6)

2:30 p.m. at Haymaker Park

Coaches: Tom Appleby, Greensburg Central Catholic; William Gras, Riverview

Winner plays: Winner of 3-Rochester (10-4)/6-Jefferson-Morgan (12-5), 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Plum.

Players to watch: Zach David, Jr. P, Greensburg Central Catholic; Ryan Aber, Sr. INF, Riverview

Extra bases: Greensburg Central Catholic lost four of its final five games heading into the playoffs. The Centurions earned an 11-7 win over Apollo-Ridge in their regular season finale. They also won 12 of their first 13 games and scored double-digit runs in 10 of those. The Centurions are looking for their first WPIAL title since 2015. … The Raiders made the playoffs for the first time since 2015, and their first-round victory over Avella was their first playoff win since 2014. Taylor Zellefrow hit a monster home run over the left-field fence at Plum during Riverview’s win against Avella, and Vince Shook put together a solid performance on the mound in their 7-2 victory.

Paul Schofield is a Tribune-Review Staff Writer. You can contact Paul by email at pschofield@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Franklin Regional, Greensburg C.C., Hempfield, Norwin, Peters Township, Riverview