Wheeling Post 1 Wins Area One Tourney
By TRACY WATSONArticle Photos
Fact Box
Area One Tournament
(Championship Game)
(at Chambers I-470 Sports Complex)
Wheeling 13, Wellsburg 1 (7 inns.)
Wellsburg 100 000 0 - 1 4 2
Wheeling 431 041 x - 13 12 0
We - Breen lp (0SO, 3W), Alward (1) (1SO, 3W), Wales (5) (4SO, 3W) and DiPasquale, Breen (1). Alward 2S; Wales S, rbi; Porko S.
Wh.- Walter wp (3SO, 4W) and Carnahan, Biega (7). Stephens 2S, T, rbi; Henry 2S, 2rbi; Castilow S, T, 2rbi; Carnahan S, 2rbi; Coen S, T, rbi; Brunner T, rbi.
Just a little more than a week ago, after losing its final two regular season game and dropping to the No. 2 seed in the West Virginia Area One American Legion Tournament, Wheeling Post 1 Manager Tom Pasco did not know what to expect from his team in this week's event.
And whether he expected it or not, what he got was total domination and a second consecutive Area One championship.
Corey Walters fired a four-hitter and four Wheeling players collected at least two hits as Post 1 capped an amazing four days with a 13-1, seven inning, victory against Cinderella Wellsburg Post 34 Saturday afternoon at the Chamber's I-470 Sports Complex.
Not only was it the third time in as many outings that Wheeling needed just seven innings to get the job done - normal tournament games are nine - but the team scored 38 runs on 38 hits while allowing just two runs and 15 hits overall.
The victory sends Pasco's charges back to the West Virginia State Tournament which runs from Thursday through Sunday in Morgantown. Post 1 will take on the Area 4 survivor at 4 p.m. Thursday.
"I was a little unsure of our bats leading up to the tournament," Pasco said. "This is the time of year that you get a little bit of the summer drag down, but we came into this with a renewed attitude and the bats really came alive.
"We did what we needed to do to win this - minimize mistakes in the field, hit the ball and get good pitching."
After Alex Kozusko blanked Weirton on six hits on Wednesday and Warren Hammel limited a potent Moundsville Post 3 lineup to just five on Thursday, it was Walter's turn to take the hill and do his part Saturday.
He struck out three and walked four, but allowed just the four hits and one run in the first inning.
Wellsburg, which surprised and eliminated top seed Moundsville on Friday night, got a first inning RBI single from Kyle Wales to take a quick 1-0 lead. But it was shortlived.
Post 1's half of the frame included four runs on two hits, three walks and a Post 34 error. Catcher Matt Carnahan provided the big blow with a two-run single.
It was more of the same in the second as Wheeling banged out two of its four triples and scored two runs. Alex Stephens led off with a triple and scored on Budda Henry's base hit with Scott Castilow tripling him home. Clark Sambuco's run-scoring sacrifice fly made it 7-1.
After Jon-Michael Brunner chased home a run with a triple in the third, Wheeling got four more in the fifth with Brian Coen's RBI triple the big blow. Henry added a run-scoring single in the sixth to cap the day's festivities.
"It has been a special two years for me and this team," Pasco said about his squad, which finished as the state runnerup last year. "We had the same kind of situation last year where we just got real hot when the tournament rolled around.
"Our pitching and fielding have been outstanding all season, but all this hitting this week was a little bit unexpected. Hopefully it can carry over.
"I am extremely excited about getting the opportunity to go back to the state tournament. We have played several of the teams that will be there like South Charleston and Morgantown, and we know they are very good and we respect them, but I also know that we can play with them."
Stephens finished with three hits for Post 1 while Henry, Castilow and Coen had two each. David Alward had a pair of singles for Post 34.
