Local roundup: Hanover baseball surges into district title game

The Hanover baseball team will play for a district championship after a memorable comeback Thursday afternoon.

After trailing 4-0 through four innings in the District 3 Class 4A semifinals, the No. 6-seed Nighthawks rallied for three runs in the bottom of the fifth and three more in the sixth to pull off a stunning 6-5 victory over No. 7-seed Northern Lebanon.

Hanover (16-6) will battle East Pennsboro for the district title at 4 p.m. next Tuesday at Cumberland Valley. The visiting Vikings will take on Bermudian Springs for third place and a spot in the Class 4A state tournament.

Northern Lebanon (16-8) jumped ahead with a run in the first, two in the second and another in the fourth against Nighthawks pitcher Chase Roberts. But Hanover's offense broke through in the bottom of the fifth, cutting the deficit in half on Jaxon Dell's two-run triple before Roberts helped his own cause with an RBI single.

After the Vikings got a run back in the sixth, the Nighthawks responded once again. Daniel Corbin's RBI single made it a one-run game again, Tyler Hansford's single loaded the bases and Hanover tied it on Dell's grounder that went for a fielder's choice. Roberts gave the hosts a 6-5 lead with a ground-ball single to center, then went back to the mound and slammed the door.

The senior — who became the York-Adams League's all-time passing yards leader during football season — threw 99 pitches in seven innings, allowing five earned runs on eight hits while walking two and striking out three. He also finished 3 for 4 at the plate with two RBIs. Dell was 2 for 3 and drove in three, while Corbin went 2 for 3 with one RBI. The Nighthawks finished with 10 hits.

Hanover's victory came on a difficult day for York-Adams League baseball and softball teams, which went 1-7 in district playoff action. Five YAIAA softball squads — Dallastown, South Western, Littlestown, Delone Catholic and Fairfield — saw their seasons come to an end, while Bermudian Springs and Red Lion baseball took losses in their respective district semifinals.

MORE BASEBALL

District 3 Class 4A semifinals

East Pennsboro 7, Bermudian Springs 6: At York Springs, the No. 5-seed Panthers plated five runs in the top of the sixth to take a 7-5 lead and held on to reach the district title game against Hanover. For the No. 1-seed Eagles (16-6), Ben Ogle went 2 for 3 and teammates Lane Hubbard and Austin Reinert each went 2 for 4. Gabe Kline added a two-run single as part of a four-run second, and Reinert allowed three runs in five innings to take a no-decision. Bermudian Springs will host Northern Lebanon at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in the third-place game.

District 3 Class 6A semifinals

Cedar Cliff 4, Red Lion 2: At Camp Hill, the No. 5-seed Colts broke a 2-2 tie with two runs in the bottom of the fourth and went on to capture the victory and advance to the district final against No. 3-seed Wilson. For the No. 9-seed Lions (14-9), Connor Lawrence came on in relief of AJ Lipscomb and pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings to keep the game close. Jason Krieger went 1 for 2 with a walk, while seven different Lions recorded a hit. Red Lion will host No. 11-seed Manheim Township at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in the third-place game.

SOFTBALL

District 3 Class 6A quarterfinals

Central Dauphin 1, Dallastown 0: At Central Dauphin, Sella Gasper threw a no-hitter to lead the No. 2-seed Rams to the quarterfinal victory over the No. 7-seed Wildcats (16-6). Gasper struck out seven and walked two in the gem. Gabby Fowler pitched a complete game for Dallastown, allowing one run on four singles while striking out seven to take the loss. Central Dauphin scored the game's only run on Allie Wenrich's RBI single in the sixth. Dallastown has been eliminated.

District 3 Class 5A quarterfinals

Greencastle-Antrim 8, South Western 6: At Hanover, the No. 3-seed Mustangs (20-3) plated four runs in the bottom of the seventh but fell two runs short and saw their season come to an end. Kinsley Proepper and Jayda Koontz both homered in the first, but South Western fell behind 8-2. Koontz pitched five innings and allowed two earned runs, while Proepper finished 3 for 4 at the plate. Teammate Adrianna Gonzalez connected for a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh.

District 3 Class 3A semifinals

Upper Dauphin 2, Littlestown 1: At Littlestown, the No. 4-seed Lady Trojans plated two runs in the top of the sixth to take the lead and went on to capture the victory. For the No. 1-seed Thunderbolts (21-2), Chelsey Stonesifer pitched a complete game and allowed no earned runs on five hits while striking out 11. Littlestown connected for only two singles at the plate and was eliminated with the loss.

District 3 Class 2A semifinals

Newport 10, Delone Catholic 4: At McSherrystown, the No. 4-seed Lady Buffaloes plated six unanswered runs in the final three innings to pull away for the victory over the No. 1-seed Squirettes (14-7). Amy Anderson pitched a complete game and allowed four runs, while Olivia Kale went 3 for 3 with a double and an RBI at the plate. Caylee Zortman went 1 for 2 with an RBI and a run scored. With the loss, Delone Catholic has been eliminated. 

Brandywine Heights 5, Fairfield 0: At Fairfield, the No. 2-seed Green Knights (13-5) were held to four hits and dropped the home semifinal to the No. 3 Bullets. Fairfield's Sarah Devilbiss went 2 for 3 at the plate, while Ellie Snyder pitched a complete game and allowed four earned runs to take the loss. The Green Knights have been eliminated.

BOYS' LACROSSE

District 3 Class 3A quarterfinals

Central York 17, South Western 4: At Central York, the No. 3-seed Panthers (18-2) dominated the No. 6 Mustangs and advanced to a district semifinal matchup with Dallastown at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Susquehannock. South Western has been eliminated.

Dallastown 10, Carlisle 6: At York Suburban, Evan Mitchell scored four goals and added two assists to lead the No. 2-seed Wildcats to the quarterfinal victory over the No. 10 Thundering Herd. Teammate Griffin Pickett recorded a hat trick, while Caleb Fox scored twice. Goalie Nick Ungerland saved 10 of 16 shots. Dallastown led 8-3 at the half and cruised to the finish. The Wildcats will battle Central York in the semifinals Tuesday.

GIRLS' LACROSSE

District 3 Class 3A quarterfinals

South Western 11, Red Lion 9: At York Suburban, Lexi Plesic and Leah Leonard scored four goals apiece as the No. 7-seed Mustangs (16-5) knocked out the No. 2-seed Lions (12-4). Savannah Quave led Red Lion with four goals and teammate Hannah Connors added a hat trick. With the win, South Western advances to a semifinal matchup at Wilson on Tuesday at a time to be determined.

District 3 Class 2A quarterfinals

York Catholic 8, Wyomissing 7: At Wyomissing, Katie Bullen's goal at the 18:39 mark of the second half gave the No. 6-seed Irish (15-4) an 8-4 lead and they held off the No. 3-seed Spartans down the stretch for the quarterfinal victory. Bullen scored four goals in the game, while Delaney Staples scored twice and Sarah Perry added a goal with three assists. York Catholic — which lost 14-2 to Wyomissing in March — will host Twin Valley in the semifinals at 5 p.m. Tuesday in a rematch of last year's district final.

Hershey 10, Kennard-Dale 9: At Hershey, the No. 9-seed Rams (13-6) gave the No. 1-seed Trojans (20-0) their toughest test of the season and became just the second team to play Hershey within seven goals. But with the loss, Kennard-Dale's season is over.

BOYS' VOLLEYBALL

District 3 Class 2A quarterfinals

York Suburban 3, Northern York 1: At York Suburban, the No. 4-seed Trojans (14-4) won the quarterfinal match by the scores of 25-18, 20-25, 26-24 and 29-27. With the win, York Suburban moves into the semifinals and will visit No. 1 Lower Dauphin at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Manheim Central 3, York Catholic 0: At Manheim Central Middle School, the No. 6-seed Irish (16-6) dropped the quarterfinal match to the No. 3-seed Barons by the scores of 25-22, 25-23 and 25-17. York Catholic has been eliminated.

District 3 Class 3A quarterfinals

Cedar Crest 3, Northeastern 0: At Manchester, the No. 4-seed Bobcats (14-4) dropped the quarterfinal match to the No. 5 Falcons by the scores of 25-22, 25-21 and 27-25. Northeastern has been eliminated after a season that included a share of the York-Adams League regular-season title and a runner-up showing in the league tournament.

Warwick 3, Red Lion 0: At Warwick, the No. 2-seed Warriors won the quarterfinal match by the scores of 25-23, 25-14 and 25-19. With the loss, No. 10-seed Red Lion (10-8) has been eliminated. The Lions advanced to the quarterfinals by taking the final three sets in a memorable 3-2 win at Hempfield on Tuesday.

COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD

Pair of Spartans compete at NCAAs: At Rochester, N.Y., Julia Pena finished 15th overall in the long jump on the first day of the NCAA Division III Championships. The senior scored a leap of 18-foot-3.25 after three attempts. Teammate Andrew Mott finished 17th overall in the men's discus with a throw of 151-foot-1 after three attempts. Pena will also compete in the pole vault and 100 hurdles on Friday.

SUSQUEHANNA LEAGUE

Jacobus 3, Windsor 2: At Jacobus, Brandon Shirk's one-out RBI single in the bottom of the fifth scored Brian Hauer from third to give the Jackals (4-2) the lead for good. Shirk and JP Dyson each went 2 for 3, while Collin Slenker smacked a two-run triple to tie the game in the fourth. For the Cardinals (1-3), Connor Dewees connected for a two-run homer in the top of the first.

Conrads 5, Stewartstown 4: At Stewartstown, Mitchell Garber's two-out, two-run single in the top of the sixth gave the Conrads (3-1) the lead for good. Teammate Josh Knaub went 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs. For the Vets (2-4), Jason Williams went 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first and collected three RBIs for the game, while Jeremiah Preston went 2 for 3.

Felton 4, York Township 3: At Felton, the Mad Dogs (2-2) plated three runs in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead and went on to capture the home victory. Kameron Bayman's two-out RBI double capped off the frame, and he finished 2 for 3 with two doubles. For York Township (2-3), Dean Davis connected for a two-run homer in the top of the sixth, while Stephen Miele launched solo homer in the third.

East Prospect 10, Hallam 6: At Hallam, Drake Renn went 2 for 2 with a two-run homer in the first and a solo homer in the third to lead the Pistons (4-1) to the road victory. Teammate Brett Alaimo went 2 for 3 with a triple and four RBIs, while Jay Clinger went 2 for 2. For Hallam (2-4), Carter Foote-Renwick went 3 for 4 with two RBIs; Simon Lipsuis went 2 for 4 with two RBIs; and Ethan Shimmel went 2 for 3 with a run scored. 

CENTRAL LEAGUE

Mount Wolf 4, Vikings 3: At Mount Wolf, Andy Srebroski's RBI single in the bottom of the seventh scored Brinden Floyd from third to clinch the walk-off victory for the Wolves (3-0). Teammate Miles Campbell went 2 for 4, while Drew Barshinger threw three innings of shutout relief to pick up the win. For the Vikings (0-2), Michael Santiago connected for a solo homer in the top of the second and Ethan Zorbaugh pitched a complete game in the loss.

Manchester 3, South Mountain 2: At Manchester, Kade Kitts' two-out RBI single in the bottom of the sixth scored Spencer Rhoads from second, capping off a three-run inning and giving the Indians (2-0) the lead for good. Rhoads tied the game with a two-run double. Michael Houseal pitched a complete game, allowing two runs on five hits. For Douth Mountain (1-1), Timmy Bonin went 1 for 2 with a run scored.

Mechanicsburg 9, Pleasureville 5: At Pleasureville, Matt Ilgenfritz led the Cardinals (1-0) to the road victory by going 2 for 4 with a three-run homer in the top of the fifth. For the Hawks (0-2), Evan Keefer went 2 for 3 with a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth, while teammate Colin Ahr connected for a three-run homer in the first. 

Jefferson 10, Glen Rock 0 (5 innings): At Jefferson, Kurt Seiders homered twice in the fourth inning to lead the Titans (1-1) to the home victory. Jefferson scored eight runs in the frame to pull away. Seiders and Dylan Shaffer each went 2 for 3, while Brian Bossom threw five shutout innings on the mound and allowed two hits. Trevor Walzl went 2 for 2 for Glen Rock (0-2).