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Mathes, Wayne order overpower Concord

By Matt Smith This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.@DTMattSmith on Twitter

EASTTOWN TWP. >> Alden Mathes posed for pictures with the Charlie Kress Trophy Sunday afternoon at Devon Prep.

A three-time All-Delco and 2019 Daily Times Player of the Year, Mathes completed his final summer before going off to play at the University of Richmond, throwing five solid innings in Game 5 of the Delco League championship series.

After helping Wayne capture its record 16th league title with a 12-2 triumph over Concord, Mathes was named the Modell’s Finals MVP. In two starts, he went 2-0 with 12 strikeouts and a 0.82 ERA. At the plate, Mathes finished 6-for-15 (.400) with a double, three RBIs, five runs scored and three stolen bases. He also had three sacrifices.

“It’s been exciting ever since the first day,” Mathes said. “After the high school season ended, a day after we lost (in the PIAA Class 5A playoffs), I came out here and it’s been fun ever since. It’s great to be able to come out here and play with a bunch of guys that I know and really just go out there and enjoy the game. Once playoffs started, we obviously took it to another level. Just the entire experience, playing with kids I know and playing with my brother (Cam), the whole thing was great.”

Mathes was poised in bringing home Wayne’s first title since 2015. He battled a tight strike zone and overcame a few bloop hits and defensive miscues to give Wayne manager Brian Fili five solid frames. “Some of those innings were extended when I thought maybe they shouldn’t have, but there’s nothing you can do about it,” Mathes said. “I knew I had to battle through it, I gave up only two runs and I’m not even sure they were earned. Either way, I was just trying to go out there and not let anything bother me at all. I just wanted to pitch through the struggles and pitch to the best of my abilities.”

Mathes was given a 2-0 lead early when Wayne put solo runs on the board in the first and second innings off Concord starter Frank Saviski. Dan Williams blooped a single between the third baseman and left fielder to drive in Kevin Mohollen in the first. Matt Briner led off the second with a walk, moved to second on a Tommy Jacobs sacrifice bunt and scored on an infield single by David Splain.

Hitting ninth in the order, Splain was 3-for-4 with four RBIs.

“It’s a great feeling, especially after losing in the finals a couple times the last few years, against Aston and Narberth,” Splain said. “I love these guys. We’ve been galvanized as a whole group. We used to be just a bunch of strangers but now we’re a close group of guys. To finally be able to bring home a championship with these guys is a great feeling.

“I’m just doing my job, getting on base for the guys behind me. That’s my goal every game.”

Splain lauded Mathes’ performance in the championship round.

“He’s fresh out of high school and he pitched his butt off, in two games, and is the MVP,” he said. “He comes out and get a big base hit when we need him to. The kid’s awesome, I love him.”

Splain and Kevin Mohollen, who ripped a two-RBI triple in Wayne’s six-run fifth inning, are among the Strath Haven contingent on Wayne’s roster that has played for Fili for several years.

Only three members of Wayne’s roster — Williams and pitchers Tom Cockill

and James Dougherty — played on the 2015 championship team.

“The last time we won a championship, I left midway through the summer to go play college ball, so this is my first one,” Mohollen said. “It’s pretty sweet.”

Wayne’s bats produced 12 runs on 10 hits one day after being no-hit by Concord ace Brad Scull.

“You ask anyone who gets no-hit and has to come out the next day, that is a sinking feeling, that is tough,” said Mohollen. “But just like we’ve done all year, we trusted our bats. Alden came out and pitched his tail off. He’s been unbelievable all season for us and my tip my cap to him because he came up in a huge spot. We knew if we put up some runs for him, he would do the rest.”

Saviski began to run out of gas in the fourth when Wayne sent nine batters to the plates and scored four runs. Will Peiffer began the frame with a triple and scored on a Briner single. Splain fisted a pitch to center field to drive home two more.

“I knew any time you hand the ball to Alden Mathes, you know you’re going to get a good start out of him,” Fili said. “I just knew we needed some offense. We bunted early, trying to get a couple of runs here and there, get ahead and play with the lead like we have for the majority of the second half of the season. We played some small-ball and we executed.”

Saviski, the Canes’ player-manager, called on himself to take the hill in Game 5 because the team simply had no one else available. The big righthander hadn’t started all year. He was relieved by Brendan Phillips in the sixth inning after 119 pitches.

“Frank was tough, man,” Fili said. “He’s a competitor, he’s a tough pitcher and he’s been a great player in this league for a long time.”

By the fifth inning, Saviski was running on fumes, trying to limit the damage, but Wayne tacked on five more and sent 11 batters to the dish. Mohollen’s two-run triple was the big blow.

“We just knew we could get to him,” Splain said. “We trusted our bats to really come up big for us.”

Joe Poduslenko and Chris Salvey each had a sacrifice fly in the top of the third to tie the game briefly at 2. Salvey and Alex Burman collected two hits apiece.

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Pitching depth delivers Wayne another title 

From the Daily Times posted 8/12/2019

 

by Terry Toohey

Fili didn’t just go out and bring in anyone in the offseason. He specifically targeted pitchers.

And so Fili brought in Alden Mathes, the Daily Times Player of the Year from Marple Newtown; Dom Piccone, an All-Delco selection out of Garnet Valley; and Tim Edwards from West Chester. Fili also convinced Cameron Mathes, Alden’s older brother, and Joe Peluso to return to the team after a one-year hiatus.

“You can never have enough pitching,” Fili said.

“You never know what’s going to happen.”

Wayne started the season with 13 pitchers on the roster, but lost Ryan Buck, Tim Kane and Tim Carfey during the season for a variety of reasons, namely work schedules, and Piccone was shut down in the playoffs with a minor back problem.

 Even with those losses, though, Wayne had enough arms left to celebrate its record 16th Delco League title with a 12-2 victory over Concord in Game 5 of the championship series at Devon Prep Sunday afternoon. Alden Mathes pitched five innings to pick up his second win of the series and was earn finals MVP honors. Peluso and Edwards pitched one inning each to close it out. Together, the trio allowed five hits, four walks and struck out six.

“We have a lot of depth, old and young,” Alden Mathes said. “We mix it up.

We have hard throwers, slow throwers, kids that mix in junk. I think we have six quality arms that we’re willing to throw out there in any situation. “

Concord’s Brad Scull was the most dominant pitcher in the series. He threw a shutout in Game 1 and a no hitter in Game 4 to get the franchise within one win of its first Delco League title. The Canes just didn’t have enough arms to seal the deal.

With Nate Sides away on vacation, Concord player/ manager Frank Saviski, penciled himself in as the starter, something he said he hasn’t done since he was 13.

“I’ve been a closer since my junior year of high school,” Saviski said. “One inning, two innings tops, and that hasn’t changed since I was 16, 17 years old.”

Saviski gave it a game effort. He went 4.2 innings and threw 119 pitches, but that was not enough to match the number of arms Wayne had available.

“We were talking in here (in the dugout) that you’re not going to win a championship in this league when you’ve got position players starting Game 2 and Game 3,” Saviski said. “It’s just not going to work. You need arms, real arms, bullpen, starting pitchers. We had that throughout the year, but a couple of guys got hurt. It is what it is.”

The quality of Wayne’s pitching staff showed through in the series. Alden Mathes did not pitch or play like a rookie. Mathes allowed two earned runs and fanned 12 in 11 innings in the championship series. He also batted .400 (6-for-15) with five runs scored and three RBIs.

Mathes showed his mettle in the clincher. Concord used a walk, an error, a bunt and two sacrifice flies in the third inning to tie the game at 2-2. But Mathes settled down and gave up two hits and a walk before giving way to the bullpen.

“That’s a great hitting team,” Mathes said. “I had to pitch my best to hold them down.”

James Dougherty, one of only three players from the 2015 championship squad, and Edwards combined on a four-hit shutout in Game 3. And even though he ended up with a no decision in Game 1 and a loss in Game 4, Cam Mathes gave up just two earned runs and struck out nine in 11 innings.

“There’s not one guy we throw out there that we don’t trust,” Fili said. “We trust all the guys we have.

They’ve been here all summer and have pitched in big games.”

The payoff was another title.

“Brian did a great of recruiting,” said veteran second baseman Dan Williams. “These guys really stepped up for us. Alden was the MVP and did a great job for us on both sides of the ball.

He delivered big for us and gave us a chance to get the bats going, get ahead and get a lead. They’ve come through for us all year.”

To contact Terry Toohey, email ttoohey@delcotimes.

com. Follow him on Twitter @TerryToohey.

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Delco League Finals GM5 (best of 5):

Modell's Finals MVP Alden Mathes talks about his approach as he played in his first finals, his mindset as he took the mound in the series finale, and how raising the trophy made the grind of the Delco League schedule all worth the experience.

 

Wayne manager, Brian Fili, reflects on his team and how consistency allowed them to get hot at the right time and how pitching depth and speed allowed them to win throughout the playoffs and ultimately capture the 2019 Delco League Championship.

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Scull settles into historic no-hitter to even series

By Matt Smith This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. @DTMattSmith on Twitter

CONCORD >> Game 4 of the Delco League championship series got off to an inauspicious start for Concord ace Brad Scull.

The brawny righthander began his outing with six straight pitches out of the strike zone. From the dugout, player manager Frank Saviski, who acted as Concord’s designated hitter, provided words of encouragement to the Monsignor Bonner and Wilmington University product.

“That’s really unusual for me, throwing six balls in a row,” Scull said. “I was kind of saying to myself, what’s going on?”

It was evident that Scull was pretty amped up. He wanted to give a repeat performance of his Game 1 gem, when he tossed 5.2 innings of three-hit ball, allowing no runs while striking out six in a win.

Scull needed to be at his very best Saturday at Garnet Valley. Even after the early bout of wildness, he was sensational.

Scull hurled a no-hitter with 10 strikeouts as the No. 2 Canes defeated top-seeded Wayne, 2-0. The winner-take-all Game 5 showdown is scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 2 o’clock at Devon Prep.

Wayne and Concord completed Thursday’s suspended Game 3 prior to Game 4. Tom Edwards pitched the final two innings in relief of winning pitcher James Dougherty for a 5-0 decision. Alden Mathes, the 2019 Daily Times Player of the Year from Marple Newtown, led the Wayne offense with a single, double, three runs scored and a pair of RBIs.

Game 4, however, was all about Scull.

“I knew I had to take a step back, take a deep breath and get back to my basic fundamentals,” he said. “I just had to settle in and throw strikes.”

Scull needed 40 pitches to get through the first two innings, then was on cruise control the rest of the way. He retired the side in order in the third and fourth, and worked around walks in the fifth and sixth. Wayne failed to get a runner into scoring position against Scull, who threw 90 pitches on a sun-splashed, 88-degree afternoon.

“He pitched his tail off,” Saviski said. “My hat’s off to him. That was one of the best performances I’ve seen from a pitcher in my entire life.”

Many of the Concord players were unaware that Scull had just thrown a no-no after Wayne catcher Tommy Jacobs bounced out to shortstop to end the game.

“I had zero idea I had a no-hit bid going,” Scull said. “People were saying to me right after it was over, ‘Do you know what you just did?’ I said, ‘Throw a complete game shutout? I don’t know.’’ It was awesome to hear that, man, because I had no idea. ... No doubt that it’s special. It’s one of those games that I won’t forget for a long time.”

In the seventh, Scull was aided by timely defense after Wayne got its leadoff hitter aboard on an error. Matt Briner smashed a line drive to shortstop Nate Sides, who snagged the ball in the air and threw to first to turn a 6-3 double play.

“Honestly, we had no idea he was throwing a no-hitter. When we were coming off the field, (left fielder) Joe (Poduslenko) was like, ‘I think he just threw a no-hitter,’” Sides said. “All the credit goes to Brad. He was awesome.

“If I had to take the field with anybody on the mound, it would be

Brad Scull, no doubt about it. I mean, he’s a horse. ... When he’s on the mound, we play with a different swagger.”

After an anemic offensive showing in Game 3, the Concord bats came alive against Wayne starter Cam Mathes. Sides was responsible for three of the team’s eight base knocks against the hard-throwing right-hander, including an RBI single in the fifth inning to make it 2-0.

“I think we’re good about turning the page and getting focused for the next game,” Sides said. “They played a great game (Game 3) and beat us, and we knew that this game would be lowscoring. We were able to scratch that first run across in the first inning when the hit-and-run worked and, once we put up two runs, Brad was cruising and we knew we were in the driver’s seat.”

Matt Maul coaxed a lead-off walk in the bottom of the third, scampered to third base on a one-out single by Sides and crossed home plate on a two-out knock by Chris Salvey.

As was the case in Game 1, Mathes deserved a better fate. While he scattered eight hits and two earned runs, the Marple Newtown All-Delco and Villanova junior struck out five and allowed only on walk in a six inning complete game.

“I think it was all about just going with where the pitch was. We know he loves his curveball, and our guys were going up and being aggressive on that first pitch. He’s a great pitcher,” Sides said. “Poduslenko crushed two balls to left field on that pitch. I think everyone’s approached changed a bit, but we knew we just had to put a couple of runs across and let Brad take over.”

Wayne will turn to one of its youngest players, Alden Mathes, to win Game 5. The left-hander is set to pitch for the University of Richmond next spring.

Saviski will call upon himself to start on the mound for Concord, which is seeking its first Delco League title. Saviski struck out five in 2.1 innings of relief in Game 3 Thursday but he intends to throw all seven Sunday.

Whatever it takes, right?

“In the past we played Wayne in two Game 5s in the semifinals. Now we’re in Game 5 of the finals and we hope for a better outcome,” Saviski said. “I’m going to go out there, give it my all and see what happens.”

 

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Wayne’s Paparella looking to go out as a champion

By Harry Chaykun

For MediaNews Group

CONCORD >> Ed Paparella hopes the Delco Baseball League playoffs will end this weekend.

If Wayne and the Concord Canes would have to play next week, Paparella will be checking the results on his laptop or his phone. 

“I’m moving to Texas,” said Paparella, who plays the outfield and hits in the third spot in the batting order for Wayne.

“I’m going to be an assistant (baseball) coach at Howard Junior College in Big Spring.”

Paparella had a run-scoring double in the fourth inning at Garnet Valley High School Thursday night as Wayne took a 4-0 lead over Concord in Game 3 of the championship series, which is tied at one game apiece.

Before the first pitch of the sixth inning, the skies darkened. When thunder and lightning were followed by heavy rain, players and fans dashed for the parking lot.

After a 20-minute delay, Delco League president Nick Ducomb and the umpires agreed that the game would be suspended. It will be resumed at 3 p.m. Saturday at Garnet Valley before Game 4 begins. Should Wayne win the suspended game as well as Game 4, it would claim its 16th Delco League playoff championship.

If Concord, which is competing in the finals for the first time, were to make a Game 5 necessary, that game will be hosted by Wayne at Devon Preparatory School Sunday beginning at 2 p.m.

Whenever the playoffs are completed, Paparella will pack his belongings and begin his career in college coaching at Howard JC, the school at which he played for two years after his graduation from The Hun School in Princeton.

Paparella helped Hun to the 2011 New Jersey Prep A championship, then spent two years at Howard JC before playing at the University of South Alabama.

The Skillman, New Jersey, native missed the 2018 collegiate season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, then suffered an injury to the hamate bone in his hand just before the 2019 campaign began.

He did play 21 games for South Alabama in the spring, hitting a pair of home runs and driving in nine runs.

The 2019 season is his third in the Delco League with Wayne.

“From one through nine, I don’t remember being part of a lineup as strong as this one,” he said. “Some of the younger players have been outstanding. It’s been a great season. We’d like to get it done in the right way, and then I’ll be off to start my coaching career.”

Wayne scored a pair of runs in the top of the first Thursday. Kevin Mohollen led off with a walk, took second base on a wild pitch, and came home easily on a double by Alden Mathes. Paparella and Dan Williams walked to load the bases, and Mathes scored as Brady Schlack grounded into a double play.

Wayne starter James Dougherty gave up three hits, struck out three and did not allow a walk in five innings.

Wayne got to Canes starter Ryan Johnson for another run in the top of the third inning. Mathes led off with his second hit of the game and stole second. After a pair of outs, Will Peiffer’s infield single and a walk to Matt Briner loaded the bases. Frank Saviski replaced Johnson on the mound for Concord, and Brady Mutz singled to score Mathes.

Catcher Johnny DeMucci singled leading off the bottom of the third for the Canes. Courtesy runner John Convery stole second base then was stranded.

Saviski set down the first two batters he faced in the top of the fourth before Mathes reached on an error and Paparella doubled to produce an unearned run.

Nate Sides doubled leading off the Concord fourth inning, but Dougherty again set down the next three batters.

“It was good to get the jump on them,” Paparella said. “Now we’ll wait before we come back Saturday and see if we can finish this out.”

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Peiffer’s clutch hit helps Wayne even series

From the Daily Times posted 8/7/2019

By Terry Toohey ttoohey@21st-centurymedia. com @TerryToohey on Twitter

EASTTOWNTWP. >> Will Peiffer was stiff and sore from taking a pitch to the ribs in the first inning and it showed when the Wayne right fielder stepped to the plate with two on in the bottom of the third inning Tuesday evening.

The Downingtown East grad and junior-to-be at Ursinus swung and missed badly at the first two offerings from Concord starter Nate Sides, and it looked like the Canes might get out of the jam with only minimal damage.

Peiffer stepped out of the batters’ box, gathered himself and promptly turned in the at-bat of the game, and maybe the series, as Wayne rolled over Concord, 8-1, at Devon Prep to even the best-of-five Delco League championship series at one game apiece.

Peiffer laced a two-run single to right-center field on the 12th pitch of the at bat to chase home Ed Paparella and Dan Williams to give Wayne a 3-0 lead.

“I was just looking to get contact, get the barrel on the ball,” Peiffer said. “If I had to foul off as many pitches as I can, I’ll do that.”

The left-handed hitting Peiffer fouled off three straight pitches, took three balls, and fouled off three more pitches before he sent Sides’ one-out offering into the gap.

“That was the biggest part of the game, making it from 1-0 to 3-0,” Wayne manager Brian Fili said. “It was a great at-bat. It was the first at-bat after he got drilled and he has a pretty good bruise there. That changed the momentum of the game. That was really important because those guys can swing the bat.”

Two batters later Tommy Jacobs drove in Peiffer to give Wayne a 4-0 cushion after three innings, which was more than enough for starter Alden Mathes. The 2019 Daily Times Player of the Year from Marple Newtown allowed three hits, no runs and struck out six in six innings.

“That was huge,” Mathes said of Peiffer’s at-bat. “You could see him grimacing on each swing, but he hung in there. It just shows you how much of a warrior he is. He battled through pain there and got us the biggest hit of the series. If he doesn’t get a hit there, it’s only 1-0. I’m a lot more comfortable pitching with a three-run lead. I can be more aggressive and pitch around their better hitters. That way if we give up a run we still have the lead.”

The Canes could not find a way to get a runner home against Mathes. The crafty lefty gave up a leadoff triple to Ed Poduslenko in the fourth inning and stranded him there. Mathes got out of minimal trouble in the fifth and sixth innings before turning the ball over to Joe Peluso for the seventh.

“He’s really talented and a good competitor,” Wayne second baseman Dan Williams said of Mathes. “He gave us the lift we needed today. He shut them down and gave us a chance to get the offense  going.”

It took a little while to get that offense in gear after Wayne suffered its first shutout loss of the season in the 3-0 setback in Game 1, running into several outs early. Kevin Mohollen was caught stealing after  drawing a leadoff walk in the first inning. Pfeiffer was doubled off second following a line drive by Jacobs in the second inning and Matt Briner was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.

Peiffer’s hit in the third changed all that and Wayne kept the pressure on. Ed Paparella tripled home Mohollen in the fourth inning to make it 5-0. Luke Mutz and Mathes drove in one run each in a three-run outburst in the bottom of the fifth.

Peiffer and Williams finished with two RBIs each. Mathes, Paparella, Jacobs (two hits) and Mutz knocked in one run each. Briner was the only starter who failed to get a hit.

“That lineup, that’s what they did all year,” Concord manager Frank Siviski said. “They may sleep one game, but not two. If you don’t come out with energy they’re going to bury you and that’s what they did tonight.”

Chris Salvey spoiled the shutout bid when he doubled home Sides with two outs in the top of the seventh, but that wasn’t enough to keep Wayne from tying up the series.

Now the series shifts to Garnet Valley for Games 3 (Thursday at 5:45) and 4 (Saturday at 3).

“You can’t go down 2-0, it just makes it hard,” Fili said. “You have to win three in a row against a team like that and that isn’t easy. But we’re back even and we built this team with a lot of pitching depth and hopefully that will carry us through.”

•••

NOTES >> Saviski said Ryan Johnson will get the call for the Canes in Game 3. Fili will counter with James Dougherty. … If a Game 5 is necessary it will be Sunday at Devon Prep at 2.

  1. Delco League Finals GM1: Concord 3, Wayne 0
  2. Delco League Finals - Preview
  3. 2019 Playoff Schedule

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