One squad enters on a 14-game winning streak. The other is in its seventh Far West Regional since 1998. Webster Thomas and Williamsville East (VI) meet to decide who books a trip to the NYS Class AA semifinals. Here’s the breakdown:
WEBSTER THOMAS TITANS
(18-5/Monroe County Division II)
vs.
WILLIAMSVILLE EAST FLAMES
(16-6/Erie County Interscholastic Conference Division II)
Saturday, Innovative Field, 10:00 a.m.
How they got here: Webster Thomas took down Edison Tech with a 22-1 win in the Section V Class AA second round before beating Gates Chili 16-1 in the quarterfinal round. A 6-0 win over Penfield in the semifinals put Webster Thomas into the AA sectional championship, which it won 4-3 over Churchfield-Chili. Williamsville East beat Olmsted/Culinary/Emerson (16-0), Hutch Tech (12-0), Williamsville North (5-3), and Frontier (5-0) on its path to a sectional championship.
Tempo and trends: Webster Thomas scores 7.3 runs per game and gives up 2.7 runs per game. The Titans enter the contest on a 14-game winning streak. Williamsville East has won four straight games, scores 6.5 runs per game on offense, and allows 3.6 runs per game on defense.
Players to watch for Webster Thomas: Joey Baller Sr. 1B/P .391 BA, 10 RBI, 21 R, 6 2B; Jake DiCicco Sr. P/INF 1.79 ERA, 47.0 IP, 7-1 record, 33 K, 1.05 WHIP; Tyler Estelle Jr. SS/P .329 BA, 23 RBI, 25 R, 2 3B, 3 2B; Cameron Guffey Sr. INF/P .281 BA, 10 RBI, 12 R, 1 3B, 1 2B; AJ LaLoggia Sr. 2B .393 BA, 16 RBI, 28 R, 4 3B, 8 2B; Charles Sciortino Sr. OF .351 BA, 12 RBI, 15 R, 1 HR, 3 2B; Max Seaver So. P/OF 1.57 ERA, 53.2 IP, 6-2 record, 52 K, 0.857 WHIP; Connor Smith Sr. P/OF 2.60 ERA, 42.0 IP, 5-1 record, 35 K, 1.21 WHIP; Owen Zimmer Sr. 3B .360 BA, 23 RBI, 9 R, 4 2B
Players to watch for Williamsville East: Jaxson Lichner Jr. (two singles and complete game two-hit shutout in Section VI title game); Cooper Rung Sr. (two doubles in title game); Gavin Steinacher Sr. (homered in title game); Ryan McKinnon Sr.; Jack Stanfield Sr. (each singled twice in title game)
Coaches: Kevin Neenan (Webster Thomas)
History 101: This is the third time Webster Thomas has made it to the regional round. The Titans are 1-1 in previous appearances (2022 and 2005). Williamsville East has a 4-2 record in the Far West Regional since 1998. Described here, the Williamsville East baseball program became the center of controversy after it was reported the team deliberately lost a regular season game to gain a favorable seeding for sectionals.
What’s at stake: A spot in the NYS Class AA semifinals against the winner of Wallkill (IX) and Horseheads (IV).
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