Williamsport Baseball Enjoys No-Hitter on Opening Day

Few teams had a better start to the 2016 spring season than the Williamsport baseball team.

The Wildcats put together a complete performance against James Wood High School from Virginia, winning 8-0 on the strength of a no-hitter thrown by Matt Harsh and Camryn Keller.

Harsh started the game and went five innings, striking out nine in the process. It was a great start to the season for Harsh, who head coach Dave Warrenfeltz anticipates will play a big role being one of the leaders for the Wildcats' deep pitching staff.

"Matt will be one of our go to pitchers this year. We also have Bryce Rupenthal who has committed to Fairmont State and Matt Malphurs, a returning all-county player as well," Warrenfeltz said. "We also have two juniors, Logan Wilmoth and Camryn Keller, and one sophomore, Ryan Greene, who will throw significant innings for us this year."

Harsh made way for Keller in the sixth inning. As Keller worked his way through the James Wood lineup, the dugout got more tense as most of the players knew what feat the team was closing in on.

"About half of the team was aware of the no-hitter going into the seventh inning, but nobody discussed it for baseball superstition reasons," Warrenfeltz said. "The team was very excited about it when our pitching coach, Scott Wildesen, told the team afterwards in our post-game huddle."

To think opening day was all about the team's pitching would be incorrect though, as the Wildcats got some excellent production on offense. Logan Wilmoth led the way by tallying three hits. Justin Itnyre hit two doubles, while Robbie Carr also registered two hits. Josh Tibbs recorded an RBI on a double which proved to be a crucial contribution.

The opening day contest with James Wood also represents a big difference between this year's Williamsport baseball season and past ones. The Wildcats used to be a member of the Monocacy Valley Athletic League, which dissolved after the last academic year. This means that Williamsport is now an independent and no longer participating in a league. As a result, the Wildcats' schedule now features a few new opponents, such as James Wood.

"We're very excited about the opportunity to play some out of state opponents from West Virginia and Virginia," Warrenfeltz said.

Despite the change in the schedule, Williamsport's primary goal for the season has not changed. Warrenfeltz says the team's goal every year to be in the running to win the 2A West regional championship. The team has not achieved it since 2012 when the Wildcats won the state championship, but Warrenfeltz is confident this team can change that.

"Our players have been working very hard, and if we keep getting better every day we feel like we have the pieces in place to compete in the 2A West," Warrenfeltz said.