FREDERICK — Allegany’s mental fortitude was tested repeatedly Tuesday; after a nearly three-hour playoff odyssey, Myles Bascelli had one final hurdle to clear.
The senior right-hander was three outs away from sending Allegany to its first state championship game since 2013. Then the baseball gods stepped in, and Bascelli lost command of his fastball.
Smithsburg loaded the bases with two outs to bring the go-ahead run to the plate, and Bascelli found his heater, and not a moment too soon, freezing the final batter with a fastball on the inside corner for a three-pitch strikeout.
“It’s a different feeling,” Bascelli said of the emotions after the last out at McCurdy Field. “It’s one of the best feelings you’ll feel during baseball.”
It was a fitting end to a drama-filled, two-hour and 55-minute ball game in which fourth-seeded Allegany grabbed the lead for good on freshman Liam Buck’s two-run single in a five-run fifth inning and held off a late rally to beat No. 5 Smithsburg, 6-3, in the Class 1A state semifinals Tuesday.
“I’m really proud of these guys,” Allegany manager Jon Irons said. “They’re fighters. They do not shy away from a challenge. They’ve learned throughout the year how to battle through tough spots.
“There were a lot of strange things in this game. … They were able to persevere through some challenges, presented both by the other team and outside (forces).”
The victory was the 14th in 15 games for Allegany (17-4), which improved to 4-1 in semifinal games. The Campers won back-to-back 2A titles in 1989-90 and were 1A runner-up in 2013.
Smithsburg (16-9), a region champion for the first time since 2014, seemed primed to advance to the championship game after snagging a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning.
St. Maria Goretti transfer Mason Oates gave Smithsburg a 2-1 edge with an RBI single to left, and Gavin Ramarge — who missed a three-run home run by inches left of the foul pole in the first inning — gave the Leopards a two-run margin with a run-scoring single the other way.
Kohen Madden got a run back in the bottom half of the fifth on a base knock up the middle, and the Campers loaded the bases with nobody out.
Relievers Collin Burras and George Mantz fanned back-to-back hitters to put the weight of Allegany’s season on Buck, a freshman who started the year on the junior varsity team.
Buck sent an 0-1 pitch to the opposite field for a pair of RBIs to give Allegany the lead for good.
“My first at-bat I caught that barrel, so my second at-bat I was feeling really good,” Buck said. “I was going up to the plate with confidence. I wanted to pick up the team, and that’s what I did.”
Catcher Justin Wakefield drove in two important insurance runs a batter later with another line drive to the right side for a 6-3 lead.
Allegany called on Bascelli for the six-out save, and the pendulum swung back in the Leopards’ favor, who loaded the bases in the sixth with two outs.
Bascelli froze Ramarge with a 3-2 breaking ball to strand all three runners, and walked the tightrope again in the seventh.
Facing a 3-0 count with a runner on first, two outs from victory, Bascelli called his own mound visit to ask pitching coach Ryan Miller to stop calling fastballs, as he was unable to control it.
A two-out hit by pitch loaded the bases, and that proved to be the best thing for him.
“I’m more confident in the windup to throw my fastball. I have better mechanics with it,” Bascelli said. “It’s always been like that since I was a little kid.
“Threw a curveball first-pitch strike and then pounded fastball. Umpire was calling inside for me, and they weren’t swinging at it.”
Allegany out-hit Smithsburg, 7-5, but the Campers’ pitching struggled in stretches to find the strike zone, walking 10.
Starting pitcher Madden, Allegany’s most reliable arm, had his pitch count run up to 109 in just 4 1/3 innings, and he took a no-decision after allowing three runs on three hits with eight strikeouts to five walks.
Madden had walked four batters over his previous five appearances combined.
“There was a very different strike zone today,” Irons said. “We had to adapt to it early on, try to learn from it. They obviously were trying to take advantage of it, trying to see a lot of pitches. I didn’t want to put our kids in a spot where we were just thinking take.”
Williams picked up the win in middle relief, getting the final two outs of the fifth to get Allegany out of a jam.
Bascelli earned the save, striking out six and walking four over the final two innings.
Smithsburg starter Heath Githens also took a no-decision, allowing three runs on four hits in four innings. The right-hander struck out six and walked three.
Burras took the loss in relief.
Madden, Buck and Wakefield all had two-hit days for Allegany, and all three had two RBIs.
Wakefield had a defensive highlight behind the plate, catching Eli Bowman trying to steal second base in the third inning. Bowman has a school record 29 stolen bases this year.
Madden gave Allegany its first run on an RBI double to left-center field during a controversial third inning.
Bascelli, who scored twice, appeared to cross home plate safely earlier in Madden’s third-inning at-bat, but the run was taken off the board.
The senior timed his jump well to easily steal third base, and a high throw from the Leopard’s catcher went into left field to allow Bascelli to dive into home for the game’s first run.
However, the home plate umpire ruled interference on himself for making contact with the catcher on the throw, making the ball dead and putting Bascelli back on his original base.
It ended up being a moot point as Madden kept his composure and delivered later in the at-bat.
Then a half-inning later, Allegany took issue with Smithsburg’s first run, believing the Leopards’ runner on third base left early on Chase Sarber’s sacrifice fly to right field.
After another discussion, the call again went Smithsburg’s way.
Allegany didn’t let it get to it, even after Smithsburg took a two-run lead an inning later, and the Campers stayed the course to end their 12-year championship game drought.
The Campers will take on five-time state champion St. Michaels (16-5) on Saturday at noon at Prince George’s Stadium, home of Baltimore Orioles’ Double-A affiliate Bowie Baysox.
St. Michaels defeated Pikesville, 4-3, in the other semifinal Tuesday, recording the final out on a hidden ball trick.
Tuesday was a long time coming for Allegany, which has a 73-14 record in four years under Irons but found itself on the losing end of its last three May thrillers.
With former players Bryce Madden and Caedon Wallace in the dugout at McCurdy Field, Allegany finally broke through.
“This is a win for these guys, and this is a win for those guys who have been here the last three years too,” Irons said. “This is a win for our program.”