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Top Seeds Cruise in Semifinal Openers
Top Seeds Cruise in Semifinal Openers
Joe Greenwich, DelcoLeague.com
DELCO – The eternal question of "rest vs. rust" will likely never be answered; that's why it's eternal.
In this year's Delco League playoffs there is no such debate, as top-seeded Wayne and second-seeded Upper Darby had a week of the former and showed none of the latter in earning Game 1 wins on Monday night.
#1 Wayne 5, #4 Aston Valley 2
At Devon Prep, Wayne opened its title defense with a 5-2 win over fourth-seeded Aston Valley to take a 1-0 lead in the series.
It was the Knights that would strike first in this one, taking a 2-0 lead in the top of the third with Vinny Proietto and Root notching runs batted in.
The lead would be short-lived, however, as the hosts hung a five-spot on the board in the bottom of the frame to provide all of the offense they would need. Matt Kane drove in a pair of runs in the inning, with Matt Briner, Nate Sides, and Steven Wells adding an RBI apiece.
Aston Valley managed just a pair of base runners over the final four innings, as Cam Mathes, Alex Pak, and Joe Peluso combined to shut the door. Mathes earned the win, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks while striking out four in four innings; Peluso earned a four-out save. Bryan Pazulski allowed five runs and nine hits while fanning three in four innings to take the loss.
Game 2 is set for Tuesday at 5:45 p.m. at Devon Prep.
Aston Valley 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 – 2 4 0
Wayne 0 0 5 0 0 0 X – 5 9 0
Wayne leads, 1-0
W: C. Mathes
L: Pazulski
S: Peluso
#2 Upper Darby 13, #3 Drexel Hill 1
Meanwhile, over in Marple Township, Upper Darby sucked the drama out of the proceedings right away, scoring four times in the bottom of the first en route to a 13-1 rout of third-seeded Drexel Hill at Cardinal O'Hara.
Two costly errors contributed to the four-run first for the Blue Sox, who tacked on single runs in the second and fourth before putting the game well out of reach with a seven-run sixth. UD hit four home runs in the contest, with Andrew Yates going 3-for-3 with a home run, a double, two RBI, and three runs scored. Sammy Burman hit a grand slam in the sixth, with Christian Strickland and Vince Gasbarro adding longballs in the frame as well.
A solo shot in the fourth from the Ducks' Chris Salvey was the only blemish on the night for UD's Johnny Gonzalez; the ageless wonder tossed six innings of three-hit ball, allowing just the one run while striking out six and walking none. It was a different story for Drexel Hill's Chris Huyette, who faced just six hitters and was charged with four runs – albeit only one of them earned – on just one hit, while walking three and hitting another to take the loss. Dylan Robinson put in a good shift on the mound for the Ducks, taking over with the bases loaded and nobody out in the first before pitching into the sixth inning.
The teams return to O'Hara for Game 2 on Tuesday night at 5:45 p.m.
Drexel Hill 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 – 1 4 3
Upper Darby 4 1 0 1 0 7 X – 13 11 1
Upper Darby leads, 1-0
W: Gonzalez
L: Huyette
