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Central Claims Region Crown

Photo by Cody Tomer Wheeling Central shortstop Bryan Courts makes a throw to first during Wednesday’s Class A Region One Final at Magnolia.

NEW MARTINSVILLE — It’s back to Charleston for the Maroon Knights.

Wheeling Central claimed its second straight Class A Region One title on Wednesday with a 12-1 victory over host Magnolia to secure its spot in the state tournament.

The Knights have had their sights set on getting back to the pinnacle of high school baseball all season and they followed three simple steps to get there.

“Our goal was to get back to states,” Central coach Bo McConnaughy said. “They worked hard for it. I worked them pretty hard and I was tough on them and now it has paid off.

“I preach to them all the time three things. Good pitching, make the routine plays and hit with men on base. We did those three things (Wednesday).”

The solid pitching came from George Cupp, who struck out four in six innings. He also allowed one run to help lift the club.

Magnolia had tallied a total of 30 runs in their final two sectional contests but the duo of Doug Clark and Cupp held the Blue Eagles to just two runs combined in both regional contests.

“We got great pitching in both games from Clark and Cupp,” McConnaughy said. “Cupp is a consistent pitcher who changes speeds and moves the ball in and out.”

Magnolia pitcher Jake Gamble had a stellar curveball working early but the clutch hitting by the Knights eventually came in large part thanks to first baseman Logan Wells and right fielder Angelo Gentile.

Wells finished the two-game series with three doubles and six RBI, including a pair of two-baggers and three RBI on Wednesday.

“I’m just going up there looking for a basehit,” Wells said. “I just wanted to move the runners up on the bases.

“We just needed to adjust to the curve and see the spin. Once we did that, we were able to produce hits.”

Gentile sparked the Knights from the eight spot in the lineup with a double, a single and three RBI.

“I just had to trust in the training that coach has given us,” Gentile said. “We just had to wait back on the curve and take it up the middle or opposite field.”

Gamble finished with six strikeouts and held the powerful Knights lineup hitless through two frames but McConnaughy reminded his squad to wait on the curve.

“He was throwing a curveball and mixing in a fastball every now and then,” McConnaughy said. “We kept trying to hit the fastball out in front. We have been teaching them all year long to let the ball break and hit it up the middle or to the right side.

“Finally, I had a discussion with them between innings and in the fourth we started waiting on the ball.”

Central struck first in the third as Gentile drew a walk and scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Clark.

Magnolia quickly responded in the home half of the stanza on a RBI single by catcher William Nice to knot the score at 1-1 but that was all coach Dave Cisar’s group could gather.

“Central’s pitcher was excellent,” Cisar said. “He had a good curve and great placement.

“I’m honored to play against Wheeling Central, Bo McConnaughy and his coaching staff. They don’t beat themselves and they should be the favorites to win the state championship.

“I am proud of how my team competed. That’s all we talked about (Wednesday) and I thought we played well for four and a half innings.”

After Pat Brown reached on a hit-by-pitch to start the fourth, Wells delivered his first key hit with a RBI double to deep left field to grasp a 2-1 edge.

Wells came around to cross the plate on a Gentile RBI single up the middle to extend the lead to 3-1.

Wells came up big again in the fifth as he laced a two-run double down the third base line to bring Clark and Brown home to score.

Central plated two more runs in the sixth and five in the seventh on RBI hits from Cupp, Brown and Sonny Peluchette.

Isaac Basinger and Gentile provided two-run doubles in the seventh to give Central a birth in the state tournament.

“I don’t think we have to do anything special,” McConnaughy said. “If we keep doing what we’ve been doing the last half of the season and doing those three things I talked about, it all depends on what the other team does because we are going to be in the game.”

Class AA

Weir 4, Frankfort 2

SHORT GAP — Weir scored three runs in the first inning en route to a Game 1 victory over Frankfort in the Class AA Region One championship.

Tyler Komorowski crushed a two-run double for the Red Riders while also throwing a complete game. He fired six strikeouts compared to two walks for Weir.

In the seventh inning, with the score at 3-2, Drew Curtis plated an insurance run for the Red Riders on a fielder’s choice.

Foster Connis supplied two singles and one RBI for Frankfort.

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