Shenendehowa Fight Off a Scrappy Auburn to Head to the State Finals

Dan Cevette
New York Scouting Director

Saturday night at Joe Bruno Stadium started out like any Regional match up should. Two solid arms on the bump, teams all juiced up for action and both teams had impressive In and Outs in front of a nice crowd of 350. The stage for set for two Class AA schools to battle, and after the first it looked like it would be all about the pitchers.

Shenendehowa starter LHP, Bryan Warzek looked extra sharp as he cruised through his first three frames of work. Auburn RHP Justin Valentino worked a scoreless first but with two men on and only one out a costly E6 resulted in a two run second inning for No. 1 Shenendehowa. They added a third run in the bottom of the third when John Novenche drew a walk followed by Connor Douglas ripping a RBI double to LF scoring Novenche.

Auburn would add one run in the fourth after Matt Brooks singled to LF, advanced on a wild pitch and moved to third on a Valentino single to center. He would then score off of a sac fly from Steve Bennet. Both Pitchers locked in for the remainder of the game until the top of seventh when things got a little scary for top seeded and local favorite Shenedehowa.

Warzek got two quick outs and the entire stadium was packing up while Shen fans were celebrating..maybe a touch too soon. Erik Bain walked on four consecutive balls, and Valentino hit a hard ground ball booted for an E4 to give Auburn life on first and second. Pat Lodouce singled hard on a rope to RF loading the bases giving Auburn a lot to like. Warzek was pulled from the game giving the ball to Ian Anderson. With one strike John Rizzo hit what appeared to be a big time line drive to RF immediately giving Aurburn fans something to scream about. It was very short lived as Matt Bloise makes a game ending, diving catch to end all hope for Auburn.

Great game for both teams and I have said this before but Auburn is the most under rated team in Class AA. Very scrappy team with a lot of heart. Shen is a very strong squad with next level talent spread out across the entire field. They are still my pick for winning States.

WP: Warzek
LHP works fast and aggressive. Fastball topped 86 mph sitting 83-84 with some natural lefty run and sink. Shows signs of a good curveball but needs to develop a more sound change up. I liked his tempo and delivery.

LP: Valentino
RHP is very tough and worked extremely hard on the mound. Fastball sits 82, topping 84 mph a few pitches. Has a nice feel for his curveball although it was inconsistent at times. Needs to develop a stronger change up for next level. Competes hard I like his makeup.

For Shenendehowa:
Kyle McAlonie goes 1-3 with an RBI, Connor Douglas goes 1-2 with an RBI, and Brennan McCormack adds an RBI.

For Auburn:
Pat Lodouce, John Rizzo, Matt Brooks, and Justin Valentino all added hit.