Seals seniors settle for silver

Jun. 18—A second gold medal wasn't in the cards for Teague Hoover and Ryan Reich on Friday, so the Selinsgrove seniors will have to settle for helping to put the Seals firmly on the state baseball map.

The Seals appeared in a PIAA championship game for the second time in four years, with one of those seasons (2020) entirely lost to the COVID-19 pandemic. It's a level of success that not only raises the bar for a program, but also cements its status statewide. Selinsgrove's football and field hockey teams have long been regulars on their respective state brackets.

"I think if we had that team back in 2020 we certainly would have again appeared on that bracket," said Seals coach Brent Beiler. "I looked at this (Class 5A bracket) and thought, Seven games to win a state championship? Against teams we barely know? I thought it was impossible. But here we are with these guys today. They did an outstanding job, and made it a possibility."

Selinsgrove went 57-15 in the seniors' three seasons, including a program-record 23 victories and Class 5A silver this year and the 2019 Class 4A gold. Hoover, a four-year starter at shortstop whose next stop is IUP, said he didn't envision such a windfall, despite he and his high school teammates enjoying success at the Little League level.

"It's an awesome experience, and I'm going to soak it all in," Hoover said. "I think to myself that I was really glad to be in one state championship, let alone two. That just comes with hard work, believing in yourself and sticking to it.

"For all the young kids, the sky's the limit for them. They've just got to put in the time. That's the biggest thing — working hard."

Reich went from freshman closer on the state title team to ace on the state runner-up, pulling a Division I scholarship from Seton Hall along the way. He and Hoover took the torch from 2019 seniors Logan Hile and Blaise Zeiders, among others, and proved their title run wasn't a fluke.

"I think we've built a winning culture," said Reich. "Me and Teague are leaving behind a really good team. I felt like we raised them, per se. Now we're a winning a baseball program."

Future still bright for Green Dragons

Making program history with its first state championship game appearance in school history, Lewisburg hopes to continue its current standard of excellence. A program that endured a 57-game losing streak just 10 years ago, hopes to parlay this year's success into continued district and state playoff appearances.

"My goal is to always to have one or two starters out of every age group, so we aren't decimated by nine seniors graduating at one time," Lewisburg coach Ken Wagner said.

Lewisburg will lose seniors Erin Field and Rylee Dyroff from the left side of the infield, and pitcher/right fielder Alexis Walter, who homered in the 7-2 loss to Avonworth on Thursday.

The Green Dragons return six starters next season — led by its battery in rising juniors, pitcher Kimmy Shannon and catcher Sydny Bolinsky, along with center fielder Ryan Brouse, who had four hits in the district championship win over Central Columbia.

Lewisburg will move up to Class 4A for the next PIAA cycle for softball.

Handling the Seals' heat

Selinsgrove's Gannon Steimling may not have been entirely sorry to see the season come to an end.

The junior catcher spent a season receiving fastballs from Reich, Hoover and classmate Tyler Swineford, which typically ranged in speed from the low- to upper-80s. Then, in the state playoffs, for various reasons, he had to navigate a three-game stretch in which the Seals' pitchers relied almost exclusively on their heaters.

In short, Steimling's hand was virtually tenderized in June.

"It just gets a lot of wear and tear," he said. "Then, by the time it heals, we have another game and — boom — little sore the next day."

Steimling handled 487 total pitches in Selinsgrove's four-game state run.

"They're pounding the strike zone," Steimling said. "That shows how good they are."

Learning what it takes

The Green Dragons felt like they always had a shot at the success they achieved this season, but Lewisburg did have to learn an important lesson to reach Thursday's state final against the Antelopes.

"We learned we needed to play for each other, and play for a team. It's not just one person that's going to get you this far," Field said. "A different girl stepped in each game, it didn't matter, who it was.

"Our chemistry was so good. We played for each other, and always had each other's back."

First-year starter finishes with flourish

Josh Domaracki closed his first season as a varsity starter with a flourish, batting .600 (6-for-10) in Selinsgrove's last three state playoff games.

The sophomore center fielder had two of the Seals' three hits in Friday's Class 5A final, his second multi-hit game in a row.

Domaracki took over the leadoff spot after 11 games, and finished the season with a .347 batting average. Steimling led the Seals at .447, with Hoover (.410), sophomore Mason Richter (.393) and junior Tyler Swineford (.344) rounding out Selinsgrove's top five hitters.