Leaving Greensburg Central Catholic wasn’t easy, but Ian Shipley and Bobby Smithnosky wanted to feel more at home.
They have become key players in an already potent lineup at Mt. Pleasant. Their move has been a home run for the Vikings.
Shipley is a shortstop, Smithnosky a left fielder and pitcher, and they hit back-to-back in the order — Smithnosky third and Shipley fourth.
“It’s been good so far this year, especially in the last two section series where we have put up a big run differential and really played well as a team,” said Shipley, a Mercyhurst commit. “We for sure have blended in with the team and been welcomed in with open arms.”
Shipley is hitting over .500 — he went 3 for 3 with a home run and four RBIs against Yough — after hitting .418 last season for GCC.
Smithnosky was hitting .417 with 14 RBIs through 10 games.
“It has been great coming back home to MP,” Smithnosky said. “The biggest thing I missed was having a whole community support me. Not only the community but also the coaches, teachers and players have given me great support. They have made me feel welcome, and I am very thankful for that.”
Mt. Pleasant (7-4), which took a six-game winning streak into its series finale against Yough, has four college commits with more likely on the way.
Joining Shipley are Dane Firmstone (Mt. Aloysius), Sonny Marne (Thiel), and Jordan Grieff (Pitt-Greensburg).
Carter Strayer is going to IUP to play football.
Clutch time
Franklin Regional has a thing for walk-off wins at its home ballpark.
The baseball Panthers showed a flair for the dramatic with back-to-back thrillers at Haymaker Park. Both came in extra innings.
Miles Tomely had a hand in each win.
In a 6-5 win over Seneca Valley, Tomely delivered a game-winning sac fly in the eighth.
When the Panthers clipped Connellsville, 9-8, Tomely was hit by a pitch in the eighth with the bases loaded for the win.
Against Seneca Valley, Liam Bernadowski doubled and drove in a run, while Luke Williams tripled and had an RBI.
Anthony Mitchell was 2 for 2 with a double and two RBIs, Williams went 4 for 5 with a double, triple and RBI, and Tim Pirone homered and drove in three.
A few games earlier, Mitchell had three hits, including two doubles, and two RBIs, Pirone tripled, homered and drove in three, and Bernadowski and Tomely each had three hits in a 13-12 win over visiting Kiski Area in nine innings.
The Panthers suffered their first home loss of 2026 when they were clipped in another close game, 3-2, by Latrobe. The game was played over two days after it was suspended by lightning and heavy rain.
The Section 1-5A foes split their two-game series. Franklin Regional won the first game, 10-5.
Drotos drawing attention
Penn-Trafford has a potential Division I pitcher.
Hard-throwing junior left-hander Aiden Drotos is drawing interest from college programs.
Penn State was at Plum last week to watch him pitch. West Virginia also is showing interest.
Drotos has been clocked at 92 mph, his coach said.
“There were a bunch of scouts in Florida to watch him pitch,” Penn-Trafford coach Lou Cortazzo said. “Schools are beginning to pick up on him.”
Around the horn
Latrobe moved into the No. 1 spot in the TribLive HSSN Class 5A rankings. Greensburg Central Catholic remained at No. 4 in Class A. … Yough’s Nate Bell has committed to Carlow. … Greensburg Central Catholic’s Tyler Samide accounted for 12 strikeouts on the mound and earned the win, and added a grand slam and five RBIs, to lead the Centurions to a 10-2 win over Carmichaels. … Franklin Regional is 5-0 in extra-inning games this season.