Parkland High School Baseball

Rhett Jacoby pitched his 6th complete game of the season, improving his record to 7-1, to lead the Trojans to their first PIAA playoff victory since the 2009 team.  The 2009 Trojans made it all the way to the PIAA championship game where they lost to North Penn.  Jacoby allowed three runs (two earned) with seven hits.  Jacoby had six strikeouts and did not walk a batter.  OJR took an early 1-0 in the top of the first inning with two base hits, but Parkland answered quickly with a run of their own in the bottom of the first inning.  Justin Afflerbach (1-2, 2B, BB, 2R) walked and with two outs in the inning, the Trojans wasted no time getting clutch two-out hitting.  Bruno singled for his first of three hits in the game, then McAndrew followed with his own two-out base hit with an RBI single that scored Afflerbach to tie the game at 1-1. 

OJR scored an unearned run on two Parkland fielding errors in the second inning to take the lead again, 2-1.  Parkland answered again, this time in the bottom of the third inning when Jeff Strisovsky (1-3, R) led off the inning with a single.  With two outs in the inning and Strisovsky still on first base, the Trojans again got clutch two-out hitting, and again it was Bruno and McAndrew.  Bruno singled and then stole second base to put runners on second and third base with two outs.  McAndrew came through with another two-out RBI single to tie the game again at 2-2.  Bruno tried to score from second base on the play, but was tagged out at the plate.

Jacoby took command after the OJR unearned run in the second inning.  Jacoby proceeded to retire OJR batters in 1-2-3 fashion in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th innings.  In fact, after allowing a single in the second inning, Jacoby retired the next 11 OJR batters in order before allowing a one-out single in the top of the 6th inning.  Not only did Jacoby (1-3, RBI) take control in the mound, but he also used his bat to give the Trojans their first lead of the game.  In the bottom of the 4th inning, Austin Mueller (1-3) got things started with a line drive single.  Cullan Wadsworth (0-2, sac) sacrifice bunted courtesy runner EJ Brandt to second base, and then Jacoby followed with an RBI single to give the Trojans their first lead of the game, 3-2. 

Parkland added an important insurance run in the bottom of the 5th inning when Afflerbach hit a one-out double.  Chris Rabasco (1-3, RBI) then drove in Afflerbach with an RBI single to put the Trojans up by a score of 4-2.  OJR closed the gap in the top of the 6th inning when they scored a run on a single followed by a double.  With Parkland clinging to the 4-3 lead in the top of the 7th inning, OJR did not go quietly.  After Jacoby recorded the first out of the 7th inning with a strikeout, the next two batters reached base with a hit-by-pitch and single.  Jacoby got the next batter to line out to centerfield for the second out of the inning.  With two outs and a runner on first and the tying run second base, the next OJR batter hit a slow roller over the mound.  Shortstop Rabasco charged the ball and made a nice play on the run for the 6-3 out to end the game.

The Trojans will not have much time to savor the victory as they will play again tomorrow.  Inclement weather earlier in the week has forced back-to-back games on consecutive days.  The Trojans will face Council Rock North at Immaculata University in the PIAA quarterfinal round.