Thoughts on the new PIAA baseball pitching rule

The PIAA approved on Wednesday a rule where the number of pitches counts towards eligibility and not innings. The limit is 100 pitches per session which would require 3 days of rest. 25 pitches would require no days rest. 26 to 50 requires one day of rest. 51 to 75 requires two days and then 76 to 100 pitches would require three days of rest. Now here's my thought on it: I have some doubts. I agree something had to be done to save players' arms and this rule has worked in Little League Baseball. However, the problems I have are currently:

-Teams starting to take pitches to run up high pitch counts. At the High School level, a coach can very easily say "take a few pitches" and most of the players will take pitches. Whereas in Little League, a manager might say that but more often then not, the Little Leaguer will hit the best pitch he sees. In my opinion, I find a good at-bat to be about 5 pitches and a good inning by the pitcher to be under 15 pitches.

-Inconsistent umpiring is another concern. This isn't here to bash umpires in anyway, but sometimes I've noticed that occasionally the strike zone changes sometimes, where a strike in the first inning can be a ball in the sixth inning. I'm not saying umpires have to be perfect because they can make mistakes. I'm more concerned when it's one of those games where the strike zone changes by the inning.

-Longer games is the last concern I have. Remember that none of these teams have lights on their field so in an early season start, you might have til about 7-7:30 to get the game finished (remember games are official after 5 innings). This is the smallest of concerns all things considered. You might end up with teams who take a pitcher up to the limit and the pressure is on the next pitcher. 

Those are some of the problems I have, could some of these be a problem? We'll see, it's going to be an adjustment for all the coaches. When I cover a game, my hope is to be able to get a pitch count on both sides and it will be in the pitching line. 

Crestwood at Nanticoke Boys Basketball

The Nanticoke Trojans came into tonight's game with a winning streak of 20 games at home. The Comets came in as a winner of 5 straight games. Who will prevail? Crestwood started the first quarter off well with a Kyle Gegaris three and with some help from Kevin Klusewitz and Mike Kozelsky as well as their team defense, they would take a 9-3 lead after a quarter. The Comets started off the quarter on a 7-1 run to increase their lead to 13. However, the Trojans would go on a 6-0 with 4 points from Luke Butczynski and 2 from Trahjan Krupinski but the Comets would lead 17-10 at halftime. The Comets would increase their lead to 11 but 3 pointers from Cody Piestrak and Nate Kreitzer would cut the lead to 5. A basket from Mike Kozelsky increased the lead to 5 but a Tyler Thomas free throw and a Nate Kreitzer 3 to beat the buzzer cut the Comets' lead to 24-21 at the end of the third. The fourth quarter would start with the Trojans cutting it to 1 with help from Trahjan Krupinski. Lance Blass first points of the night came on a three pointer to increase the lead to 4. Krupinski sank 1 of 2 free throws to make it a 3 point game but Lance Blass would complete a 3 point play to make it 6. Trahjan Krupinski tried to keep the Trojans in as he would score another basket. After a missed free throw, Nanticoke would grab the rebound and would give it to Cody Piestrak in the left corner for a 3 to make 30-29 Comets. The Comets, however would clamp down on the Trojans as they would not score the reminder of the game. Crestwood would hit their free throws to seal the victory and snap Nanticoke's home winning streak by the score of 43-29. Kevin Klusewitz had a game high 12 points for the Comets and Lance Blass would score all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter. For the Trojans, Nate Kreitzer scored 9 and Cody Piestrak and Trahjan Krupinski would each score 7. 

Thoughts on the game: A very big back and forth game right here. Crestwood started off the game with a big lead but Nanticoke would start surging around halftime only cutting the lead to 7 at half after trailing by 13. The Trojans fought the whole game even cutting the Comets lead to 1 but the Crestwood defense was too much for them and they didn't score the rest of the game. Players wise, great game by Kevin Klusewitz who had 12 points and Lance Blass who had a great 4th quarter as he scored all 10 in the final frame. For Nanticoke, Nate Kreitzer, Cody Piestrak, and Trahjan Krupinski were one of the biggest reasons why the Trojans were able to get back into the game in the second half.

Crestwood

Kyle Gegaris 9

Kyle Richards 6

Kevin Klusewitz 12

Mike Kozelsky 4

Noah Jackson 2

Lance Blass 10

Nanticoke

Nate Kreitzer 9

Luke Butczynski 5

Cody Piestrak 7

Trahjan Krupinski 7

Tyler Thomas 1

Nanticoke at Crestwood Girls Basketball

The Nanticoke Trojanettes came into Mountain Top undefeated and the No 1 ranked girls basketball team on NEPA SportsPage. The Lady Comets came in trying to pull off the upset. The Trojanettes started off fast and lead 9-4 and increased the lead up to 7 at 13-6 but Crestwood would go on a 6-1 run to end the quarter and the Trojanettes would lead 14-12 after 1. The Lady Comets would quickly tie the game and then take the lead on 5 straight points by Kate Snipas. A pair of Kayla Aufiero free throws cut the lead to one but Kristen Andrews hit a 3 pointer to make it a 4 point lead. Crestwood would lead for most of the second quarter and would lead 30-27 at halftime. The Trojanettes would come out of the locker room with high intensity and came out running. They would go on a 13-0 run and take a 9 point lead. Kate Snipas hit the first basket of the quarter for Crestwood and Sara Hopkins would cut it to 2 with a three pointer and another basket but Nanticoke went on another run to end the third. They would lead 51-37 after 3 quarters. Crestwood went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 6 but the comeback would not come to fruition as the Trojanettes kept the Lady Comets to only 4 points for the rest of the game as the Trojanettes would stay undefeated by the score of 66-49. Kayla Aufiero led all scorers with 29 and Riley Klepadlo had 18 for the Trojanettes. For Crestwood, Sara Hopkins scored 19. Andrea Shipton and Julia Makowski scored 8 each for the Lady Comets.

Thoughts on the game: A great second half for the Trojanettes, going on 2 different runs in the third quarter. Kayla Aufiero and Riley Klepadlo had great games for Nanticoke. Aufiero did most of her damage in the second half, scoring 23 of her 29 points in the second half. Riley Klepadlo kept Nanticoke within 3 at half, scoring 11 of her 18 in the first half. For Crestwood, they played a very good first half, they were able to break the press in the first half and had a great second quarter to give them a lead at half. Overall, it was an interesting game with both sides playing great at points.

Nanticoke

Katie Butczynski 9

Kayla Aufiero 29

Lisa Radziak 8

Riley Klepadlo 18

Alyssa Lewis 2

Amiah Lukowski 1

Crestwood

Andrea Shipton 8

Sarah Richards 2

Sara Hopkins 19

Kate Snipas 9

Kristen Andrews 3

Julia Makowski 8

Pittston Area at Nanticoke Boys Basketball

Pittston Area came into Nanticoke coming off a victory over Berwick. Will they be able to take down another top ranked team in the Nanticoke Trojans. The Trojans hosted their youth basketball night. Nanticoke started off the game on fire with an 8-1 run. The Patriots cut the lead to 3 but a Nate Kreitzer three increased it to 6 and went on a 7-2 to end the quarter with the score of 15-7 in favor of the Trojans. Matt Piontkowski took over during the second quarter grabbing several rebounds and scoring 6 points and the Trojans went into the locker room with a 23-18 lead at halftime. Nanticoke started the third quarter on a huge run. The Trojans went on a 13-0 run and only allowed 4 points in the whole quarter to give Nanticoke a 38-22 lead at the end of the third. The Trojans would cruise in the fourth quarter to take the victory over Pittston Area 49-31. Cody Piestrak led all scorers with 13 points and Luke Butczynski scored 9. For the Patriots, Pat Mitchell scored 11 and Keemar Woodruff had 6.

Thoughts on the game: Cody Piestrak started off hot, scoring 13 on the night. Several Trojans contributed in different ways. Matt Piontkowski grabbed several rebounds and had 6 points in the second quarter. For the Patriots, Pat Mitchell had a great game, scoring 11 points and grabbing several rebounds.

Pittston Area

Alex McAndrew 1

Naseem Guillauame 2

Pat Mitchell 11

Keemar Woodruff 6

Matt Mazurkivich 4

Jimmy Pliska 4

Trevor Tigue 3

Nanticoke

Cody Piestrak 13

Luke Butczynski 9

Nate Kreitzer 5

Zack Cardone 4

Matt Piontkowski 6

Tyler Thomas 5

Justin Casey 7

Wyoming Area at Crestwood Boys Basketball

Wyoming Area came to Mountain Top on a foggy Tuesday night to put their undefeated record on the line. Crestwood started off the game leading 4-0 but the Warriors started hitting some three pointers and would lead 6-4 on threes from Sam Greenfield and Tony Saitta. Wyoming Area would hit 4 threes in the quarter to lead 12-8 after 1. Crestwood would tie it early in the second quarter on a three pointer from Kyle Richards and a free throw from Lance Blass. A Sam Greenfield basket would give them a short lived lead til a pair of Noah Jackson free throws tied the game and then his own basket gave the Comets a 16-14 lead. However Kyle Musto would give them the lead on a three. Evan Knapp hit a pair of free throws to retake the lead but a Tony Saitta 3 gave the Warriors a 20-18 lead at halftime. Crestwood retook the lead once again early in the third quarter on a 3 pointer by Richards, but Kyre Zielinski gave the Warriors the lead and Anthony Nardell increased the lead to 4 on a 3 pointer. After a Lance Blass basket cut the lead to two, another Anthony Nardell three pointer gave the Warriors a 5 point lead. Crestwood would go on a 7-0 run to take a 30-28 lead and took the lead on a putback tip of a Lance Blass shot. A pair of Sam Greenfield free throws tied up the game. In the waning seconds of the third quarter, Kevin Klusewitz picked up a long rebound and make a shot at the buzzer to take a 32-30 lead after three quarters. Crestwood would start the quarter on a 7-0 run highlited by a steal by Klusewitz then passed it to the trailer then passed it to Kyle Richards for the basket. Tony Saitta would cut the lead to 5 with four straight points however a pair of Kyle Gegaris free throws sealed the game and the Comets handed the Warriors their first loss of the season 41-34. Kyle Richards had 15 points to lead all scorers and Noah Jackson had 12. For the Warriors, Tony Saitta had 13 points and Sam Greenfield scored 10.

Thoughts on the game: Wyoming Area played very well and can understand why they came in undefeated. Tony Saitta and Sam Greenfield had very good games. Crestwood's Noah Jackson had an outstanding game with 12 points and several blocked shots and rebounds. Kyle Richards also played very well, scoring 15 points. Crestwood played great defense in the fourth quarter, only allowing 1 field goal and two free throws.

Wyoming Area

Sam Greenfield 10

Tony Saitta 13

Kyle Musto 3

Kyre Zielinski 2

Anthony Nardell 6

Crestwood

Noah Jackson 12

Kyle Richards 15

Lance Blass 8

Evan Knapp 2

Kevin Klusewitz 2

Kyle Gegaris 2

Nanticoke at Holy Redeemer Boys

The Nanticoke Trojans and Holy Redeemer Royals had to hold off their matchup by a day and did they give it a great game. With the Trojans leading 5-3, the Royals Joey Judge scored 4 straight points and then James Kosik gave the Royals a 4 point lead. Luke Butzcynski cut the lead to 1 on Nanticoke's first field goal of the game. However the Royals would stretch the lead to 7 with a 3 point play by Nick Prociak and a 3 pointer by James Kosik. Zach Cardone would hit a 3 to make 15-11 Holy Redeemer at the end of 1. At the start of the second quarter, the Trojans Nate Kreitzer would cut it to 1 but the Royals would go on a 5-0 run to give them a 6 point lead. After Cody Piestrak hit a 3 to cut it to a 3 point lead. Holy Redeemer would go on a 9-2 run to make it an 8 point lead. A Luke Butzcynski 3 would make it 29-22 at halftime. The momentum in the third was at Nanticoke's back, Luke Butzcynski scored 5 straight points to cut the lead to 2. After a James Kosik 3, Nate Kreitzer and Zach Cardone would tie the game at 32. Joe Layou would give the Royals the lead momentarily but Zach Cardone and Luke Butzcynski would hit back-to-back 3s to give the Trojans a 38-34 lead at the end of the third. Joe Layou and JD Turosky would tie the game at 38 early in the fourth but Luke Butczynski would give the Trojans the lead. The Royals would go on a 6-0 to give the Royals the lead at 44-41. A pair of Nate Kreitzer free throws cut the lead to 1 but Jason Stachokus hit a 3 and his first field goal of the night to make it a 4 point lead but the Trojans weren't done, Zach Cardone and Luke Butzcynski tied the game up at 47, however Jason Stachokus would strike again on a 3 pointer and would hit a pair of free throws to give the Royals a 52-47 win over the Nanticoke Trojans. James Kosik had 10 points in a very balanced scoring effort for the Royals. Jason Stachokus had 8 points in the fourth quarter and Colin Cook had 8 points as well. For the Trojans, Luke Butzcynski had 24 points and Zach Cardone had 11

Thoughts on the game: Really good game by both teams. Very well balanced game by the Royals scoring wise.  Pretty good game by James Kosik and Colin Cook. Jason Stachokus came in clutch in the fourth quarter with 8 points in the quarter. For Nanticoke, very good game by Luke Butzcynski who had 24 points as well as Zach Cardone who hit a bunch of 3s.

Nanticoke

Luke Butzcynski 24

Cody Piestrak 5

Zach Cardone 11

Nate Kreitzer 7

Holy Redeemer

Joe Layou 7

Joey Judge 8

James Kosik 10

Nick Prociak 3

Colin Cook 8

Luke Nealon 1

Bryce Yencha 5

JD Turosky 2

Jason Stachokus 8

Valley West at Crestwood Girls

Crestwood coming off a victory over Hazleton Area on Thursday hosted Valley West. Valley West came in leading WVC Division 1. Valley West started off on a 13-2 run and lead 13-5 after 1. Valley West continued their dominance and would lead 30-16 at halftime thanks to 20 combined points from Andi Blaski and Gabby Smicherko. The start of the third quarter started with both teams trading baskets and free throws. Crestwood would go on an 8-0 run to end the quarter and cut the lead to 6. Valley West would rebound in the fourth quarter with a 9-1 run to start the quarter and would cruise to take the victory 48-36. Erin Gibbons had 16 points, Gabby Smicherko scored 15 and Andi Blaski had 13 for the Lady Spartans. Julia Makowski had 16 points and Sara Hopkins scored 10 for the Lady Comets.

Thoughts on the game: Valley West looked very good with the exception of the third quarter where they scored 5 but rebounded in the fourth to take the victory. I can see how they were able to take down Hazleton Area and looks like they can be a threat for the District title in 5A. I was very impressed by the Lady Spartans as a team. For Crestwood, Julia Makowski had a great game, with 16 points. Kept fighting back despite being down double digits for most of the game.

Valley West

Erin Gibbons 16

Andi Blaski 13

Colleen Cwalina 4

Gabby Smicherko 15

Crestwood

Bella Termini 6

Julia Makowski 16

Sara Hopkins 10

Kate Snipas 2

Alyson Muse 2