Diamond Stars: LaCarte, Musko, Lohr head up H-S All-Area Baseball Team
The past high school baseball season saw Belle Vernon earn a section championship for the first time in 12 years, Carmichaels upend the WPIAL蘑菇视频 top-seeded team in the WPIAL quarterfinals, Uniontown reach the postseason for the third year in a row and West Greene win just its third playoff game in program history.
Those four schools accounted for the top honors on the 2024 蘑菇视频 All-Area Baseball Team.
The Big School (Class 3A-5A) Players of the Year are the Leopards鈥� Adam LaCarte and the Red Raiders;鈥� Tate Musko and the Coach of the Year is Belle Vernon蘑菇视频 Tony Watson.
The Small School (Class 1A-2A) Player of the Year is the Mikes鈥� Liam Lohr and the Coaches of the Year are Carmichaels鈥� Dickie Krause and the Pioneers鈥� Lenny Lohr.
Watson蘑菇视频 Belle Vernon squad trailed Latrobe by one game in the Section 2-AAAA standings heading into its two-game series finale with the Wildcats. The Leopards鈥� won the first game 4-3 in 12 innings and the second game 6-5 to secure just the fifth section plaque in program history.
LaCarte, who batted .426 with four home runs, 18 RBIs, 16 runs and seven stolen bases, played a key role in both victories over Latrobe. The senior center fielder scored the winning run in the first game and, in a rare appearance on the mound, pitched out of a two-out, bases-loaded jam in the top of the seventh inning of the second game before hitting a walk-off single in the bottom of the frame.
Musko played an important part in each of Uniontown蘑菇视频 three consecutive playoff appearances. This season the Marietta College recruit batted .340 with eight doubles, a triple and two home runs and also had an ERA under 0.50 as he struck out 74 batters in 38 鈪� innings. Musko, who played under his father, coach Ken Musko, was the lone area player to be voted to his all-section team as both a position player and a pitcher.
Carmichaels and West Greene tied for second place in Section 1-A along with Avella and while the Pioneers swept their two regular-season games with the Mikes, it was Krause蘑菇视频 squad that reached the WPIAL semifinals with playoff wins over Carlynton (9-1) and No. 1 Union, 3-1, thanks to a masterful three-hitter in the latter by Liam Lohr who also hit an RBI single and scored run in a three-run first inning.
Lohr was 8-3 with a 2.30 ERA and 66 strikeouts in 54 鈪� innings and also batted .449 with 11 doubles, 23 runs and an area-best 31 RBIs.
Lenny Lohr, who steered West Greene to 3-2 and 5-4 wins over the Mikes, also guided the Pioneers past Leechburg, 6-2, in the first round of the playoffs, giving the program its third postseason win.
In addition to Musko and LaCarte, the Big School First Team also includes the WPIAL蘑菇视频 second-leading hitter during the regular season in Waynesburg Central蘑菇视频 Alex VanSickle, who batted .617 while scoring 27 runs, and Elizabeth Forward蘑菇视频 Charlie Nigut who hit .464 with 25 RBIs.
Also on the Big School First Team are Connellsville蘑菇视频 Kace Shearer and Grayden Gillott, Belle Vernon蘑菇视频 Colton Lee, Yough蘑菇视频 Zander Aird and Waynesburg蘑菇视频 Tyler Groves.
In addition to Liam Lohr, the Small School First Team includes Mikes slick-fielding shortstop Dom Colarusso, who batted .415 with 18 RBIs and 29 runs while stealing over 25 bases, and West Greene蘑菇视频 Darren Knight, who was 5-3 with a 1.37 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 51 innings while batting a team-best .288 with 22 runs and over 25 stolen bases as well.
Also on the Small School First Team are two players who starred on teams that struggled to a combined two wins in Mapletown蘑菇视频 AJ Vanata, who batted .484, and winless Monessen蘑菇视频 R.J. DiEugenio, who hit .471, and a pair of Jefferson-Morgan underclassmen in John Woodward, who had a .3.18 ERA with an astounding 73 strikeouts in 39 鈪� innings while batting .326, and Deakyn DeHoet, who hit .479.
The Small School First Team also includes Beth-Center蘑菇视频 Jason Nopwasky and West Greene蘑菇视频 Johnny Lampe.
The complete 蘑菇视频 All-Area Baseball Team is listed below:
Big School (3A-5A) Players of the Year
Adam LaCarte, Belle Vernon; Tate Musko, Uniontown
Small School (1A-2A) Player of the Year
Liam Lohr, Carmichaels
Big School Coach of the Year
Tony Watson, Belle Vernon
Small School Coaches of the Year
Dickie Krause, Carmichaels; Lenny Lohr, West Greene
Big School First Team
Adam LaCarte, Belle Vernon
Tate Musko, Uniontown
Alex VanSickle, Waynesburg Central
Kace Shearer, Connellsville
Colton Lee, Belle Vernon
Zander Aird, Yough
Charlie Nigut, Elizabeth Forward
Tyler Groves, Waynesburg Central
Grayden Gillott, Connellsville
Small School First Team
Liam Lohr, Carmichaels
Dom Colarusso, Carmichaels
AJ Vanata, Mapletown
Jason Nopwasky, Beth-Center
Darren Knight, West Greene
John Woodward, Jefferson-Morgan
R.J. DiEugenio, Monessen
Johnny Lampe, West Greene
Deakyn DeHoet, Jefferson-Morgan
Second Team
Austin Grego, Wyatt Nehls, Uniontown; Jonathan Kelly, Ethan Porecca, Connellsville; Derek Turcheck, Trent Zupper, Waynesburg Central; Mason Lapana, Robbie Wilson-Jones, Carmichaels; Jacob Kitz, Mount Pleasant; Parker Lind, Lucas Judy, Belle Vernon; Hunter Pelehac, Brownsville; Nathaniel Bell, Yough; Brayden Ellsworth, Jefferson-Morgan; Alex Kolano, Ringgold; Hayden Hamilton, West Greene; Kris Weston, California; Kalen Woods, Charleroi.\
Honorable Mention
Cyrus Potkul, Jason Myers, Evan Weakland, Geno Valenti, Alex Dolobach, Albert Gallatin; Cole Matusik, Jake Gedekoh, Belle Vernon; Lucas Burt, Bentworth; Ethan Varesko, Luke Amon, Beth-Center; Gene Thorpe, Brownsville; Aydan Adamson, Carmichaels; Anthony Piasecki, Matthew Firestone, Connellsville; Cy Herchelroath, Kaden Faychak, Elizabeth Forward; Tyler Morrison, Logan Brown, Dalian McManus, Brock Alekson, Aidan Hardy, Frazier; Brock Bayles, Jaymison Robinson, Jefferson-Morgan; Devan Krivosky, Parker Hoff, Shane Layton, Laurel Highlands; Josh Mick, Mapletown; Connor Drzal, Cole Chatfield, Brady Painter, Mount Pleasant; Jimmy Nash, Ringgold; Kadin Keffer, Southmoreland; Mason Kuhn, Brayden Hinzy, Uniontown; Morgan Kiger, West Greene; Johnny Steban, Landon O鈥橠onnell, Yough;