Dallas players look over the trophy after finishing second in the state following a 7-1 loss to Bellefonte in Saturday’s PIAA Class 4A championship game at Penn State’s Medlar Field.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Mountaineers bats quieted in title game loss
Dallas left fielder JJ Rischawy makes a catch in the third inning to put out Bellefonte’s Peyton Vancas.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dusty Shaver walks to the end of the dugout ready to enter the game as a relief pitcher against Bellefonte.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas pitcher Sam Barrouk sits at the end of the dugout after being relived as the starting pitcher in the PIAA Class 4A championship.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas players exit the field after the PIAA Class 4A championship loss to Bellefonte.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas outfielder Mike Timinski gets under a ball hit by Bellefonte batter Nate Fisher in the first inning of play.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Nancy Page, left, and Bill Kunec, grandfather to Dallas senior Joe Peters, cheer as Peters steps up to bat in the first inning.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Sam Barrouk was the starting pitcher for Dallas in the PIAA Class 4A Championship Saturday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
The silver medal hangs around the neck of Dallas shortstop Zach Paczewski.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Bellefonte’s Trevor Johnson beats the throw as he slides into second while Zach Paczewski fields the ball in the sixth inning.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas’ Mikey Timinski claps after making it to second base in the third inning.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Zach Paczewski looks out from the back of the Dallas dugout after hearing the crack of the bat in the fifth inning.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Bellefonte’s Felix Oquendo was forced out at third base by Dylan Geskey of Dallas in the second inning.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Dallas’ Zach Paczewski gets a hug from Joe Peters (2) after the final out of Saturday’s state championship game in State College.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
The Dallas baseball team poses with the state runner-up trophy for 2023 after finishing second in the PIAA Class 4A tournament on Saturday at Penn State.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
STATE COLLEGE — Dallas’ final trip to the plate epitomized Saturday afternoon for the Mountaineers.
Liner in the left-center gap … caught on the run. Blast down the right-field foul line … caught on the run. Another rip to the outfield, this one to the right-center gap … caught on the run.
Seven innings of frustration for Dallas and seven innings of elation for Bellefonte, which defeated the Mountaineers 7-1 in the PIAA Class 4A baseball championship game at Medlar Field at Penn State University.
District 2 champion Dallas finished 18-8. District 6 champ Bellefonte ended its year at 20-5.
“It was a great run from day one,” Dallas first-year coach Mike Viglone said. “Obviously, the kids are a little disappointed now, but they will remember this for the rest of their lives. Our bats weren’t there today.”
Bellefonte pitcher Dominic Capparella played a big part. The lefty threw a complete game and settled in after surrendering two hits and a run in the first inning. Dallas had just four more hits and one real scoring threat the rest of the way.
“We started off hot and then just fell off and couldn’t figure out a way to get it back,” said Dallas shortstop Zach Paczewski, who scored the Mountaineers’ only run. “His curveball, we couldn’t tell the difference between his curve and fastball, and he’s a good pitcher.”
Paczewski lined a one-out single to left in the first inning. An out later, Dylan Geskey singled to center and Paczewski tried to score. The throw beat Paczewski, but Bellefonte catcher Braedyn Kormanic couldn’t get the handle and he scored after scrambling back to the plate after failing to touch it initially.
The Mountaineers’ best scoring chance later came in the fifth. Mikey Timinski and Gavin Adamski led off the inning with singles. But a flyout and a pair of fielder’s choices quelled the threat.
Bellefonte took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the first, but the damage the Raiders created in the third put Dallas in a significant hole.
A walk, hit batter and single by Kormanic loaded the bases with one out. Levi Purnell then hit a low liner that second baseman Jude Nocito couldn’t get with a diving attempt to his right. The two-run single, followed by a double steal, pushed the advantage to 5-1.
Sacrifice flies in the fifth and sixth innings plated the final runs for Bellefonte. Duke recruit Trevor Johnson had a pair of doubles and scored twice. He was a part of a batting order with very impressive stats that banged out seven hits against Dallas starter Sam Barrouk. Barrouk was 3-0 with a 0.97 ERA in the postseason.
“One though nine, they all hit the ball,” Barrouk said. “They hit me well. I didn’t have my best game, but you have to give them credit. You got to tip your hat to them.”
Capparella threw 107 pitches. The limit is 105 in the postseason, but pitchers are allowed to finish a batter. A visit to the mound before the final batter was to verify the pitch count, which was 104 at the time.
“They coaches thought I was at 105,” Capparella said. “They were checking with the (press) box. He wasn’t trying to pull me out. We were both going to 105 and I was thankful I didn’t have to come out.”
PIAA CLASS 4A CHAMPIONSHIP
Bellefonte 7, Dallas 1
Dallas`AB`R`H`BI
Adamski c`4`0`1`0
Paczewski ss`3`1`1`0
Peters rf`3`0`0`0
Geskey 3b`3`0`1`1
Nocito 2b`3`0`0`0
Rischawy lf`3`0`1`0
S.Healey 1b`2`0`0`0
Coyne ph`1`0`0`0
Zangardi dh`3`0`1`0
Barrouk p`0`0`0`0
Shaver p`0`0`0`0
Timinski cf`2`0`1`0
Totals`27`1`6`1
Bellefonte`AB`R`H`BI
Johnson rf`4`2`2`0
Vancas 2b`4`1`2`0
Ebeling cf`1`1`0`0
Heckman ss`1`2`1`2
Kormanic c`3`0`1`0
Tomasacci cr`0`1`0`0
Capparella p`2`0`0`0
Purnell dh`2`0`2`3
Oquendo pr`0`0`0`0
Stock lf`0`0`0`0
Corman 1b`3`0`0`0
Brown 3b`3`0`2`0
Totals`23`7`10`3
Dallas`100`000`0 – 1
Bellefonte`203`011`x – 7
E – Dallas 1. LOB – Dallas 7, Bellefonte 7. 2B – Johnson 2, Heckman. SAC – Eberling. SF – Heckman 2, Purnell.
Dallas`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Barrouk (L)`4`7`5`5`1`1
Shaver`2`3`2`2`2`0
Bellefonte`IP`H`R`ER`BB`SO
Capparella (W)`7`6`1`1`2`5
HBP – Heckman (by Barrouk)
