Bishop Shanahan holds on to beat Upper Dublin in District 1-5A first round

UPPER DUBLIN >> Derek Gibbs had four hits, scored three runs and knocked in three more, proving to be a big part of Monday afternoon’s festivities.

“It was fun,” the Bishop Shanahan cleanup man said of the District 1-5A opener against Upper Dublin. “These are the games you love to play.”

It was a wild one, and the Eagles held on tight, securing a 13-12 victory over the Cardinals to advance to Wednesday’s quarterfinal round.

No. 11 Shanahan put together a nine-run fourth inning, saw Upper Dublin rally to tie it, and then the Eagles surged ahead by four and thwarted another Cardinal comeback attempt late to move on.

“It feels great. We work our butts off in practice and it’s just all you could ask for,” Gibbs said.

Matt Bertolami knocked in two runs, Gibbs drove in a pair and Kenny Kunzman brought in another as part of that fourth inning, putting the Eagles up 9-3.

“I just saw the ball well at the plate, just did what my team needed me to do so we could get the win,” Gibbs said, helping the offense rack up 13 hits in the victory. “We’re not the biggest team but we scrap together the runs we need. Confidence is gonna carry over to the next game.”

No. 6 Upper Dublin erased the deficit, thanks in part to Elijah Peck and Brian McPeak driving men across in the fifth, making it 9-9.

“If there was any doubt what kind of heart our team has, it was proven today,” coach Ed Wall said. “After giving up a nine spot in one inning, coming all the way back and giving ourselves an opportunity to win the game, it was just amazing. I couldn’t be more proud of this group, and this group of seniors for leading the way.”

Gibbs’ chopper up the middle pushed the go-ahead run in for Shanahan in the sixth, and the Eagles added an RBI single by Will Ciarlone that inning and a towering two-run double to center by Matt Bertolami in the seventh to widen the gap to 13-9.

“Both teams battled. For a lot of the kids, this was their first time in a game like this, so it was good to see them settle down and keep competing,” Eagles coach Brian Boyko said.

Upper Dublin, which had built an early 3-0 lead on RBI hits by Brian McPeak and Karan Acharza, cut it to 13-12 thanks to timely hitting by Nick Lombardo and Jarrod Matz in the seventh.

But right-hander Anthony Bertolami, who had come on in the fifth to get the win, got the final out he needed for Shanahan to advance. The Eagles were knocked out last year in a tough, one-run loss to Strath Haven but were on the winning end this time around.

“Full-circle almost,” Boyko said.