KUTZTOWN — Pine Grove celebrated on Kutztown’s Breidegam Field on Tuesday night, passing around the Schuylkill-Berks Legion League trophy.
This time, the Grovers had it all to themselves.
Zach Boltz delivered a key a two-run single and made an unassisted double play in the seventh to back Tanner Levan’s pitching and lift Pine Grove to a 4-1 win over Muhlenberg to win the league championship.
Last season, Pine Grove and Muhlenberg split the title after the game was called in extra innings, tied at 0.
“Last year was a hell of a game,” Pine Grove manager Frank D’Agostino III said. “The right decision was made behind that with the late time and getting close to regionals. I’m just happy for the guys. I’m proud of them. They battled back through controversy all the way through this thing. The baseball gods have funny ways of having things go certain ways.”
The Grovers had tough calls go against them throughout the league tournament and there were times they weren’t sure if they’d have enough players to fill the lineup. None of that seemed to bother Pine Grove on Tuesday in a methodical, 1.5-hour victory.
Boltz gave Pine Grove the lead in the top of the second when he walked and scored on Dilan Smith’s single to right field. Smith then scored on Dylan Brown’s single to put the Grovers up 2-0.
After Levan retired the A’s in order in the first, he got into a jam in the second with two on and no outs. Devin Keiper led off with a double and Nick Wanner singled to put runners on the corners, but Smith caught a line drive at second and doubled off Wanner at first. Joey Rozzi’s groundout ended the inning.
Pine Grove added to its lead in the third when Logan Levan and Steve Zimmerman led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Boltz then drove both in on a single up the middle to extend Pine Grove’s lead to 4-0.
Boltz recalled when the Grovers lost a seventh-inning lead to the A’s during their regular-season meeting June 6 at Muhlenberg, a 7-6 victory for the A’s. He wasn’t going to let a chance for insurance slip away Tuesday.
“All I could remember was blowing that big lead in the bottom of the seventh,” Boltz said. “I knew I had to get those runs in, they were in scoring position. I just shortened up my swing and had to put in play. That’s baseball. It’s either going to go through a hole or it’s not. Luckily, it went my way that time.”
Tanner Levan was nearly perfect after that. He retired 9-of-10 batters over the next three innings. He got help from Brown in the fifth after the third baseman made a diving stop on a grounder hit by Josh Kline to force out the leadoff runner at second.
Cody Fidler then doubled to the right corner to advance Kline to third. Kline snuck home when the Pine Grove players went to huddle on the mound after time apparently wasn’t called, making it 4-1. Another liner to Smith and a Levan strikeout ended the inning.
Levan struck out four and walked two, allowing five hits and no earned runs in six innings of work. Austin Fick earned the save, relieving Levan after Devon Sheipe led off the bottom of the seventh with a single.
Boltz rated Levan’s pitching performance “11 out of 10.”
“(Muhlenberg) is well-coached, well-staffed, they are the best hitting team in the league,” Boltz said. “... For Tanner to come in like that and shut them down, especially after how he pitched during our high school season, he did a hell of a job. I’m proud of that kid. I love that kid. He’s like a brother to me.”
Boltz helped him out in the seventh by doubling up Sheipe at first. Boltz leapt to snag a line drive hit by Rozzi and came down on top of the first base bag to kill any hopes of a Muhlenberg rally.
“Baseball is a game of inches,” A’s manager Phil Raccuglia said. “The ball is hit a couple inches to the right and Rozzi’s ball goes over his head and we have (runners on) second and third. It was deflating ... But a lot of credit to Pine Grove. They have a lot of really good guys over there. I’m happy for them.”
Pine Grove will next travel to the Region 2 Tournament in Freemansburg, where it plays Berks League champion West Lawn in the first round Saturday at a time to be determined.
But for now, the Grovers are going to cherish a hard-fought championship.
“It feels amazing,” Boltz said. “I have a bunch of respect for that group of guys (from Muhlenberg). ... It’s amazing to beat a team like that because they’re one of the best in this league and it feels great.”
Now Pine Grove can say it — and it alone — is the best in the league.
Game Summary
Schuylkill-Berks Legion League
Tournament Championship
At Breidegam Field, Kutztown
PINE GROVE (4) — D’Agostino cf 3 0 0 0, L. Levan ss 3 1 2 0, Zimmerman c 3 1 1 0, Boltz 1b 2 1 1 2, Weinus lf 2 0 0 0, Smith 2b 3 1 1 1, T. Levan p 3 0 0 0, Soper rf 1 0 0 0, Kreiser dh 1 0 0 0, Brown 3b 3 0 1 1. Totals 24 4 6 4.
MUHLENBERG (1) — Kline ss 2 0 0 0, Fidler 3b 3 0 1 0, Kuczawa c 3 0 1 0, Klick p 0 0 0 0, Keiper dh 3 0 1 0, Wanner 1b 3 0 1 0, Sheipe lf 3 0 1 0, Rossi 2b 3 0 0 0, Galloway cf 3 0 0 0, Buono rf 1 0 0 0, Feliz pr 0 0 0 0. Totals 24 1 5 0.
Pine Grove (17-7) 022 000 0 — 4
Muhlenberg (16-5) 000 001 0 — 1
E — Pine Grove 1, Muhlenberg 0. DP — Pine Grove 2, Muhlenberg 1. LOB — Pine Grove 2, Muhlenberg 3. 2B — Fidler, Keiper. SB — Smith. CS — Zimmerman. SB — Weinus.
Pine Grove IP H R ER BB K
T. Levan W 6 5 1 1 2 4
Fick S 1 0 0 0 0 0
Muhlenberg IP H R ER BB K
Klick L 7 6 4 4 2 1
T. Levan pitched to 1 batter in the 7th
WP — Klick. T — 1:23.