Crossin’s no-no lifts Perk past Hill, 11-0

PENNSBURG >> In his last appearance on April 30, Devon Crossin couldn’t find the plate.

The Perkiomen School’s senior lefthander walked three batters and hit another, recording one out before he was lifted from the game.

So when Crossin, who was starting his first game of the season, walked the first batter of Wednesday’s non-league game against the Hill School, Perkiomen coach Ken Baker couldn’t help but be a little worried he might see a repeat performance.

“You go, ‘Oh, not again,’” Baker said.

But Crossin settled down.

He struck the next batter out on three pitches and retired 12 consecutive batters following the free pass, allowing only one other base runner for the rest of the game. Perkiomen won the contest 11-0 in five innings of play at the Perkiomen School as Crossin tossed a no-hitter in the mercy-rule shortened contest.

“I had some bad outings, so it felt good to get out there and have a good outing,” said Crossin, who pitched a perfect game last year. “A little towards the middle and towards the end, I definitely felt more comfortable out there on the mound.”

Crossin ends the game with a K. Perkiomen wins 11-0. @PaPrepLive @PottsmercSports pic.twitter.com/iq3zyzuVxj

— Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue) May 11, 2016

In five innings of work, Crossin walked two and struck out eight. He finished off the no-hitter by blowing a high fastball past Jack Hogan, which he said was the hardest pitch he threw all day.

“He threw strikes,” Baker said. “When you’re around the strike zone it makes a huge difference. We were thrilled for him because we were wondering where he was going to go his next outing. That answered the question.”

Along with Crossin’s fine outing on the mound, Perkiomen put together a strong performance with its bats.

Baker’s team strung together six hits, including three bunts, and used its speed on the base paths to push across seven runs in the first inning.

“The way we played offense in the first inning, for us, was kind of textbook really,” Baker said. “Three bunt hits and moving runners are the kinds of things that we like to do.”

The Perkiomen bats knocked Hill School starter Luke Allain, who threw two innings in Tuesday’s win against Westtown, out of the game after recording only two outs.

Lefthander Chris Hogan came in relief and helped stop the bleeding by getting the Hill School out of the first and allowing four runs (three earned) in 3-1/3 innings of work.

“We’re a little thin on pitching,” Rams assistant coach Andy Duffy said. “We have a game Saturday. We were trying to hold some pitching and stay ready for that, so we had to let our guy stay out there for a bit longer than we probably would have liked to.”

Perkiomen finished the game with 10 hits, scoring runs in three of its four at bats. Leadoff man Josh Cruz went 1-for-1, reaching base all three times he came to the plate and scoring two runs.

Senior second baseman Levi Stoudt had two singles and drove in two runs. Senior right fielder David Juechter blasted a ball over the fence in left center for a home run in the second inning.

“Sometimes you lose your edge after you get a good lead and all of a sudden they’re chipping away, chipping away,” Baker said. “So I was really pleased we stayed into the game and stayed focused on it. I thought it was one of our better outings all the way around.”

Perkiomen plays J. M. Barrack Hebrew Academy on Thursday in the Tri-County League championship before facing Malvern Prep in a doubleheader on Saturday. The Hill School, which has played three games in the past three days, plays Blair Academy on Saturday.

NOTES >> Crossin’s perfect game last year was also in a five-inning game. He tossed five perfect frames in a 10-0 victory over Westtown School in last year’s PAISAA playoffs. … Perkiomen senior shortstop Christian DelToro had two RBI on Wednesday.