Mar 22, 2015 6 min read

Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of stories profiling the area’s high school baseball and softball teams.

By Lance Lysowski

Staff writer

llysowski@observer-reporter.com

Waynesburg High School developed a reputation as one of the best programs in WPIAL Class AA baseball from 2009-12.

The Raiders made three consecutive playoff appearances, won a section title with a 14-0 record and were the WPIAL runner-up in 2011. They were the model of consistency with strong pitching and an offense among the best in the classification.

That all changed following the 2012 season. WPIAL realignment sent Waynesburg into the gauntlet of Class AAA.

The Raiders went 2-12 in 2013 and missed the playoffs last season with a 4-6 record in Section 3-AAA. After another round of realignment, Waynesburg head coach Kevin Pincavitch believes the Raiders are back where they belong.

Waynesburg will compete in Section 2-AA this season with natural rivals Beth-Center, Charters-Houston, Charleroi and Washington.

“We should have been Double-A the whole time, but that’s neither here nor there,” Pincavitch said. “It’s tough to compete in Triple-A when I have 20 kids coming out and other teams have 50 to 60 kids coming out. I don’t see how we were put in Triple-A. I’ll play anybody. I don’t care who it is, but I’m pretty excited about moving down.”

Pincavitch and the Raiders will attempt to reach the WPIAL playoffs with a few question marks, including pitching. Aaron Hill, who had an area-best 0.76 ERA last year, is one of seven players who graduated.

Waynesburg has two pitchers returning with varsity experience: sophomore Hunter Robinson and senior Joel Rohanna. Though the duo is strong, they are unproven. The two have pitched a combined six varsity innings.

Of the 19 players on the Raiders’ roster, 15 have the ability to pitch. Pincavitch, a former minor-league pitcher, is a firm believer a team cannot have too many pitchers. In a section that features strong offensive teams like Washington and Brownsville, he’ll put that theory to the test.

“As of now, Hunter Robinson is my ace, without a doubt,” Pincavitch said. “He throws the ball well, he’s pitched his whole life and he’s a tremendous athlete. Joel has a nice arm and should be key for us as a leader, too.”

Though Waynesburg lacks experience on the mound, it has hitters who proved themselves in Class AAA the past two seasons.

Senior first baseman John-Glen Davis is back after missing last season and recovered from a knee injury suffered during football season. Robinson was one of the Raiders’ statistical leaders at the plate in 2014 and Pincavitch expects Rohanna to take a step forward this spring.

Defensively, Waynesburg is set behind the plate with junior Braden Booger, and junior Nick Fox excelled throughout preseason workouts at second base.

With a move back to Class AA and an influx of young talent, Pincavitch is optimistic and Waynesburg has one goal in mind.

“We’re going into the season to try to win the section,” Pincavitch said. “I’ll tell you that much.”

The Prexies won their second consecutive section title in 2014 but were eliminated in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs by Beaver.

If Wash High is going to claim a third section title and breakthrough in the WPIAL playoffs, it will need to find an answer at one of the most important positions on the diamond: catcher.

The Prexies’ starting catcher from last season was suspended from athletics for the academic year.

“That’s a blow to our team. We’re just trying to fill in the pieces and find out what the best option is back there,” Wash High coach Rocky Plassio said. “Hopefully, someone will eventually step up and take hold of it.”

Though the Prexies also have openings at first base and third base, Plassio returns a nucleus that is among the best in the section. Senior left-handed pitcher Jonathan Spina, an Observer-Reporter First Team All-District selection last spring, is back after winning seven games and finishing with a 1.35 ERA. He also batted .407.

Senior second baseman Chris Gouin, Wash High’s leadoff hitter, is one of the best offensive players in the section after batting .481 last season. The Prexies also return Jordan West, Connor Bedillion, Kurt Adkins and Jordan Mooney.

“I feel like those six are really going to have to carry us,” Plassio said. “As far as those six take us is how far we’re going to go. I’ve expressed that to them as well and the goal is for the other kids battling for the other spots to round out the lineup and figure out how to make it work.”

The Bulldogs missed the postseason last season after finishing 6-8 in Section 2-AA play and went 7-12 overall.

Beth-Center won four of its last five games last spring, including victories over Burgettstown and Chartiers-Houston, but the Bulldogs lost 10 seniors and they have not reached the Class AA playoffs since 2012.

The Bucs reached the WPIAL Class AA playoffs last season with one of the top pitchers in the section and a senior-laden lineup that produced big offensive numbers.

Chartiers-Houston won’t have either this spring. Senior pitcher Alec Ferrari is forced to sit out the season because of a minor surgical procedure that will require him to be on blood thinners for six weeks.

Six key contributors are also gone, including the starting catcher and the heart of their batting order.

The Cougars lost only three seniors from last season, which ended with a fourth-place finish in Section 2-AA. With plenty of young talent, Charleroi is a team many coaches are pegging as a sleeper in 2015.

The Blue Devils moved from Section 2 to Section 1, which includes perennial powers Quaker Valley and South Side Beaver. Burgettstown lost its final seven games last spring and five seniors to graduation.

The Rangers also made the move to Section 1-AA and will embark on the tough competition without 11 players from last season’s roster.

Fort Cherry only won three games in 2014, but senior Alex Babirad does return and an upset win over Chartiers-Houston last April could be the confidence-builder the program needed.