Little did they know how much Molina and all the Mounties love a good fight. The harder the challenge, the better this resilient team seems to play and how it won Wednesday’s memorable District 4 Class AA semifinal at Millionaire Mountain proved it again.

Molina sprinted through the pain; Butler delivered the two biggest hits of life and both Cole Gerber and Chance Quimby combined on a gutsy four-hitter as South erased a two-run fifth inning deficit and edged Montgomery, 3-2. Butler tied the game in the fifth with a two-run single, gave it the lead with his RBI seventh inning single and Quimby finished what Gerber started, working a hitless seventh. Put it all together and South (13-7) clinched both a fifth straight district final and state tournament appearance.

“That’s probably one of the best games I’ve ever played in,” Gerber said after earning his fourth postseason win in two years, striking out nine in six innings. “We’ve played in a lot of close games over the last two years. The games especially with them the last two years have been great and that one was just as good, if not better, than last year.”

A year ago, South battled back from a one-run deficit and defeated Montgomery, 8-6 in a fantastic championship. This time it earned a shot at defending that crown and will face either Southern Columbia or Muncy in Saturday’s final at Bowman Field.

Levi Butler of South Williamsport connects on a 2 RBI single against Montgomery in Williamsport Wednesday evening. South Williamsport won 3-2. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Considering the daunting schedule South played all season and the herculean task it faced against Montgomery and Penn State-bound pitcher Briar Persing, South earning that opportunity speaks volumes. There’s not a much harder way of producing it. And that makes it feel especially rewarding.

“It feels like we really have to earn it. No games are given, so winning feels good,” Butler said. “Playing Montgomery is always fun. Playing on a nice field under the lights, it’s definitely a great feeling. It’s something you remember.”

How loaded this district field is becomes evident when one realizes Montgomery will not be advancing. The Red Raiders (17-4) concluded another super season, highlighting it with wins against South for the first time since 2012, as well as Montoursville. The Raiders played an excellent game Wednesday, with Persing scattering six hits and striking out nine and the defense making a series of sensational plays.

Persing smashed a third inning RBI double and Parker Persing followed with an RBI single, giving Montgomery a 2-0 lead. Throw in first baseman Parker Persing saving a go-ahead run with a diving stop; shortstop Parker Bennett going Ozzie Smith with an incredible leaping catch and catcher Lincoln Miller throwing a runner out trying to steal and it felt like Montgomery did everything possible to win.

Ultimately, the Raiders did not lose the game. South simply won it.

Levi Butler of South Williamsport shows the ball after tagging out Trace Furman of Montgomery during the 6th inning in Williamsport Wednesday evening. South Williamsport won 3-2. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“It’s a group of guys who don’t budge when things get hard. A lot of guys were thrown into the fire last year and they’re ready for the moment,” South coach Chase Waller said. “We have a good group of seniors who have built and sustained the culture that we’ve built here in South Williamsport. These guys are baseball players. They’re gamers.”

So, despite trailing 2-0 entering the fifth inning against a pitcher who possessed a 0.45 ERA while not allowing multiple runs since the season opener, South remained positive; the dugout energetic. At Tuesday’s practice, South’s coaches cranked up the pitching machine into the 90 mile per hour range and multiple players started driving balls over the fence. The hitters don’t necessarily like the machine but embraced the lessons they could learn facing it.

Persing has been a machine himself at times, shutting South out last month, but the Mounties started barreling up some balls in the third and fourth innings. They then broke through in the fifth, scoring twice before taking the lead two innings later.

Butler had already tied the game with his two-run single, so he carried extra confidence when another chance came his way. As he did in the fifth when he helped spark the comeback flames with a single a pitch after Kamdyn Bubb drilled a lead-off single, Molina fueled the fire again with a lead-off walk. Gerber then dropped a perfect sacrifice bunt, setting the stage for Butler.

The spotlight his, Butler played a starring role again, scorching the go-ahead single into right field. Sore legs and all, Molina charged home and South had its first lead.

Trace Wertz of South Williamsport waits for the throw as Parker Bennett of Montgomery scores in the third inning in Williamsport Wednesday evening. South Williamsport won 3-2. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“I was seeing the ball really well. I just I knew I could hack the next time I went up,” Butler said. “You imagine that scenario and to live it is great.”

Butler burst onto the scene as a sophomore last season and hit lead-off for a state quarterfinalist. He has continued excelling at shortstop this season, but Butler struggled at times offensively. Waller flipped him and previous No. 9 hitter Cade Lusk in the lineup and it has paid dividends, never more so than Wednesday night.

All that happened before means nothing now. It was all about the next at-bat; the next pitch, the next moment. When two big moments came his way, Butler owned them. That included in the fifth when Butler lasered his game-tying single into center field and tied the game, 2-2.

“I’m so happy for Levi. He stuck with it and stuck with it and I know what he’s capable of. He plays a tremendous shortstop and he goes out there and gets it done in the biggest game of the year so far,” Waller said. “I told him stats from the regular season now don’t matter. Records don’t matter; all of that stuff doesn’t matter. It’s 0-0, every at-bat is a new at-bat now when the lights shine brightest and he came out here and laid it on the line for all of us.”

So did Gerber and Quimby. After Gerber delivered his latest outstanding postseason performance, Quimby entered in the seventh following a Mason Bryson lead-off walk. Cooper Roman bunted him to second and turned the lineup over to the top. Unfazed, Quimby induced a flyout to Lusk in left field before first baseman Jaymes Carpenter made a terrific catch against the fence in foul territory, sealing the dramatic win.

Torin Haug of South Williamsport is tagged out at second by Parker Bennett of Montgomery in Williamsport Wednesday evening. South Williamsport won 3-2. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“Everyone stepped up,” Gerber said. “It was guy after guy doing his job.”

That included Gerber who held a playoff opponent to two or fewer runs for the fourth straight time in his two posteasons, while improving to 4-0 against four fantastic teams. The sophomore left-hander stranded two runners with one out following the RBI hits from the Persing cousins before settling in and dominating from there while receiving a lift from a tough defense sparked by center fielder Jonah Caputo who made multiple hustling catches.

A year earlier, Gerber celebrated his birthday by throwing seven scoreless innings in a memorable 7-4 extra-inning semifinal win against Southern. On his latest birthday, Gerber delivered himself another present, blowing out the candles on Montgomery and not allowing another hit after the third inning while keeping Montgomery 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position.

He helped his cause in the sixth inning as well. With two outs and a runner on first, Gerber made a quick move to the bag and forced a rundown. Carpenter threw a perfect strike to Butler who applied the tag for the final out which preserved the tie and gave South added momentum entering the seventh.

“I’ve been looking forward to this one all year. I love the playoffs. I love playoff baseball,” Gerber said. “It’s so fun. This is what you work for.”

Cole Gerber of South Williamsport throws against Montgomery in the first inning in Williamsport Wednesday evening. South Williamsport won 3-2. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

From South’s perspective the best part now is that the work continues. Another challenge awaits and two big opportunities lay ahead.

“This was great getting this done but tomorrow is a new day. They don’t care about this game now. It’s one game at a time; one out a time,” Waller said. “I told them before the seventh inning that every out is gold and guys just kept stepping up and making plays. That’s what it takes.”

South 000 020 1–3 6 1

Montgomery 002 000 0–2 4 1

Cole Gerber, Chance Quimby (7) and Trace Wertz. Briar Persing and Lincoln Miller. W–Gerber. L–Persing. SV–Quimby.

Top South hitters: Levi Butler 2-3, 3 RBIs; Marc Molina 1-2, BB, 2R; Garrett Lorson 1-3, BB; Torin Haug 1-3; Kamdyn Bubb 1-3 . Top Montgomery hitters: Persing 1-3, 2B, RBI; Parker Parker Persing 1-3, RBI; Chase Bennett 1-2, Bb; Trace Furman 1-3.

Records: South 13-7. Montgomery 17-4.