Penn-Trafford baseball making strides in offseason, wins fall league title

By: Paul Schofield
Sunday, December 10, 2023 | 11:01 AM

With the graduation of the team’s top two pitchers, Nolan Marasti and Dylan Grabowski, Penn-Trafford baseball coach Lou Cortazzo knew he had to get some younger pitchers some work.

So Cortazzo got the Warriors into two leagues, played 31 games (going 27-4) and ended up winning the West Penn Fall League championship.

After defeating Mo-Town Baseball (Morgantown, W.Va.) in the championship game, 7-1, the team received a trophy.

The next trophies he wants his team to hoist are the WPIAL and PIAA titles.

“We got a lot of young pitchers some work and experience,” Cortazzo said. “It was very successful.”

Penn-Trafford also defeated Bethel Park, 5-2, in the quarterfinals and South Fayette, 3-2, in the semifinals.

Headlining the list of pitchers were Brandon Rohrer, Robbie Andrews, Hunter Brown, Brayden Boss and Dom Delio. Pitchers Jonny Lovre and Ben Grabowki didn’t play fall ball because of football.

Penn-Trafford is coming off a 16-8-1 season. The banner season included a section title and the school’s first playoff victory.

Others who graduated were Brady Lane, Tom Kalkstein, Jake Otto, Bryce Martin, Anthony Monroe, Jakob Hayne, Maddox Cenci and Peyton Bigler.

Catcher Ian Temple hit a grand slam in the championship game against Mo-Town. Rohrer, Andrew and Brown limited Mo-Town to one run.

‘We needed to get as much playing time as possible,” Cortazzo said. “Colton Tyburski came up and caught when Temple was on the mound and did a fantastic job. You need someone capable of doing that on the fields we plan on.”

Cortazzo said Tyler Freas stepped in and played a solid third base. Brody Hoffman played shortstop because Brayden Stone was dealing with an injury, Jason Sabol returned to center field after missing much of his junior season with an injury, and Logan Matrisch was solid in left field.

Others back include outfielder Carmen Metcalfe, who played football, and Chuck Fontana.

“The players bought in with what we were trying to accomplish in the fall,” Cortazzo said. “They were ready every time we played. It was a good time to develop them. They were playing varsity, competing every day.”

Cortazzo said the players have already started to train in the weight room.

“I’m excited to see how things develop,” Cortazzo said. “The players are excited to get started.”

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Penn-Trafford