Error-plagued Raiders eliminated in district opener
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Paul Colombo homered and drove in three runs but six errors led to five unearned runs as Twin Valley lost to Lower Dauphin 8-7 Friday night in a District 3 Class 5A opener Friday at Elverson.
The third-seeded Raiders end their season at 15-6.
The loss was the second straight for the Berks II champs, who fell to eventual BCIAA champ Wilson 6-3 in a league semifinal.
Twin Valley allowed three first-inning runs and never led. The 14th-seeded Falcons (15-8) scored twice in the third to lead 5-0.
The Raiders, who got two hits and two RBIs from Kooper Zdimal and two hits and two runs scored from Ben Vaughn, tied the game with five third-inning runs. They knocked out starter Trey Harper, who allowed five hits and four runs over 2 1/3 innings.
Lower Dauphin snapped a 7-7 tie with a run in the seventh.
Casey Westerberg led the Falcons’ attack, going 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. Noah Heath had a pair of doubles and scored twice. Braedyn Danner picked up the win, allowing two hits and one run, unearned, over the final 3 1/3 innings.
The Falcons advance to play at sixth-seeded Shippensburg Monday; the Greyhounds defeated Gettysburg 3-2 in 13 innings.
All-Berks pick Roman Cieless did not play for Twin Valley. He was batting a team-leading .444 and scored a team-high 22 runs.
The loss was the third straight in district play for the Raiders, who have not won a tournament game since 2017.
This was their 19th appearance in the District 3 Tournament. Their lone championship came in 2009 when they beat Manheim Central 6-5. Overall, they are 27-19 in tournament play.
