Center Twp. Colt team rolls to league title
Confidence is one ingredient that can be found in any recipe for athletic success, but it needs to come in the right amount. Too little or too much of it can derail a team from reaching its goals.
Center Township’s Colt baseball team had just the right dose of it this summer.
The squad captured the Allegheny North League championship with a 6-3 win over Blawnox July 25 at John Herb Field in Ross Township.
Center Township, which included players ages 15-17, finished the season with an overall record of 14-2.
“Our two losses this year were both by one run,” said head coach Bob Kline. “Blawnox was a very sound team and we knew they weren’t going to beat themselves. We had to stay aggressive in every aspect of the game and not give anything away.”
Center took a 2-0 in the final before Blawnox tied the game in the fourth frame. The latter immediately answered with four runs in the next half inning.
Luke Cunningham and Keegan Bracken both drove in two runs and Carson Bish worked a complete game with seven strikeouts to lead the victory. Alex Catalfano, the team’s catcher, threw out two base runners attempting to steal.
“Six different players scored for us in the title game, four different players had an RBI,” Kline said. “It was a team in the truest sense of the word.”
The Allegheny North League includes 14 teams. Center Township’s players knew the collective ability that had been assembled as the season got underway in May.
“I thought even then we could win it all,” said Drew Knight, an infielder/outfielder and pitcher. “We were good at both hitting and pitching, but especially pitching. We had some really good arms.”
One of the team’s encounters in the regular season came against Blawnox. Center won the game, 11-4, but it was closer than the score indicates.
Blawnox led 4-0 before an 11-run flurry between the fourth and sixth inning led to the victory for Kline’s team.
“We were a resilient team, there was no quit in our guys,” he said. “There were several games during the season when we fell behind and came back to win.”
A 4-2 playoff win over Cranberry Township set up a rematch with Blawnox.
“The (regular season) game against them really helped us,” said Andrew Lucas, a shortstop. “It let us know what we were going up against in the championship game.
“I’ve played with a lot of these guys since T-ball,” he added. “We’ve had a lot of success together through the years and this summer just added to it.”
Kline was assisted by John Lucas, Chris Knight and James Bish.
“What really sticks out for me is the chemistry this team had,” he said. “They played for each other.”
