MOOSIC – Len Sincavage had his three busiest pitchers from a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 3 championship season rested and ready when Lake-Lehman arrived at PNC Field for Monday morning’s District 2 Class 3A baseball championship game.
Sincavage turned to each and Ty Federici, Alex Magdalinski and Dylan Wesley were all effective in a 5-3 victory over Wyoming Seminary.
“Those three have been doing it all throughout the season,” Sincavage said.
Federici, a freshman lefty who pitched the most innings for the team this season, started the game with three scoreless innings. He also drove in three runs during that time for a 5-0 lead.
“He’s starting to show some maturity,” Sincavage said. “We have to tell him when he gets frustrated to settle back down and come back and battled back.”
When Wyoming Seminary got the first two batters of the fourth inning on, Magdalinski took over. He earned the win in relief, giving up just one run in 2 2/3 innings.
Kyle Hromisin drew a two-out walk for Wyoming Seminary and scored on Zane Nardone’s double to left field.
That brought Wesley into a familiar situation. He stranded Nardone at second base with a strikeout and got another in a 1-2-3 seventh to earn the save.
“All year, I don’t think I’ve had an outing that has not been with somebody on in a big spot,” said Wesley, who leads the team with a 1.08 earned run average and 12 appearances while ranking second in innings pitched. “Today was the biggest spot I’ve been in. I was lucky enough to get that last out in the sixth inning, then go back after them in the seventh.”
The final brought together some familiar faces from growing up playing baseball together.
Wyoming Seminary, which finished second to the Black Knights in the division and district, also qualified for the state tournament. The Blue Knights had former Back Mountain Little Leaguers Nardone, Kyle Hromisin, Todd Phillips and Frankie Nockley in the starting lineup. Will Youngman got the last two outs on the mound. Evan Hromisin is also on the team.
Lake-Lehman got three hits and two runs scored from Kyle Sincavage while coming out on top.
Max Paczewski reached on an error and Sincavage followed with a single to get the Black Knights started in the bottom of the first. Federici doubled off the left-field fence for a 2-0 lead.
Sincavage got a three-run third inning started with a single. He moved up on a wild pitch and groundout, then scored on a Federici grounder.
Connor Morgan reached on a bunt up the third-base line while driving in Luke Spencer with the final run.
Nick Finarelli added a double for the Black Knights.
Nardone finished 2-for-3 with three RBI for Wyoming Seminary.
Both teams went to the stadium Sunday, but a long delay in the start of the second game of the tripleheader and more threatening weather in the forecast led to a decision to move the game to Monday.
The Black Knights returned to Lake-Lehman to practice with plans of playing Monday night when they found out they would instead play an early-morning game.
“We would have played a 7 in the morning or 12 o’clock at night,” coach Sincavage said. “It didn’t matter. We were ready to go.”
Beginning a few minutes before 9 a.m. on Memorial Day the Black Knights showed it.
Lake-Lehman 5, Dunmore 3
Changes were nothing new to the Black Knights, who defeated Dunmore in a Friday semifinal that was also rescheduled twice.
Lake-Lehman was originally going to give up the home field it earned as top seed, agreeing to a game at Schautz Stadium in Dunmore before another postponement Thursday led to Friday afternoon’s game being played in Sweet Valley.
Lake-Lehman used the same three pitchers as in the district final.
Federici started with 4 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit. He struck out four and walked one.
Wesley finished up with two hitless innings.
Max Paczewski and Kyle Sincavage had two hits and drove in two runs.
Luke Spencer, Connor Morgan and Nick Finarelli also had two hits. Morgan’s hits included a triple.
Up next
Lake-Lehman and Wyoming Seminary are scheduled to open the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class 3A state tournament Monday against the District 4 finalists.
The Black Knights (18-3) take a seven-game winning streak into the game against the loser of that final between Central Columbia and Montoursville. They will stay close to home.
Wyoming Seminary will go into District 4 territory to play District 4’s champion.
