Union scores 6 times in 6th inning to secure WPIAL semifinal win over Greensburg C.C.

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, May 22, 2018 | 8:00 PM

With a sharp curveball that dotted the zone, Antonio Cavallo was in a groove for five innings on the mound, helping Greensburg Central Catholic cling to a one-run lead for the majority of the game.

But the Centurions couldn't solve Cavallo's counterpart, Union's Cameron Brown, who quietly went about his business by getting weak contact for popups and groundouts. The inability to build on their lead proved costly the Centurions, and Union broke through in the sixth.

The second-seeded Scotties sent 11 batters to the plate in the sixth, scored six runs and punched their ticket to the WPIAL Class A baseball finals with a 6-1 victory over No. 3 Greensburg Central Catholic in the semifinals Tuesday at Fox Chapel.

Cavallo took a no-hitter into the fifth, but a lack of run support caught up to Greensburg Central Catholic.

“Antonio pitched really well today,” GCC coach Dennis Reist said. “He sets up his fastball with his curveball. He has good control of his curveball, and he has a couple of different curveballs, which I think helps him. We just hit underneath the ball today. It happens. It's part of the game.”

Union (14-3) will face No. 1 Vincentian Academy in the finals next week at Wild Things Park. It is believed to be the first time the Scotties have advanced to a WPIAL baseball final.

“A lot of our guys came after losing in the WPIAL basketball championship with the mindset of getting to the baseball finals,” Union coach Bill Sanders said. “I told them that we needed to get through the section and make the playoffs first. It was one of their main goals, and they want to win it this time. They're hungry.”

Greensburg Central Catholic (13-6) failed to advance to the finals for the first time in four years. The Centurions face Section 2 rival Jeannette in the consolation game with a PIAA berth on the line.

Cavallo, a senior, used an array of breaking pitches, but mainly a sharp curveball, to keep the Scotties off balance, but he ran into trouble in the sixth. Anthony Ryan started the inning by belting a double and was followed by Nate Meeks, who singled and stole second. After an intentional walk to Matt Costello loaded the bases, Seth Pinkerton lined a single up the middle to give the Scotties a 2-1 lead.

A couple of errors and a hit batsman compounded things for the Centurions, and the Scotties added four more runs.

“(Cavallo) was definitely pitching us backwards,” Sanders said. “We talked about that between a couple innings. He hit his spots and worked in and out and up and down. When Anthony Ryan led off with that double, I just had a feeling that we were going to have a big inning.”

Bryce Kurpiel singled home Nicolas Ruggeri four batters into the game to give the Centurions a 1-0 lead, but Brown shut things down after that. He allowed only a hit by pitch and fielder's choice the rest of the way. Brown induced nine groundouts, struck out two and did not walk a batter.

“I always say you have to hit them where they aren't, and we weren't doing that today,” Reist said. “It happens.”

Cavallo, a senior, had one strikeout over six innings, allowed five hits and was charged with four earned runs.

The Centurions will turn their focus to the consolation game where they'll get a rematch with Jeannette, who beat them 7-3 in 12 innings in the finals last year.

“We'll reset,” Reist said. “They have graduation tonight, so they'll go enjoy their ceremony, take tomorrow off and then we'll come back and get to work.”

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer.

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Union