SHORT GAP, W.Va. — Following a 27-7 season that ended with a second Class AA state championship in three years and wins in 23 of its final 25 games, Frankfort was the unanimous choice to repeat as area champion.
The Falcons went 11-1 in games against area opponents, the lone blemish a 4-3 loss to Hampshire on April 1 followed by 10 straight victories over local opposition.
“We had a very experienced squad coming back, and we were really excited to have them, and we thought they could do great things,” Frankfort manager Matt Miller said. “Our goal is obviously to win the state championship, and to do that, you have to be good enough to win the area. And we dropped one game that was an area team, but other than that, we pretty much handled our business and very happy with them.
“Lanson (Orndorf), Blake (Jacobs) and Jaxon (Hare) were really great leaders for us. And then Rhett (Sensabaugh) did a lot of big things, and Peyton (Durst’s) just so good defensively that you’ve just got to keep him on the field.”
The area championship is determined by the final area sportswriter poll, which is chosen by a panel of six voters: Jeff Landes, Jordan Kendall, Kyle Bennett and Alex Rychwalski (Cumberland Times-News), Chapin Jewell (Mineral News Tribune), and Trevor King (Garrett County Republican).
Frankfort received all six first-place votes for 30 points, followed by Hampshire (17-12) with 17, Allegany (11-7) and Fort Hill (12-10-1), which tied for third with 14, and East Hardy (21-12) with 11.
Northern (14-7) was the only other school to receive votes, nabbing four.
The area title is Frankfort’s eighth and Miller’s fifth. The Falcons won under Joe Alkire in 2010 and did so twice led by Tim Foley (‘01, ‘05)
Frankfort moves into a tie with Allegany for second-most area titles all-time behind only Southern (11).
The Falcons got off to a pedestrian 4-5 start by their own standards, set by a Class AA title in 2024, a Class AAA runner-up finish last year and with most of their production back from those teams.
Frankfort’s season changed with a 1-0 win over Allegany on April 13, fueled by a complete-game shutout by Sensabaugh on the mound. It kicked off a 23-2 finish, including 12 straight wins to end the campaign.
The Falcons’ season had a storybook finish, a 5-2 triumph over Logan for the state championship on June 13.
“We made some adjustments and then a couple guys started getting hot,” Miller said. “The real big game change for us was the 1-0 win against Allegany. Rhett did a good job pitching. We only scored one, but it was kind of like the thing that turned the corner for us. And then we won 23 out of our last 25 games.”
While Frankfort’s lineup was nothing to scoff at boasting seven .300 hitters or better, the Falcons’ pitching staff and defense are what put the club over the top.
Led by Orndorf, Frankfort’s staff boasted a 2.06 ERA and held opponents to 2.6 runs per game, with its lineup scoring an average of 7.2 runs a night.
Orndorf finished with an 11-3 record, 0.58 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 84 innings pitched, and the University of Charleston-bound right-hander was rewarded for his efforts with the John Lowery Award, given to the West Virginia state Player of the Year.
Three other arms gave Frankfort sub-4.00 ERAs in at least 30 innings pitched: Hare (8-1 W-L, 1.69 ERA, 49 2/3 innings pitched), Sensabaugh (4-3, 3.00 ERA, 37 1/3 IP) and Carson Durst (3-0, 3.50 ERA, 30 IP).
“We have some selfless guys,” Miller said. “Carson Durst was 3-0, most teams he’d be throwing 60 innings in West Virginia or more. And he threw 30. I have two guys who are really good pitchers that didn’t see any in varsity baseball this year. They’re gonna have to step up next year. Because we had five other guys, we didn’t have to use them.”
Its defense was led by its shortstop Jacobs (Charleston signee), who made just three errors in 34 games and was involved in 13 of the Falcons’ 17 double plays.
At the plate, Frankfort was topped in batting average by Orndorf (.413), Jacobs (.404), Hare (.371), Jesus Perdew (.347), Gunnar Bradshaw (.324), Cole Shanholtz (.316) and Braeden Laffey (.305).
Orndorf edged Jacobs in on-base plus slugging (1.119-1.116), Jacobs bested him in extra-base hits (19-16), Hare garnered a team-high 35 RBIs, and Jacobs paced the squad in runs scored (38) and stolen bases (21).
While Frankfort will miss its seniors, it returns several key junior contributors and underclassmen. Its accomplished fourth-years have laid the foundation.
“The group of seniors we have and a couple juniors mixed in with those guys who have been starting for the last three years, they’re a special group of kids,” Miller said. “They put in so much time. The weight room in the off season, the hitting facility. Throughout the winter, we have 30 flex days.
“When you have a group of kids that work hard and do things the right way, it’s easy to coach. It makes it fun. When you go to the baseball field, you’re looking forward to it.
“Going to miss the five seniors tremendously, but we’re just going to have to rebuild.”