Whippets make early postseason exit in loss to Bensalem
DOWNINGTOWN – Turning on a switch for the postseason is usually an iffy proposition, and the game of baseball can be notoriously fickle.
The proud high school baseball program at Downingtown West found out both the hard way in its District 1 6A Tournament opener on Wednesday against visiting Bensalem. The eighth-seeded Whippets managed just one hit through the first six innings and couldn’t recover en route to a frustrating 8-2 loss and a quick postseason exit.
“It’s a difficult way to end the season,” said leadoff hitter Evan Williams, one of six senior regulars in the lineup. “It’s a tough pill to swallow.”
It was the culmination of a rough final two weeks for West, starting with a loss to rival Downingtown East on May 8th which knocked the Whippets out of the running for the program’s fifth consecutive Ches-Mont crown. Overall, West dropped four of its final seven outings to finish 13-6 overall.
“Losing that Ches-Mont title had a bit of an effect on us going into the playoffs,” Whippets head coach Dave Oleszek said. “We tried to erase that and start 0-0 again.
“It shouldn’t have bothered us, but let’s be realistic: these guys are kids. It was the first time in five years we did not win our league title, and that may have had a lingering effect.”
On Wednesday, West saw way too much of Bensalem starter Dom Grady, who came close to a complete game shutout, and also made his mark at the plate. The senior righty wound up scattering two hits and fanning eight in six-plus innings of work, allowing just one earned run.
“The pitcher was the fastest we’ve seen all season,” said senior outfielder Cam Abele.
“I thought (Grady) did a nice job mixing up his pitches and hitting his spots,” Oleszek added. “But I also think there are times in baseball where you have to go up there with a plan — work opposite field, if that’s what the pitch tells you to do, or if he is working in you have to pull the baseball. He had our hitters off balance.”
Trailing 8-0 and having just one hit through six full innings, Downingtown West ended the shutout when Abele delivered a run-scoring pinch hit double in the bottom of the seventh. The Whippets added another unearned run before Grady exited having reached the 100-pitch plateau.
“(Bensalem’s) pitcher was really good, but we just couldn’t get that line-drive in the gap until it was too late,” Williams said. “It was very frustrating.
“Too little, too late is a good way to put it, but we fought until the end and gave it our all.”
West ace Adam Grintz surrendered three hits and two runs in the first inning, and then four more runs in the fourth that included a bases-loaded walk, a two-run double and a successful suicide squeeze. It was an inauspicious ending to a career in which Grintz notched more pitching wins (24) than any other in program history.
“Adam has carried this program,” Oleszek said. “I don’t think he had his best stuff. He did settle down after the first inning and we were still in it until the fourth when (Bensalem) got a couple nice bunts down and stole the momentum.”
The ninth-seeded Owls (12-3 overall) added two more runs in the seventh off reliever Joey Blackburn. Bensalem advances to the quarterfinals on Friday.
“It seemed like we either struck out or flew out all day long and we didn’t challenge the defense,” Oleszek pointed out. “The plan was to hit line drives and put the ball on the ground. When we did that we had success, but we didn’t do it enough.”
Aaron Sipes’ grounder off the glove of the third-baseman in the fourth inning ended the no-hitter. Williams added a double off a reliever for Downingtown West’s third and final hit.
“Our offense did drop off a little bit this season.” Oleszek acknowledged. “We had several multi-year all-league guys that, for whatever reason, had their (batting) averages drop. But it’s hard to change your philosophy when you won the league and went to the state playoffs the year before.”
Grady finished with two hits at the plate and drove in three runs. Outfielder Austin Shay went 3-for-4 with two RBIs for Bensalem.
The Whippets started the season 10-2 but hitting woes put extra pressure on the pitching staff and West was unable to maintain that pace.
“I think we just got overconfident,” Abele said.
“(Wednesday) we didn’t come out of the gates hot. We finally got it going late, but you can’t do that in baseball.”
Bensalem 8, Downingtown West 2
Bensalem 200 400 2 — 8
Downingtown West 000 000 2 — 2
2B – Shay (B), Abele (DW), Williams (DW).
WP – Grady. LP – A. Grintz.
