Year in and year out, longtime Pine-Richland coach Kurt Wolfe always finds a way to get the most out of his ballclub — and this year’s team is no different.
With four WPIAL titles and 275 victories under his belt in two decades at the helm, Wolfe is one of the most successful and well-respected coaches in the district. But while he always seems to have the Rams in the thick of the championship chase at season’s end, they haven’t been to the WPIAL final since 2019.
Now, after dropping down from Class 6A to Class 5A, Pine-Richland is on a mission to end its six-year championship drought — and with 14 wins in their first 16 games and the postseason just around the corner, the red-hot Rams have their eyes on the ultimate prize.
“Obviously you want to win them all, but we’re also realistic in our expectations,” Wolfe said. “Our goal isn’t to go undefeated. Our goal is to hopefully make the playoffs and win the section, and then win the WPIAL championship and state championship. But you have to put yourself in the position to do so.”
So far this season, the Rams have navigated a challenging schedule with relative ease while leaving a handful of quality opponents in their wake. But while some coaches choose to rely on one ace pitcher at the front of their rotation, Wolfe has the luxury of touting a pair of aces up his sleeve.
Allowing only 2.6 runs per game, Pine-Richland packs a powerful 1-2 punch in flame-throwing right-handers Keegan Deihl and Drew Boivin. Senior closer Tristan Farrar has been lights-out coming out of the bullpen, allowing only one hit and zero runs in eight innings of work, while freshman Carson King has also been stellar in relief with a 2.33 ERA over 15 innings pitched.
“We’re blessed to have some nice pitching depth this year and a lot of experience on the mound,” Wolfe said. “Farrar and [Deihl] have been there since their freshmen years, and now they’re seniors. … We have not let up a lot of runs this year, and a lot of that is due to the relationship that our pitching staff and defense has.”
A Baylor recruit with a low-90s fastball, wipeout slider and wicked curveball, Deihl’s fiery passion for the game is on full display every time he takes the mound. On the season, he holds a record of 6-0 with a 1.72 ERA and 40 strikeouts to 19 walks in 36⅔ innings pitched — and he has still yet to take his first official loss, owning an overall record of 16-0 for his career.
“Ever since my freshman year, I figured out my slider was always my best off-speed pitch. But I have really worked with being able to tunnel it with my fastball,” Deihl said. “I matched it with my fastball release point, which I didn’t really do when I was younger. I got it to release at the same point, and that makes it so much harder for hitters to see. Then the curveball was pretty much the same thing.”
Coming off an injury-shortened sophomore season, Boivin is a junior receiving interest from several Power Four schools, and you won’t find many No. 2 starters that can match his output. With a record of 4-1 and a 1.84 ERA to go with 47 strikeouts to 16 walks in 26⅔ innings pitched, Boivin is punching out nearly two batters per inning, and his mastery of the strike zone has been every bit as impressive as his overpowering stuff.
“Drew and Keegan work well together,” Wolfe said. “I think the boys have done a nice job of attacking hitters and trusting their defense and locating all their pitches.”
At the plate, the Rams have a half-dozen seniors playing key roles throughout their lineup, and you won’t find any easy outs from the top to the bottom of the order. The centerpiece of the team, though, both offensively and defensively, is senior catcher Sam Heckert.
As a freshman, Heckert tallied only one hit all season, then he went hitless his entire sophomore season in 15 at-bats. But he never lost his love of the game, and he finally put it all together as a junior, receiving first-team all-section honors after posting a team-high .375 batting average with four doubles, a home run and 15 RBIs.
“It’s kind of an ongoing joke. Sophomore year, I was so bad, I tried to swing lefty,” Heckert said. “Developing and understanding the mindset that you’re going to fail more than you succeed in baseball is a hard thing. That’s what I’ve been trying to put on these younger guys. You’re going to fail more than you succeed, but it’s how you respond to that adversity.”
This year, Heckert is taking his game to a whole new level, batting .440 with a team-leading eight doubles and 20 RBIs. His best friend, senior shortstop Tanner Cunningham, is second on the team with 11 RBIs while batting .300 with two doubles, a triple and two homers. Both Heckert and Cunningham were standouts on Pine-Richland’s WPIAL championship-winning football team last fall, and the two will continue their athletic journeys by playing college baseball together at Frostburg State next year.
“Going into this season, win or lose, we wanted to leave our legacy. Just lead by example, and things will fall where they may,” Heckert said. “We saw it in the football season, leaving our mark there and winning two championships. I think we left the program in a better place than when we started there, and that’s what we’re trying to do here.
“That’s my dude. He’s going to be my roommate, so this journey isn’t really ending for us.”
Elsewhere, senior leadoff hitter Anthony Mengine is batting .326 with four doubles and an on-base percentage of .516 while leading the team with 16 walks, 16 runs scored and 14 stolen bases. Plus, senior first baseman Jake Waddell is batting .340, senior third baseman Anthony Annichine is hitting .341, and freshman right fielder Breck Hemphill is hitting .343.
“There’s where the depth comes in,” Wolfe said. “We have nine guys in our lineup who are not only good hitters, but they understand the strike zone. They have great approaches. They’re gritty hitters. And they’re tough outs. That’s demoralizing for pitchers, when they face lineups like that, that are competing every pitch and every at-bat in every inning.
“It’s been fun to watch and fun to coach.”
All in all, the Rams appear to have all the right pieces in place along with the proper culture and team chemistry to make a deep playoff run. It won’t be easy in a loaded Class 5A tournament field, but it feels like Pine-Richland is long overdue for a trip to the big game — and it’s hard not to like its chances with such a battle-tested group.
“As good as our offenses have been all those years — and we have had some good offensive teams — it’s been the guys on the mound and the defense behind them,” Wolfe said. “And they both go hand in hand. As long as they’re working together, it could be a special year.”
Neshannock showcasing offensive firepower
With Neshannock’s softball team in the midst of an unprecedented dynasty, the Lancers’ baseball team tends to get overshadowed around this time of year.
Make no mistake about it, though — Neshannock has had plenty of success in baseball over the years, too. And if early returns are any indication, the Lancers might have what it takes to sweep the WPIAL Class 2A titles in both sports this season.
Fueled by a loaded lineup featuring three players batting .500 or better, Neshannock (11-4, 7-3) boasts the highest-scoring offense in the WPIAL at an average of 11.1 runs per game. Competing for playoff positioning in the rugged Class 2A Section 2 standings alongside teams like Shenango, New Brighton and Freedom, the Lancers are currently tied for second place in the section — and a massive two-game slate against the Lions is looming large on the final week of the schedule.
For the season, sophomore catcher Luca Mezzanotte leads the team with a .511 batting average, followed closely by seniors Jake Rynd and Hunter Wilson at an even .500. Mezzanotte is also tops on the team with six doubles and 23 RBIs, with fellow sophomore Ryan Cameron batting .455 with five doubles and 20 RBIs. Wilson also has 20 RBIs on the year, while Rynd has five doubles and 15 RBIs.
With three WPIAL titles in the past 15 seasons and six overall in program history, Neshannock is tied for the fourth-most championships of any WPIAL school. And although a decade has now passed since they captured their most recent WPIAL and PIAA crowns in 2015, the Lancers are only three years removed from a trip to the state championship game — and this could be their best chance yet to climb back to the top of the mountain.
Montour mustering up momentum ahead of postseason push
After making the move up from Class 4A to Class 5A, Montour encountered a bit of a rocky start this spring while losing four of its first five games.
But as he so often does, veteran coach Bob Janeda has righted the Spartans’ ship just in time for the playoff push, with Montour (10-6, 6-4) winning nine of its past 12 games to move into third place in Class 5A Section 4 behind Thomas Jefferson and Baldwin.
The surging Spartans picked up a crucial 8-3 road win on Wednesday to salvage a split of the season series against the Highlanders, as senior Andrew Porto went 3 for 3 with a home run and two RBIs. Junior Michael Ivanoff and sophomores Zander Stern and Dalton Young each drove in a pair as well to help Montour take home the victory.
For the season, junior Matteo Weber leads the team with a .487 batting average to go with 2 triples, a home run, 11 RBIs and 15 runs scored. Porto is hitting .267 with 2 doubles, a triple, 3 home runs and 12 RBIs, while Ivanoff is batting .308, Stern is hitting .314 and Young is batting .368.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
