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WHS to D2-4 final in baseball

LEWISBURG — The crowd was bigger and so were the ramifications.

So Williamsport pitcher Tanner Esposito felt right at home. These are the games that make all that work he does when nobody is watching worthwhile. These are the ones he savors the most.

He sure performs well in them, too. His teammates did so as well.

Esposito threw a 3-hit shutout, did not allow a hit after the third inning and went 2 for 2 with two RBIs as Williamsport blanked Delaware Valley, 5-0 in Thursday’s District 2-4 Class AAAAAA semifinals at Bucknell University. Elliott Walker also went 2 for 2 and scored two runs while Joe Fagnano hit a key two-run single as Wil­liamsport reached its first district championship since 2011.

“The energy is just 100 percent better in the playoffs. This is the best time to play,” Esposito said. “That is what all the work is for. It leads up to games like this. These are the games we live for right here.”

Williamsport (14-4) advanced to Monday’s final at PNC Field and will play the winner of Saturday’s Scranton-West Scranton semifinal.

Esposito helped lead the way there, working out of two early-inning jams and then not allowing a runner past first base the rest of the way. He struck out four, walked none, had total command of his pitches and threw an economical 86 pitches.

A year ago, Esposito threw nine no-hit innings in a 1-0 quarterfinal win against Hazleton. Two years ago he threw a gem in a Babe Ruth state championship game. The junior right-hander certainly likes the big stage.

“He’s a big-game pitcher. That’s why he’s our No. 1 guy,” Williamsport coach Ryan Miller said. “We’re fortunate to have him. He works extremely hard. When he’s in that type of playoff atmosphere, he’s the guy you want on the mound.”

Delaware Valley (11-7) put two runners on with one out in the both the second and third innings but could not score. Esposito induced a flyout and groundout in the second and then left runners at the corners in the third. That inning he struck out No. 3 hitter and Warrior home run leader Zak Kain before fielding a one-hopper back to the mound. After that, only two more War­riors reached base, ironically once on an Esposito error. Both times, Esposito quickly ended the innings, doing so on just six pitches.

“Throwing with that defense behind me is great. I wouldn’t want to throw with anyone else behind me. That really helped me throw a lot,” Esposito said. “Everything clicked today, hitting, pitching and de­fense. Everyone played great.”

Williamsport used some­thing small to create something big in the third inning as it scored three times and took the lead. Jesse Cornell and Walker dropped perfect one-out bunt singles down the third-base line and Cornell used smart baserunning, going from first to third when nobody covered the base on Walker’s bunt. Quentin Brown hit an RBI single a batter later.

Fagnano capped the game-changing inning two batters later, hitting his two-run single into center field and Williamsport led 3-0.

“We have a lot of speed and when our guys look to do those things they create pressure situations for the defense,” Miller said. “The bunts don’t have to be the perfect. If they’re somewhere near there and they have that kind of speed running down there it puts a lot of pressure on the defense and they do it on the bases well, too.”

“Our lineup, 1-9 it really doesn’t matter who’s up,” Walker said. “Whoever is up they know what they have to do for us to come out with a win.”

Walker reached base in each of his last three at-bats and showed he can drive the ball in addition to playing small-ball. The senior center fielder led off the fifth inning belting a triple deep into the left-center field gap. Jalen Jackson was hit by a pitch and Fagnano walked but Delaware Valley was one strike from escaping the inning unscathed.

Esposito fell behind 0-2 and his one-pitch strike rolled foul. Unfazed, Espo­sito drilled the next pitch into center field and his two-run single made it 5-0. That led looked even bigger as Esposito kept throwing well and both Walker and shortstop Caleb Joy made nice plays. Cornell caught a pop-out to clinch the win as Esposito pumped his fist.

The work is not done, but Williamsport is finally going somewhere it has not been in six years. Now the Millionaires hope this is just the start.

“We have three days till we go to PNC so we have to keep working,” Walker said. “We’ve been trying to get there and knowing we did it this year we have to go out and capitalize on the opportunity now that we’re there.”

Delaware Valley 000 000 0–0 3 0

Williamsport 003 020 x–5 7 3

Matt Cavallaro, Christian Jorgenson (4) and Ryan Bulkley. Tanner Esposito and Michael Weber. W–Esposito, (5-2). L–Cavallaro, (1-3).

Top Williamsport hitters: Elliott Walker 2-2, 3B, BB, 2 R; Esposito 2-2, BB, 2 RBI; Jesse Cornell 1-4, R; Quentin Brown 1-4, RBI, R; Joe Fagnano 1-3, BB, 2 RBI.

Records: Williamsport 14-4. Delaware Valley 11-7.

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