PERRYVILLE — Perryville 10-run ruled Kent County in the opening round of the Class 1A East I Region high school baseball tournament May 7, kicking off a remarkable journey that culminated with an appearance in the state semifinals this week for the Cecil County club.
The Panthers finish 18-5, which includes upsets of the Nos. 1 and 2 seeds in the region tournament.
Meantime, Kent County went 5-14, more than doubling its regular-season win total of a year ago.
“We did pretty much what I thought we would do,” first-year head coach Mike Iacona told The Evening Enterprise.
“We had a chance against Cambridge and Colonel Richardson,” Iacona said of the losses in late March, both by a final score of 8-7.
He described the KCHS team that started three freshmen as “undermanned,” while acknowledging that “we got as much out of the team as we could.”
No. 3 seed Perryville eliminated No. 6 seed Kent County in the first round of the East I Region tournament, 13-3, pushing three runs across in the last of the sixth inning to end the game due to the mercy rule.
Senior Noah Iacona took the loss after giving up seven runs in two innings.
Senior Aiden Crouch, the only left-hander on the pitching staff, went the rest of the way on the hill for the Trojans.
Iacona, who repeats as the team MVP, was 3-for-3 and played a role in all three of the Trojans’ runs. He led off the game with a triple and scored the first run on senior Braden Wilson’s sacrifice fly; he doubled in the third inning and subsequently scored; and his single to left-center in the fifth inning plated senior Tyrel “Teeter” Dean [walk, stolen base], who scored from second base.
Freshman outfielder Nate Copper and senior third baseman Chase Dolgos also had base hits for KCHS.
While the season ended abruptly for KCHS, coach Iacona emphasized that wins and losses alone do not define success.
“It was a really good group of guys,” he said, noting that all 15 players on the opening day roster remained on the team throughout the 19-game campaign.
****
Turns out that with the win against KCHS in the region tournament opener, Perryville was just getting started.
Perryville ousted No. 2 seed Colonel Richardson, 9-4, in the semifinals on May 9 and No. 1 seed and defending region champion St. Michaels, 5-4 in nine innings, on May 12 in the East I championship game.
Perryville extended its season with a 9-4 decision over Fort Hill in the state quarterfinals May 15.
But on Tuesday, May 19, Liberty, reaching the state semis for the third time in five years, ended the ride for Perryville, 8-0.
Liberty [19-5] will face Patterson Mill [20-2] for the 1A championship on Friday, May 22 at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen.
Patterson Mill, the overall top seed, eliminated Patuxent in Tuesday’s other state semifinal, 13-3.
