HAMBURG — Medina pitcher Preston Woodworth has thrown his fair share of gems on the mound this season, and he can add another, nearly perfect, one to his resume.
Woodworth struck out 13 and had a perfect game through 6 1/3 innings in Medina’s 1-0 win over Section IV’s Oneonta in the NYSPHSAA Far West Regionals on Saturday at Frontier High School.
The win not only advances the Mustangs (19-1) to the state semifinals, but avenges last year’s heartbreaking regional round loss to Oneonta (16-6).
“It’s what we expected the game to be, especially against that program and that team,” said Medina coach Chris Goyette. “It literally came down to one pitch and one mistake last year, and we knew it was going to be the same this year.”
The game was a pitching duel right from the start when Woodworth struck out the side in the first inning, only for Oneota ace and UNC Wilmington commit Nolan Stark to reply by swiftly sitting down Medina’s top of the order.
The game would remain scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning, when Camden Fike came to bat with two outs and a runner on second. With scoring chances incredibly limited throughout the game, Fike did not let this one go to waste, sending a hard-hit grounder into left field to score Vinny Gray and put the Mustangs up 1-0.
After popping out and getting hit by a pitch during his first two plate appearances, Fike knew patience was going to be key in figuring Stark out.
“Coach told me to wait and just stay short and find the one that is right at my waist,” Fike said. “Nothing you can do is elevated here, it was either a hard ground ball or a line drive and that’s what I did.”
Woodworth, a St. Bonaventure commit, said he was aware of his shot at perfection entering the seventh inning, and even more crucially, he knew his team needed just three outs to head to the state final four.
After Stark flied out in the first at bat of the seventh, Oneonta’s Brady Carr broke up Woodworth’s perfect game with a line drive to center field. Woodworth bounced back with a strikeout but then walked the next Yellowjackets batter to put runners on first and second with two outs.
The pressure was suddenly ratcheted up, but Woodworth remained unphased, striking out Chase Jervis looking to close the game.
“Just keep the same mindset as you do the whole game,” said Woodworth about entering the seventh perfect. “I was just getting ahead in counts and throwing strikes, and trusted my defense.”
Goyette has watched his ace continuously grow as a pitcher over the past three years, and he could tell Woodworth had ice in his veins even as a freshman.
“We knew we had something when he was that young,” Goyette said. “He’s just progressed and put the work in and get bigger and stronger and more dominant and more consistent. He’s just a phenomenal baseball player, tremendous pitcher and he’s a great teammate.”
Now, the goal turns to bringing home the program’s second state championship, with the first coming in 2022.
It’s the fourth time in seven seasons the Mustangs will play in the state semifinals, and a handful of players, including Woodworth and Fike, were on the last team to reach this stage in 2024.
“It feels great, but we’re not done,” Woodworth said.
Medina will face Notre Dame out of Section III in its semifinal matchup, with the game set for 10 a.m. Friday at Binghamton University.