CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Class A high school baseball state tournament semifinals are set for Thursday evening from Appalachian Power Park, with the title game at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
Thursday, June 1, 4:30 p.m. – No. 1 Ravenswood (22-10) vs. No. 4 Tygarts Valley (20-8)
Ravenswood was voted as the top seed in Class A after rolling through sectional play, outscoring opponents 34-1, and eliminating two-time defending state champion and No. 8 Wahama along the way.
The Red Devils then defeated Buffalo in regional play, needing a decisive third game to advance to Charleston.
It’s the first state tournament trip for Ravenswood since 1999 when the Red Devils won the Class AA title. It’s just the sixth baseball state tournament appearance all-time for Ravenswood.
Now-head coach Wes Swain, a 1992 Ravenswood graduate, was an assistant on that 1999 club.
“The biggest thing we have stressed is that this is for the kids,” Swain said. “This is their time – I’ve had my time and the best thing we can do is guide them and keep them loose.
“Not very many kids in school history have gotten this opportunity,” he continued. “It has a tremendous impact and we’ve had a lot of support from the people around here.”
Nathan Curtis or Chase Swain will get the start on Thursday against Tygarts Valley. Curtis is 7-1 on the year with a 1.88 ERA and 74 strikeouts (44 2/3 innings), while Swain is 5-0 with a 1.24 ERA and 85 Ks (51 innings).
“I’m leaning toward Nathan Curtis,” Swain said of his Thursday starter. “Those two have shouldered the load in the playoffs. We’re up in the air. We’re going to look at it and see what our best route is. We could even, possibly, split those guys up (Thursday) and they would both be pretty strong to come back (Saturday).”
It’s Swain who has powered the Red Devils at the plate as well, posting a .494 batting average with 11 doubles, six home runs and 45 RBIs. Curtis is hitting .413 at the plate, Blake Bennett .367 and Nic Taylor .354.
For Tygarts Valley, it’s the first state tournament appearance since 1978 and 1979 when the Bulldogs won back-to-back Class AA championships.
“It’s been huge for us,” said Tygarts Valley coach James Markley. “When you haven’t been for that long, it’s something special. Anytime we make it to the state tournament, it’s a big deal. It doesn’t happen very often around here and we have great support.”
It was the third straight trip to the regional finals for Tygarts Valley as the Bulldogs finally broke through following setbacks to Moorefield in 2015 and Pendleton County in 2016.
“The first year, it was pretty new for us (getting that far),” Markley said. “Last year we had more confidence and thought we could win. We played a close game, but a few things didn’t go our way. We knew that we had a real shot, though, this year. That’s been our goal from the first day of practice.
It’s a Tygarts Valley team, with just 13 players, that has had to battle, facing elimination, throughout the postseason. The Bulldogs lost an early sectional game to Notre Dame and fell in the first regional game against East Hardy.
“It boils down to heart and not wanting to lose,” Markley said. “We actually played better with our backs against the wall. You always deal with adversity throughout the season – and we have. To come out like that shows tremendous heart.”
Current Tygarts Valley principal Steve Wamsley was a standout pitcher on those 1978 and 1979 teams — his son, Rece Wamsley, has been the ace for this year’s Bulldogs’ team and leader at the plate.
Wamsley, a Fairmont State signee, is 4-2 on the year with a 1.50 ERA, while batting .442 with 39 RBIs.
“He’s good at keeping hitters off balance, that’s his thing,” Markley said. “He’s been a great leader and he’s always had a great arm with great control.”
Logan George also has put up impressive numbers on the mound, entering the state tournament with a 7-1 record and 0.82 ERA. Caleb Riggleman is hitting .424 for the Bulldogs, while Brett Smith is at .394 and Marcus Reynolds .371. Riggleman leads the team with 28 stolen bases, while Reynolds has 23 steals on the year.
(50 minutes after first game) – No. 2 Wheeling Central (27-6) vs. No. 3 Charleston Catholic (26-8)
The history is rich between Wheeling Central and Charleston Catholic, no matter the sport.
And Thursday’s semifinal sets up to be yet another battle on the big stage.
After a runner-up finish in 2016 to Wahama, Wheeling Central was regarded by many around the state as as the early season favorite this year in Class A. The Maroon Knights have held the No. 1 spot in the MetroNews baseball poll since March 26 and have been a unanimous No. 1 since April 23.
“The state tournament field this year is pretty good,” said Wheeling Central coach Bo McConnaughy. “We’re excited about being there and hopefully we can achieve the goal that we started out with.”
The Maroon Knights have also had extra motivation this season, playing for former coach Jamey Conlin who passed away last year following a battle with cancer.
McConnaughy, meanwhile, won nearly 600 games as the West Liberty baseball coach from 1982-2012.
“Jamey (Conlin) didn’t leave the cupboard bare, we had some pretty good and talented kids coming back, with a pretty good pitching staff,” McConnaughy said. “The biggest adjustment was for them to get used to my style of coaching and me getting use to their style of accepting my style of coaching.”
Senior Austin Crebs leads Wheeling Central on the mound, posting a 9-0 record with a 0.93 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 68 innings pitched. Crebs is a transfer from Wheeling Park and threw in the state tournament a year ago in a loss to Jefferson.
Tyler Riedel, meanwhile, is 7-1 with a 1.20 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 46 and 2/3 innings on the mound. Riedel leads the Maroon Knights at the plate, hitting .471 with 30 RBIs. Senior catcher Isaac Rine (.382), junior Daevon Stradwick (.373), freshman Adam Murray (.348) and junior Patrick Brown (.362) are all hitting above .300 as well.
Wheeling Central has six state championships in program history (1999, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011). The Maroon Knights beat Charleston Catholic in the 2008 semifinals and in the 2011 title game.
“We’ve lost to Central a few times in the state tournament, so we know we have our hands full,” said Charleston Catholic coach Bill Mehle. “Any opportunity we have to play Central, we look forward to it. We joke with our students — whether it’s quiz bowl or our religious education tests that we take, we want to try and beat Central in everything that we do.
“It’s been a great rivalry over the years,” he continued. “They’re an excellent school with an excellent athletic program and they’re always well coached. We know what we’re up against and we look forward to playing them.”
Charleston Catholic has been led on the mound and at the plate by Brandon Combs. He entered the week with a 7-0 record on the mound and 1.54 ERA, while hitting .491 at the plate with 54 RBIs and just four strikeouts all year.
Thomas Blaydes (.455), Trae Swisher (.465), Michael Martin (.346), Luke McKown (.393), Dominic Martin (.363), Brendan Lanham (.373), Cameron Blakeley (.304) and John Hufford (.382) have all been over .300 at the plate as well.
The Irish are making their ninth state tournament appearance overall and own one state championship, coming back in 2013.