High school seasons are filled with pivotal moments that send teams in one direction or another, propelling them closer to or away from preset goals.
It can be an upset win, a highlight play, a defensive adjustment, a lineup change.
In the case of Norwin baseball, it may have been a one-run loss — and what the team did after it — that became a defining moment and helped to send the Knights (12-8) on their way.
Canon-McMillan won the opener of a three-game series by a margin as thin as the red yarn on a baseball.
The setback hurt.
“Tough loss,” Knights third-year coach Craig Spisak said, shaking his head as he looked at the ground. “We lost on a balk (4-3). But it turned out to be a chance for us to find out who we were — how we handled it.”
Spisak said the team had a long talk after the home defeat.
“We had a heart-to-heart,” he said.
Now, the Knights are talking about how far they’ve come. The WPIAL will announce playoff pairings Friday and Norwin could get a favorable seed.
Since the aforementioned loss, they won 9 of 11 games — including two against Canon-McMillan — moved into the section-title discussion and jumped to the No. 2 ranking in Class 6A behind North Allegheny, a team they beat 9-8 four games into the season.
They have since dropped to No. 4 and finished in second place in Section 2 behind Canon-McMillan.
“We’re a different team than we were a month ago,” Spisak said. “Our pitching has been good. We’re getting ahead of hitters and hitting spots. We still have a ways to go, but we’re getting timely hits and traffic on the bases.”
A five-deep pitching staff has been the strength of a senior-led team.
The starting rotation includes seniors Ethen Culbertson and Brayden Wardzinski and junior Caden Sivrich.
“We don’t have a No. 1,” Spisak said. “We have three guys (starting pitchers).”
Wardzinski said the game immediately following the series opener against the Big Macs was a key to the late-season surge.
“The game at Wild Things Park got us going,” he said.
Juniors Matt O’Neil and Jayden Marcius are key relievers. Both have recorded saves.
“Norwin has the deepest pitching in the section,” Hempfield coach Tim Buzzard said.
“Our depth is a big part of it,” said Wardzinski, who is 5-0. “Our starters go deep in games, and our relievers come in and do their job. Our defense is solid.”
Norwin began 0-3 and lost its opening section series to Hempfield but won nonsection games against Upper St. Clair, Latrobe and North Hills.
“We’ve played a tough exhibition schedule, so we have seen a lot of good teams and have been tested a lot,” Spisak said. “Our kids have reacted well to adversity.”
Senior first baseman Ben Geissler said a couple of losses earlier than the Canon-McMillan setback played a greater role in the team’s run of success.
“The best thing for us,” he said, “was when we lost to Penn-Trafford and Hempfield, our big rivals. Honestly, without those losses, we might not be where we are. It let us reset. We were able to turn the page and move on.”
Key offensive players include senior Nate Silberman, a Seton Hill commit, Geissler, Wardzinski, juniors Jake Knight, Ryan Helphenstine and Trevor Vitsas and others.
“We’re playing with a lot of momentum,” Wardzinski said. “We’re focused on good at-bats. As a pitcher, it’s about getting ahead in counts.”
Geissler (Westminster) and Culbertson (Penn State Greater Allegheny) also are college commits.