Is history repeating itself in the Section VI Class AAA baseball title series?
Defending champion Lancaster sure hopes so. Niagara Falls, on the other hand, wants a different outcome.
For the second straight year, though, the Wolverines took Game 1 in the best-of-three series, only to fall to the Legends in the second matchup. This time, the score was 6-1 Lancaster on Thursday evening. And just like in 2024, it was Legends lefty Ryan Szychowski holding the Falls bats in check.
“We looked like world-beaters on Tuesday; they looked like world-beaters today,” said Wolverines coach Rob Augustino, whose team won the opener 8-4. “We’ll see what’s going on on Saturday.”
That’s when the top-seeded Legends (10-6) and second-seeded Wolverines (14-5) will meet in the deciding game at 7 p.m. at Frontier High School.
For Niagara Falls, it’s win and celebrate the city’s first sectional title since 1999, when the pre-merger Power Cats claimed the crown. Lose and it’s deja vu.
“We’ve already won once, we know we can do it again, we know who we are and we know if we play our baseball, nobody can beat us,” said Falls senior shortstop Anthony Savino, who went 3-for-3 with an RBI single in the first inning Thursday.
Niagara Falls had its chances, putting runners on base in all but one frame and collecting seven hits off Szychowski, who went six innings and struck out six.
“The last game against them, we had 12 hits and every time we had guys on base, there were hits,” Augustino said. “Today we got guys on base with the hits. Once they got on, there were no hits. It didn’t work out the way we wanted it to because we didn’t get the timely hitting, we didn’t force them into tougher plays to make mistakes. There were a lot of easier plays.”
Lancaster, conversely, scored its first four runs with two outs. The Legends didn’t have a hit against Falls starter Andre Borges until the fourth inning, when Matthew Stabler and Owen Maslak had back-to-back RBI singles. Michael Falls followed with a two-run homer in the fifth.
Game 1 featured the same pitching matchup as a year ago, with the Wolverines’ Trevor Meidenbauer besting Michael Falls. The same could’ve been the case in Game 2 if Niagara Falls’ Anthony Littere hadn’t suffered a knee injury in Tuesday’s opener.
“Littere might have been the starter today,” Augustino said. “We went to Borges, who’s lights-out. He threw great the first four innings, and then the wheels just kind of fell off.”
Augustino is thankful his team gets another chance Saturday. He’s also concerned about memories of 2024’s ending creeping into his players’ heads.
“Of course,” he said. “If it’s not, then they’re not human because it’s going to pop into their heads, they are going to think of those things. At the same time, when little things happen positively for us, that all goes away. If little things happen the opposite way, does that creep? It might creep. As coaches, we’ve got to keep the positivity going.”
Medina outlasts Fredonia in 9 innings
Carter Woodworth’s walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning sent No. 1 seed Medina to a 2-1 win over No. 4 Fredonia and a berth in the Section VI Class B final.
Preston Woodworth pitched a complete game three-hitter with 13 strikeouts and one walk as the Mustangs (20-1) won their second straight one-run game and took a rematch of last year’s Class B title game. They edged Niagara-Orleans League rival Royalton-Hartland, 3-2, in Tuesday’s quarterfinals.
Ashton Putney allowed two hits over 8 innings for Fredonia (12-9), striking out 10 batters and walking two. The Hillbillies hadn’t allowed a run in their two previous playoff games.
Medina, seeking its second straight sectional championship and fifth in six seasons, will face sixth-seeded Southwestern (10-6) for the title at 4 p.m. Saturday at Frontier.
Lew-Port falls in pitchers’ duel in A2 final
After knocking off the bracket’s Nos. 1 and 4 seeds, eighth-seeded Lewiston-Porter fell just short of another upset, losing 2-1 to No. 3 Dunkirk in the Section VI Class A2 final at Frontier.
Thomas Shaffer hit a go-ahead RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Marauders (19-3) won their first championship since 2012. Winning pitcher Greg Orcutt recorded 13 strikeouts.
Lew-Port’s Michael McIntyre struck out five batters over six innings. Charlie Jorgensen was 3-for-4 with an RBI for the Lancers, who were seeking their first title since 1997.
Dunkirk advances to the overall Class A final at 1 p.m. Saturday at Frontier, while Lew-Port’s season ends at 7-11.
Lockport loses heartbreaker in 11 frames
Sixth-seeded Lockport dropped a 6-4 decision to No. 10 Frontier in 11 innings in a Section VI Class AA semifinal.
Caleb Barry went 3-for-3 with a triple and two doubles to lead the Lions (12-5). Graham Schultz pitched seven innings and struck out seven.
Frontier (16-6) moves on to Saturday’s 10 a.m. championship at Frontier.