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2 days ago
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Riverside bats adjust to South Park ace to advance to the PIAA baseball championship
HARMONY — Back on May 23, Riverside and South Park matched up in the WPIAL 3A semifinals, with South Park junior pitcher Cooper Hochendoner having his way with the Riverside bats. But when the two teams met again on Tuesday, June 10, in the PIAA semifinals, Riverside (20-2) made adjustments and got to Hochendoner, defeating the Eagles 4-1 to punch its second ticket to the PIAA championship game in three years. Advertisement Riverside head coach Dan Oliastro knew his team wasn't ready for Hochendoner the first time around as the hard-throwing southpaw went 9 ⅓ innings while compiling 14 strikeouts. After putting in substantial work using a pitching machine at high velocity, the Panthers struck out only seven times to the South Park (17-8) ace while collecting six hits, with four coming from Zach Hare and Dylan Meyer. Required Reading: The streak continues: Riverside baseball's Zach Hare throws another no-hitter in PIAA quarterfinals 'With the work that we put in practice on the machine, I knew what we were going to get facing him [Hochendoner] a second time around,' Hare said. 'I knew that he likes to get ahead early, so I just wanted to put a short and quick swing on the ball.' Advertisement Throughout the PIAA playoffs, Meyer has come up clutch in the bottom third of the order for Riverside, tallying five hits and four RBIs across two games. Riverside shortstop Dylan Meyer (1) reacts after driving in his RBI of the game during the PIAA Class 3A semifinal game between South Park and Riverside at the AHN Baseball Complex in Harmony, Pa. on June 10, 2025. Against South Park, he came up big again going 2-for-3 with two big insurance RBIs in the second and fourth innings. 'I just love my team to death and want it as much as they do, so I just try my best to go out there and put a good swing on the ball each time,' Meyer said. To pair with the strong timely hitting, Riverside ace Christian Lucarelli made his second start of the PIAA playoffs after pitching a three-hit shutout against Huntingdon in the opening round. Advertisement The senior Duke signee shook off a shaky start to the game after throwing around 60 pitches in three innings. After allowing an unearned run in the third inning on a sacrifice fly, Lucarelli set down eight of the last nine batters he faced in his final three innings. Riverside pitcher Christian Lucarelli (10) gets set to release a pitch during the PIAA Class 3A semifinal game between South Park and Riverside at the AHN Baseball Complex in Harmony, Pa. on June 10, 2025. Required Reading: Trio of Riverside baseball senior pitchers anchoring staff in 2025 Lucarelli finished the day throwing six innings, allowing an unearned run on two hits, two walks and six strikeouts. 'I felt like I was in control the whole game, so I just needed to make a slight adjustment from the first three innings,' Lucarelli said. 'I didn't feel like I was too out of the game, so I just kept repeating to myself that I was in this game and never doubted myself. To take that extra step to get after it in the final three innings pushed me through.' Advertisement Riverside will now take the familiar trip to Penn State's Medlar Field at Lubrano Park to face District IV champion Mount Carmel Area at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, June 12, as it will play for its sixth PIAA baseball championship. 'I feel like a little kid again,' head coach Dan Oliastro said. 'It is so much fun to go back there again, but you want to go back there and win.' This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: PIAA 3A baseball semifinals: Riverside defeats South Park
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2 days ago
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The streak continues: Riverside baseball's Zach Hare throws another no-hitter in PIAA quarterfinals
HARMONY — After having an "off day" for the first time in several weeks in the first round of the PIAA playoffs, Riverside standout pitcher Zach Hare looked to continue his historic postseason against Mohawk in the Class 3A baseball quarterfinals on June 5. Hare used an extra day of rest to his advantage, extending his no-hit streak to 31⅓ innings, throwing a no-hitter Thursday to defeat Mohawk, 6-0. Advertisement 'I have been wanting to live in the moment and take things one game at a time because I get to keep playing with guys I have played with since I was 10,' Hare said. 'I am still at a loss with this streak because I just want to go out there and throw my best and not add pressure to myself.' Coming off of his perfect game in the WPIAL championship against Quaker Valley on May 28 ― when Hare struck out 15 batters ― he struck out 13 batters while walking three against Mohawk. In the postseason, Hare has allowed no runs and eight walks while striking out 55 batters. 'He is different from any other pitcher that I have coached before,' Riverside coach Dan Oliastro said. 'Zach's command is unbelievable and is putting the ball exactly where we want it, fields his position and our biggest concern today was our fielders getting tired waiting for a ball to come to them.' Advertisement Required Reading: 'Supernatural': Zach Hare's historic postseason continues with perfect game in championship In addition Hare's masterpiece on the mound, the Riverside bats did their job, finishing with 11 hits by chipping away at Mohawk pitcher Briar Crawford. With a 1-0 lead entering the fourth inning, Riverside (19-2) got some much-needed insurance. Jackson Barber scored on a wild pitch before Sean Hayes and John Bowser drove home runs with an RBI single and double. Shortstop Dylan Meyer drove in two more in the two of the seventh with a single, scoring Hare and first baseman Christian Lucarelli. Riverside pitcher Zach Hare (27) delivers a pitch during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game between Riverside and Mohawk at the AHN Baseball Complex in Harmony, Pa. on June 5, 2025. 'We have been very aggressive at the plate recently,' Meyer said. 'I think some of the guys earlier in the season weren't as aggressive but now we are attacking pitches. I want to keep my approach simple and look for something early and build off of that.' Advertisement Riverside will have a rematch with South Park in the PIAA Class 3A semifinals, on Monday, June 9, at a site and time to be determined. The Panthers won their previous matchup, 1-0 in 12 innings, in the WPIAL tournament semifinals. This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: PIAA baseball quarterfinals: Riverside's Zach Hare throws no-hitter
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PIAA 3A baseball championship preview: What to know as Riverside faces Mount Carmel Area
Riverside will appear in its second PIAA Class 3A championship game in three seasons when it faces off against Mount Carmel Area in a battle of district champions for the state title. Here is what you need to know about the championship matchup. When is the PIAA Class 3A championship game? The PIAA Class 3A championship game will mark the second game of the 2025 PIAA baseball championships on Thursday, June 12, with the first pitch slated for 1:30 p.m. at Penn State's Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. What's at stake? Riverside is vying for its sixth PIAA title under longtime head coach Dan Oliastro, who is in his 57th year as the skipper. Each of the previous five times that Riverside has made the trip to State College, it has captured PIAA gold. Its last state championship victory came in 2023 when it shut out Camp Hill 4-0 to cap off a perfect season. Advertisement Required Reading: 'Supernatural': Zach Hare's historic postseason continues with perfect game in championship Mount Carmel will be making its first trip to the state championship game in its second appearance in the PIAA playoffs after making a run to the quarterfinals in 2024. How they got here Riverside has hit its stride in the state playoffs after playing in several tight one-run games in the WPIAL postseason. It began its state playoff run with a dominant 9-0 win over Huntingdon with Christian Lucarelli throwing a complete game three-hitter. In the quarterfinals, it posted its second consecutive shutout of the state tournament defeating section foe Mohawk 6-0. Riverside pitcher Zach Hare tossed a no-hitter, striking out 13 in the win. Advertisement Most recently in the semifinals, the Panthers defeated South Park 4-1 for the second time this postseason in a rematch from the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals. Lucarelli threw six innings, allowing an unearned run on two hits with two walks and six strikeouts. Sophomore shortstop Dylan Meyer has been one of Riverside's hottest hitters in the state postseason, compiling seven hits and six RBIs in three games. Riverside pitcher Zach Hare (27) delivers a pitch during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game between Riverside and Mohawk at the AHN Baseball Complex in Harmony, Pa. on June 5, 2025. Hare, who is slated to pitch in the championship game, has thrown 31 ⅓ consecutive no-hit innings for Riverside across the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs. In his past two outings for the team, he threw a perfect game in the WPIAL championship game against Quaker Valley followed by the aforementioned no-hitter against Mohawk. Advertisement The senior Slippery Rock signee has posted a 9-0 record in 12 appearances, throwing 66 innings and striking out 127. On the other side, Mount Carmel knocked off two district champions en route to the championship game. In the opening round, it beat District II champion Dunmore 5-0 as pitcher Drew Yagodzinskie pitched a one-hitter, striking out 14 and allowing just one walk. The team then faced District III runner-up Bermudian Springs, taking the game 3-1 with first baseman Clarke Cartwright driving in a pair of runs. In its semifinal matchup against District III champion Berks Catholic, Yagodzinskie pitched a complete game, allowing three runs while striking out 11. The bottom of the order for Mount Carmel came up big by driving in three RBIs. Riverside shortstop Dylan Meyer (1) watches his ball's flight during the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal game between Riverside and Mohawk at the AHN Baseball Complex in Harmony, Pa. on June 5, 2025. Projected starting lineups 7-1 Riverside (20-2) 1. Sean Hayes, C Advertisement 2. John Bowser, RF 3. Hunter Garvin, CF 4. Zach Hare, P 5. Christian Lucarelli, 1B 6. Drake Fox, 3B 7. Dylan Meyer, SS 8. Jackson Barber, LF 9. Logan Young, 2B 4-1 Mount Carmel Area (20-4) 1. Brayden Brinkash, C 2. Jason Klokis, RF 3. Jon Morgante, SS 4. Drew Yagodzinskie, DH 5. Lukas Carpenter, P 6. Gabe Yuskoski, 3B 7. Clarke Cartwright, 1B 8. Walker McGinley, LF 9. Brody Brinkash, 2B This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: PIAA 3A baseball championship: Riverside, Mount Carmel meet in finals
