Top 15 baseball finals in 15 years at Wild Things Park: Jeannette beats GCC in 12 innings in 2017

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, May 22, 2018 | 4:45 PM

The TribLive High School Sports Network is counting down the Top 15 WPIAL baseball championship games held over the past 15 years at Wild Things Park.

Catch all the postseason action on the exclusive broadcast home of the WPIAL baseball playoffs, the TribLive High School Sports Network.

Here's a look at No. 7:

2017 Class A championship: Jeannette 7, Greensburg Central Catholic 3 (12 inn.)

They say the first championship is always the most memorable. But when that first time comes at the expense of your biggest rival, then it's time to ratchet up the euphoria a couple more notches.

Jeannette scored two runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game then tallied four runs in the 12th to beat Greensburg Central Catholic, 7-3, in the 2017 WPIAL Class A finals.

The Jayhawks came into the title game as underdogs. Greensburg Central Catholic was playing in the finals for a third straight year after beating California in 2015 and losing to Serra Catholic in 2016.

Then, in the two regular-season meetings, the Centurions won 5-4 and 3-1, with the second meeting being a combined no-hitter by GCC pitchers Neal McDermott and Antonio Cavallo.

Greensburg Central Catholic jumped out on top in the third when McDermott tripled home Nicolas Ruggeri. McDermott then scored on a throwing error to make it 2-0.

Jeannette cut the lead in half in the fourth when Seth Howard singled home Eric Hall.

The Centurions regained a two-run lead in the sixth when Ethan Bailey scored on an RBI single by Cavallo, setting the stage for the seventh inning fireworks by the Jayhawks.

Michael Pompei and Tre' Cunningham scored to tie the game when Tyler Elliott's ground ball was misplayed by Ruggeri.

Fireworks turned into lightning, and a 52-minute delay in the eighth extended what already was going to be a lengthy contest.

The game stayed tied until the top of the 12th, when Zander Malik smacked a single that scored Hall. The Jayhawks added three insurance runs on a bases-loaded walk and a dropped fly ball that produced two more runs.

The first baseball championship in school history was a credit to coach Markus Clarkson. In his first year as Jeannette coach, the Jayhawks finished 1-15 in 2005.

It also marked the start of a golden 2017 year for Jeannette as many of these same players would play a big role in the Jayhawks' 2017 WPIAL Class A football championship six months later.

Don Rebel is a TribLive High School Sports Network broadcaster and staff writer. Reach him at drebel@tribweb.com.

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Jeannette