Max Doherty, Cason Long and the rest of the Derry baseball team are trying to put into perspective what they have accomplished.
After Monday’s quarterfinal win over Hampton at Plum, they were trying to comprehend that it has been 42 years since Derry last played in a WPIAL baseball semifinal.
OK, make it 32 years. Further research shows the Trojans actually made the semis in 1994.
But the players were having fun thinking about ancient history.
“Wow, 1984. Really? That’s a long time ago,” Doherty said. “I think my dad was like 10 that year. It makes me think of that Van Halen album.”
True, Van Halen has a studio album titled “1984,” and George Orwell’s dystopian novel also goes by that title.
No matter how far you stretch into the past, this iteration of Derry is still playing.
And the Trojans (9-9), with their .500 record and underdog undertone, are writing their own story as they prepare to play top-seeded Indiana (16-4) at 4 p.m. Wednesday at Plum.
“I had never been so excited to play a ball game before,” Doherty said Monday. “Our energy is up right now. It’s incredibly exciting. We knew what we can do. We’re on a roll, and we’re all feeling it.”
Derry won the WPIAL title in 1984 under the direction of coaches Norm Basciano and Ned Cecchini, the former who is the late father of Latrobe coach Matt Basciano. But the Trojans haven’t been much further in the bracket since.
Few saw this run coming.
“This is pretty special for these guys,” fifth-year coach Tom Kelly said. “They don’t like to lose. This group is very talented and has a high baseball IQ. They have gotten better each year I have been here. They are more familiar with everything. Our junior class has some great players, but it’s a team effort at this point.”
Derry has embraced the underdog role, the darling of these playoffs.
“We were the only team (in the playoffs) with a (below .500) record,” said Long, who is the likely starting pitcher for the semifinal. “It takes a lot of hard work to be able to do something like this. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Doherty has pitched deep into both playoff wins — a 2-1 upset of No. 4 Beaver and a 5-2 win over No. 13 Hampton — and Long has saved both by getting an out in the seventh.
Sound defense has complemented offense, creating a winning mix that the Trojans hope carries on.
“In the games we’ve lost, we always seem to have one bad inning,” Kelly said. “I think we had seven errors against Indiana the first time we played them. It comes down to one or two innings.”
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What a Knight
Norwin was down 3-0 heading to the bottom of the seventh in Monday’s Class 6A quarterfinal against Central Catholic at Gateway. The Knights’ season was hanging by a thread.
But that is just about the time the offense found a spark.
The fourth-seeded Knights rallied to score four runs and knock off the Vikings, 4-3, and return to the semifinals.
Norwin didn’t have a hit after five innings against Josh McFadden and failed to score after loading the bases in the sixth. A single by Etham McMullen and a walk to Dante Marino were followed by a balk.
Trevor Vitsas knocked in the first run with a groundout, and Tristyn Tavares was hit by a pitch and scored on Caden Sivrich’s single.
With two outs, another hit batter kept the Knights alive, and Josh Funk tied it 3-3 with an infield single.
With the bases loaded Ryan Helphenstine was plunked, and it all ended on a walk-off hit-by-pitch for a dramatic 4-3 win.
“We are just the type of team to never give up,” Tavares said. “We have had plenty of experience in the playoffs with ups and downs, so we all had confidence that it wasn’t over yet. And as the inning was playing along, it just kept building confidence that we were going to win.”
Norwin will take on No. 1 Butler (18-3) at 4 p.m. Wednesday at North Hills.
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GCC in states
Undefeated Greensburg Central Catholic (16-0) and ace Tyler Samide took care of No. 7 Jefferson-Morgan, 4-1, to reach the the Class A semifinals.
No. 2 GCC will face No. 3 Serra Catholic (13-6) at noon Wednesday at Norwin for the right to play for the title.
GCC already gained at least one more game after the semifinal: It clinched a spot in the PIAA playoffs. The Centurions reached the PIAA semifinals last year.
Their lone WPIAL championship came in 2015, when current Colorado Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer was playing shortstop.
The aforementioned Samide had a game to remember in the quarters. Not only did the Chatham commit pitch a two-hitter and strike out 17, but he also homered and drove in three runs.
Samide and catcher Anthony Grippo make one of the top batteries in the state. Grippo is a Penn State commit.