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From staff reports
WEXFORD--The Mount Union Trojans' bid to defend their 2019 state championship was halted by Shenango, on Monday, as the Wildcats came away with a 7-3 win, at North Allegheny Senior High School.
Shenango used a three-run first inning to take the lead, which they would hold for the entirety of the game.
Tyler Renninger got the start on the mound for the Trojans and was hit hard immediately. The Trojans' ace pitched one inning in only14 pitches, but allowed four hits and three earned runs.
Not wanting to let the game get away from them, coach Tim Hicks decided to pull Renninger in favor of Ryan Scott, who was greeted rudely by the Wildcats' bats.
Shenango pushed across another run in the second to increase their lead to 4-0, before the Trojans got on the board in the top of the third.
Bryce Danish walked and Ian Brodbeck doubled to put runners in scoring position with one out. Braylan Knable drove in Danish on an RBI fielder's choice to shortstop.
Shane Cato, who was the starting pitcher for Shenango, ended the threat by getting Vince Lear to fly out to center. Cato went six innings, giving up three runs on seven hits while striking out six and walking three.
The Wildcats bounced back, getting two more runs in the fourth. A Trojans' error and a wild pitch plated a run each as Shenango extended their lead to 6-1.
Mount Union showed the grit and determination of a championship-caliber program as they put together a two-run rally in the fifth.
Dayvon Wilson, Danish and Cam Donaldson combined for three-straight singles to load the bases with nobody out. Shenango gunned down Wilson at home on a Brodbeck fielder's choice to prevent the run, but still with the bases loaded, Knable stepped into the box and smacked a single to left to drive in two runs, cutting the Wildcats' lead in half.
Knable finished the game going 2-for-4, driving in all three Trojans's runs.
Shenango remained calm and didn't let the Trojans rally cause any panic. Their offense went right back to work and manufactured a run on a Hunter Lively single.
In the seventh, Zach Herb shut the door on the Trojans, ending the game and Mount Union's impressive season.
Mount Union finished their 2021 campaign with a 16-7 record and a runner-up finish in District 6 Class 2A.
Shenango 7, Mount Union 3
MU: 001 020 0--3-7-1
S: 310 210 X--7-9-1
WP: Shane Cato. LP: Tyler Renninger. SO: Ryan Scott 3, Bryce Danish (MU); Cato 6 (S). BB: Scott 5 (MU); Cato 3 (S). 2B: Ian Brodbeck (MU); Tyler Kamerer (S). MH: Brodbeck 2-4, Braylan Knable 2-4 (MU); Cre Calabria 2-4, Kamerer 2-4 (S). RBI: Knable 3 (MU); Kamerer 2, Zach Herb 2, Ethan Bintrim, Hunter Lively (S).