PHOTO: Wyoming Area has kept rolling with two more wins since celebrating its first District 2 title. (Zachary Allen Photo)
Wyoming Area baseball coach Rob Lemoncelli keeps pounding home the mantra that he thinks is vital to his team’s success: “a positive after negative.”
Negatives, however, have been somewhat difficult to locate during the seven-game winning streak that has carried the Warriors three steps beyond any previous team in the program’s history.
Wyoming Area had trailed for just 1½ innings during the streak coming into Thursday’s Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state Class 4A quarterfinal.
The Warriors then faced a deficit for the same duration before Jack Mathis delivered a game-winning, two-run single with one out in the top of the fifth inning of a 6-4 victory over Eastern Lebanon County at DeSales University in Center Valley.
Mathis, who drove in three runs in the game, sent a hard groundball through the left side to break a 4-4 tie and cap a four-run inning.
Thursday’s negativity came in the form of a flyball that was lost in the sun, turning the likely third out of the bottom of the third into a three-run double for Reilly Peiffer.
Hunter Lawall responded to what became a four-run inning by shutting out ELCO the rest of the way, retiring the last 13 batters, allowing only two balls to leave the infield after the third inning.
Lawall struck out 10 while throwing a three-hitter with three walks.
Mathis finished 3-for-3 with a double.
Casey Noone had a double, single, RBI and run scored.
Evan Melberger doubled and scored.
District 2 champion Wyoming Area (13-6) heads back to DeSales Monday to face District 12 champion Monsignor Bonner-Archbishop Prendergast (16-7) Bonner-Prendie defeated Holy Ghost Prep, 9-7, in the quarterfinals.
