When the postseason comes around and each game takes on its own massive level of importance, certain teams just know how to rise to the occasion — but few have done so better than Bethel Park in recent years.
In four seasons under 36-year-old coach Pat Zehnder, the Black Hawks have played in three WPIAL Class 5A championship games and won a pair of state titles. But believe it or not, despite all their success over the past half-decade, they are still searching for their first WPIAL title in nearly 40 years.
“We have a lot of guys back from last year who are hungry and know what it takes, but it’s not getting any easier, that’s for sure,” Zehnder said. “We absolutely have the team who can do it. … I believe on paper, talent wise, we’re better than last year. Even with the injuries we have. But then again, I believe [Class] 5A is better and deeper this year. We’ve been in a lot of close games all year.
“Our section has been such a battle. It feels like we’ve been in the playoffs since the beginning of April at this point.”
Year in and year out, Bethel Park seems to find a way to play its best baseball in the second half of the season, and history is repeating itself once again in 2025. After an 8-4 start, the team has strung together a seven-game winning streak going into its regular-season finale against Class 6A Section 2 champion Canon-McMillan on Thursday. The Black Hawks clinched the Class 5A Section 2 title outright with a sweep of Chartiers Valley last week.
So what is the secret to Bethel Park’s tendency to peak at the right time? For Zehnder, it’s all about getting all three phases of the game in sync.
“You want to play well all year, but you want to be trending upward as the playoffs start coming around,” Zehnder said. “We have had really good pitching and defense all year. The offense has been a little bit inconsistent, but we’re increasing our quality of at-bats, seeing more pitches and getting more competitive at-bats. Thankfully, the pitching and defense have been good enough to cover for that [so far].
“If we can get all three facets working in the same direction, that will be really good for us.”
Senior shortstop Ryan Petras is a four-year starter having another terrific campaign for the Black Hawks. A speedy leadoff hitter batting .407 with five doubles and a team-leading 18 stolen bases and 20 runs scored, Petras is the ultimate table setter at the top of Bethel Park’s lineup.
One of the top two-sport athletes in the area, Petras initially planned on playing both football and baseball in college, but he is now set on focusing on football at Duquesne. Before he hangs up the spikes, though, he’d certainly like another state title to add to the PIAA Class 5A championship he won as a freshman.
“He’s such a sparkplug offensively,” Zehnder said. “He can hit for power, he can bunt for a hit, he can slap the ball up the middle, he can poke the ball over the second baseman’s head, and he knows when he gets on, he can turn it into a double or triple for us with his speed.”
Another player having a monster year for the Black Hawks is junior third baseman Mike Bruckner, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound behemoth who is receiving interest from several Power Four schools. So far this spring, Bruckner is slashing .396/.508/.667 with 5 doubles, a triple, 2 home runs and a team-high 17 RBIs.
“He’s a big load,” Zehnder said. “He throws 90 mph. He can hit the ball over 100 mph. He just has so many tools. A couple Division I schools are already recruiting him to pitch and hit. He’s just a good kid.”
Bruckner’s older cousin, senior center fielder Jack Bruckner, is another two-sport standout hitting .333 with four doubles and 12 RBIs while playing exceptional defense at one of the sport’s premium positions. Senior Noah LeJeune leads the team with a .429 batting average to go with 15 RBIs and 14 runs scored, and the team’s most valuable player might be all-section senior catcher Ethan Stanhoff, batting .407 with four doubles and 11 RBIs.
“We know the longer the game goes and the later it gets, it’s to our advantage because of our depth on the mound and positionally,” Zehnder said. “We play 14 or 15 guys a game, and we have faith in all of them to help us get a win.”
On the hill, senior right-hander Dylan Schumacher has taken over as the team’s de facto ace in place of injured Virginia Tech recruit Ryan Walsh, who is out for the season while recovering from a blood clot in his shoulder. Schumacher has been stellar in his own right, holding a record of 4-1 with a 1.35 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 31 innings pitched.
With No. 3 starter Dylan Paul also on the mend with an elbow issue, Owen White is filling in admirably while striking out 28 betters in just 16 innings. And when he isn’t playing third base, Mike Bruckner takes the mound out of the bullpen in high-leverage situations, holding a minuscule 0.47 ERA with 23 strikeouts to eight walks in 15 innings of work.
“[Bruckner] is probably one of the best players in the area, offensively and on the mound,” Zehnder said. “He’s our closer, but also can start and give us quality innings. He’s one of our best pitchers, but we like to use him a little bit differently.”
Overall, the Black Hawks have all the makings of a team built for another deep postseason run. Of course, there are no guarantees in the loaded Class 5A playoff bracket, but you can bet Zehnder will have his club ready for anything that comes its way — and that might even include some more hardware for the school trophy case.
“We’re battle-tested, we’re experienced, we’re talented, and I think we’re flying a little bit under the radar this year, which I don’t mind,” Zehnder said. “I know a couple of them have the home screen on their phone saved as the scoreboard from last year [a 4-3 defeat against Penn-Trafford in the WPIAL title game]. It’s been the driving force behind their work ethic.
“We have a lot of work to do to get there, but it’s absolutely a goal that’s attainable.”
Burgettstown outslugs Fort Cherry to secure section title
In the first matchup of a massive two-game slate for the Class 2A Section 1 crown, Burgettstown built an early eight-run lead on the road, then held off a furious Fort Cherry rally en route to an action-packed 12-11 triumph.
Senior outfielder Brian Charles belted a grand slam to give the Blue Devils an 11-3 lead in the third inning, but that was barely enough cushion to hang on with sophomore slugger Colton Temple and the Rangers chipping away at the deficit. On his way to a potential triple crown, Temple blasted a pair of home runs and finished with four RBIs, raising his totals to a WPIAL-leading 10 homers and 36 RBIs on the season. Temple is also tops in the WPIAL with a .667 batting average.
Another one of the top underclassmen in the area, all-section sophomore Ryan Huey doubled and drove in three runs for Fort Cherry (12-5, 9-2), but it wasn’t quite enough to pull off the comeback. The teams will rematch on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at Burgettstown (12-2, 10-1), where the Rangers will attempt to salvage a split of both the season series and the section title.
Plum making compelling case for top seed in Class 5A
In terms of the depth of quality teams, Class 5A is typically viewed as the strongest classification in the WPIAL, and this year is no different. Class 5A Section 1 has a solid argument for the most loaded section of all, with Franklin Regional (10-7, 6-6) sitting in fourth place, Latrobe (14-6, 8-4) in third place and reigning WPIAL champion Penn-Trafford (14-5, 10-2) in second place.
Still, Plum has navigated the gauntlet of an absolutely brutal schedule with relative ease on its way to securing the Class 5A Section 1 crown. The Mustangs (17-2, 11-1) have won 10 games in a row, with their only losses coming via 7-6 defeat against defending WPIAL Class 6A champion North Allegheny on April 3, and a 5-2 loss against aforementioned defending WPIAL Class 5A champ Penn-Trafford on April 9.
Having split the season series with the Warriors, Plum went unbeaten through the rest of its section schedule, putting the finishing touches on its section title with back-to-back shutout victories against Latrobe by identical 3-0 scores on Monday and Tuesday. The Mustangs have also proven they know how to win shootouts, too, owning a 14-6 win against Armstrong on March 25, a 17-13 win over Kiski Area on April 22 and a 12-5 win against Franklin Regional on April 28.
Several players have stepped up in recent games at the plate for Plum, with Jake Dombkowski, Ryan Lafferty and Max Vollmer each batting well above .400 on the season. Junior right-hander Braden Kemmerer headlines the Mustangs’ pitching staff with a 5-0 record, 1.88 ERA and 31 strikeouts to nine walks in 41 innings. Kemmerer tossed a three-hit shutout against the Wildcats on Monday, while senior righty Michael Tedrick followed with a one-hit shutout on Tuesday to clinch the section crown outright.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
