PIAA baseball playoffs 2026: Breaking down Butler and Moniteau’s Round 1 matchups
The PIAA tournaments start this week, and two champions from Butler County are hoping to extend their seasons another few days.
Here’s what to know about Monday’s first-round matchups for Butler (20-3) and Moniteau (14-8):
Livestream: Some games will be livestreamed on the NFHS Network ($13.99 for a monthly subscription) or broadcast by local or regional media outlets. The state championship will be broadcast and livestreamed on PCN. A digital subscription to PCN costs $14.99 for one month.
Tickets: According to the PIAA, tickets can be purchased for $9 in advance on hometownticketing.com and for $10 at the door
Site/time: Mifflin County High School, 4 p.m. Monday
Up next: Winner of 1-5 Downingtown West at 3-2 Chambersburg
Golden Tornado’s key player: For as much attention as Golden Tornado Division I commits Nolan Stefaniak (Penn State), Kyle Casteel (West Virginia) and Mavrik Clement (Pitt) get, senior shortstop Boden Lenyk was the one that go Butler’s offense rolling in its WPIAL championship win.
Lenyk, who’s committed to Division II South Carolina-Aiken, launched a two-run homer over the left-field fence and seemed surprised he was able to.
Huskies’ key player: Mifflin County (15-6) does not have season stats on MaxPreps, but Evan Strohecker was 3-for-4 at the plate in MC’s 11-1 win over McDowell. And Chase Leister hit the home run that triggered the mercy rule to punch the Huskies’ ticket to their first PIAA tournament.
Butler wins if ... Their pitching holds down the Huskies. Stefaniak had pitched 17 innings against North Allegheny over the past two seasons, according to Golden Tornado coach Josh Forbes, but was finally dented for two earned runs his last time out.
It’s hard to string hits together on Stefaniak and Casteel, and Butler will hope Mifflin County can’t.
Site/time: Slippery Rock University, 4:30 p.m. Monday
Up next: Winner of 2-1 Wyoming Seminary at 11-1 Marian Catholic
Warriors’ key player: Senior Dawson Cook has a .396 batting average with 15 RBIs and four doubles this season. Oh, he’s a pretty good hurler, too, having posted a 1.43 ERA in 58.2 innings of work, striking out 83. Moniteau has leaned on him all postseason and will continue to do so Monday.
Tigers’ key player: Caden Hopper leads the team with a .596 batting average, 25 runs scored and 21 RBIs. This is a talented Southern Columbia (15-4) offense that makes contact a lot. Four regulars are hitting north of .400, and three others are hitting at least .350. Hopper can also deal from the mound. He’s 6-0 this season with a 1.32 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 37 innings.
Moniteau wins if ... It keeps playing with the confidence that brought it here. Senior second baseman Ian Ross said in mid-April he believed the Warriors could win a district crown, even during a bumpy start. Having done that, the Warriors will strive for more.
