WPIAL baseball: Butler sheds bad playoff luck in Class 6A quarterfinal walk-off win over Mt. Lebanon
WEXFORD — Standing outside the home dugout at North Allegheny High School’s baseball field, Josh Forbes looked like he’d just stepped off the treadmill.
“I’m exhausted right now,” said the Butler baseball coach, who did his part to help will his team to a win in Monday night’s 3-2 WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal playoff against Mt. Lebanon.
The victory was capped by Karsten Lenyk’s two-out, bases-loaded, five-pitch walk-off walk in the bottom of the eighth inning.
“That was mentally taxing for eight innings, because that’s a really good program and they had a really, really, really good arm on the mound,” Forbes said.
The No. 8 Blue Devils’ hurler, Graham Keen, is a junior who’s committed to play at Vanderbilt.
Top-seeded Butler advances to face No. 4 Norwin, which beat No. 5 Central Catholic 4-3 in another quarterfinal, in the semifinals Wednesday at a time and location to be determined.
Butler’s Kyle Casteel, relieving Nolan Stefaniak in extras, left the bases loaded in the top of the eighth before Mavrik Clement began the home half of the frame with a walk. Stefaniak worked a one-out free pass and then stole second when Clement’s courtesy runner — Preston Richter — swiped third while Ryan Rattigan was up to bat.
Rattigan then drew a walk to load the bases.
Lenyk got ahead 3-0 in the count on the Blue Devils’ Chase Smith. He waved the bat at Smith on the next offering — faking a bunt before pulling back — and watched it zip through the strike zone.
“It was difficult (to hold back) on the 3-(0) pitch,” Lenyk said. “I probably would’ve swung at that one … but he walked two guys before me, and I was just taking first pitch, taking until I got a strike.”
“He took a couple really, really good strikes early in the game where the pitcher was dotting up on the outside corner, and he finally got a couple calls to go his way in that last at-bat — and he made the most of it,” Forbes said.
Mt. Lebanon knotted the game at two runs apiece in the fourth inning, with Cameron Mayer’s two-out dribbler up the middle scoring Dane Barber and James Golen. Stefaniak, a Penn State pledge who went seven innings and struck out nine, allowed three singles in that inning after not permitting a hit through the first three.
Boden Lenyk led the bottom of the first by slapping a single through the left side of the infield. Mavrik Clement grounded into a fielder’s choice, and Preston Richter replaced him as a courtesy runner.
Trent Best reached on a throwing error, then Nolan Stefaniak worked a walk to load the bases. Blake Scott’s fly out scored Richter, then Ryan Rattigan’s single to shallow center brought Best around. Mason Cuffman was tagged out trying to get home after the relay throw went wide at third base.
