It’s Liam to the rescue once again as Fleetwood reaches PIAA semifinals
2024 Berks baseball coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Noah Aberegg — MikeDragoSports.com special correspondent
BELLFONTE — Liam Hilburt was so efficient in Fleetwood’s state baseball opener Monday he was able to return three days later and rescue the Tigers again.
The senior right-hander entered in the third inning Thursday and allowed just one run over the final five innings to preserve the Tigers’ 5-3 win over Montour in a PIAA Class 4A quarterfinal at Governors Park.
“That has been Liam all season long,” said first-year Fleetwood coach Jon Chwatek. “He is just throwing to contact and making the outs that need to happen.”
Hilburt made enough outs to send the Tigers (17-9) into a state semifinal Monday against District 7 runner-up Indiana, which beat East Pennsboro 6-5 Thursday.
Before Monday Fleetwood had won just won state playoff game in baseball. Now it is one win away from playing for a PIAA championship.
“This means everything to Fleetwood right now,” Chwatek said. “This is the furthest our team, our school, has ever gotten in baseball.”
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Hilburt said. “I’ve been in this spot before; I know how it works and it’s just a great feeling with everyone here watching and me pitching on the mound. It’s amazing.”
Dalton Young, Carson Brey and Nick Noll each had two hits for the Tigers, Young driving in a pair of runs.
With Gov. Mifflin also advancing in Class 5A, this marks the first time two Berks baseball teams have reached the semifinals in the same year since 1988, when Wilson and Oley Valley each played in the PIAA championship game.
The victory looked far from certain in the first after sophomore Wylie Loy allowed a single and a walk before throwing his first strike. Montour’s Jacob Robinson and Michael Ivanoff capitalized, each singling to drive in a run.
The Tigers matched that with a pair of runs in the bottom half. They got huge doubles from Brey and Young, the second plating Brey and Aiden Soumas.
The Tigers continued to lay it on after that, scoring twice in the second and once in the third to go up 5-2.
Fleetwood knocked out Montour starter Cyp Slifkey after three innings, getting to him for six hits and five runs.
Chwatek didn’t waste time bringing Hilburt in to protect the lead. After just 45 pitches from Loy he handed the ball to his ace with two runners on in the third. Hilburt was able escape a bases-loaded jam and end the inning with the Tigers still on top 5-2 lead.
“I just (had) to clear my head of everything,” Hilburt said of the threat. “Just pound the zone, throw strikes, and let my defense work, and that’s what I did, and we got out of it.”
Montour (17-9), the third place team out of District 7, stayed close because of the outstanding relief effort of Tommy Butts. He allowed just one hit and one walk over three scoreless innings.
The Spartans got one run back in the fifth off Hilburt as he walked Jonathan Cecil, then was touched for an RBI double deep right first baseman Jason George.
As he has been doing all season, Hilburt tamped down the rally with two straight fly ball out.
Hilburt is 5-0 in the postseason with a sub-1.00 ERA and 10-1 overall, with a 1.61 ERA. He has allowed just 50 hits over 65 1/3 innings.
In Monday’s 3-2 win over North Catholic he allowed just five hits over seven innings and needed only 70 pitches to get it done. That allowed him to come back for Thursday’s outing.
Had he thrown 75 or more pitches he would not have been eligible to take the mound due to the PIAA pitch-count safety regulations.
Hilburt recorded complete-game victories in the playoffs against Muhlenberg, Northern Lebanon, James Buchanan and North Catholic.
The 5-2 win over James Buchanan clinched third place in the District 3 tournament and a state playoff berth.
| Montour | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 8 | 2 |
| Fleetwood | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | x | – | 5 | 7 | 1 |
| Spartans | AB | R | H | RBI | Tigers | AB | R | H | RBI | |
| Weber, cf | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | N. Seidel, rf | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Tarquino, ss | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | Brey, cf | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
| Robinson, dh | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Soumas, lf | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ivanoff, 3b | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | Noll, 1b | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Cecil, rf | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Young, c | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| Porto, lf | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Hilburt, ss/p | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| George, 1b | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Loy, p/ss | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Magliocco, 1b | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Cromer, 3b | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Slifkey, p | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Sobjack, 2b | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Butts, p | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Walk, cr | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Peremba, 2b | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | G. Seidel, cr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Stern, cr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Totals | 30 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 21 | 5 | 7 | 5 |
2B: George, Tarquinio; Young, Brey. SB: Robinson, Ivanoff, Tarquinio, Stern; N. Seidel. S: Sobjak, Cromer. SF: Hilburt. LOB: Montour 9, Fleetwood 5.
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |||
| Slifkey, L | 3 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | Loy | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Butts | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | Hilburt, W (10-1) | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
WP: Loy. HBP: Tarquinio (by Loy); Soumas (by Slifkey).
