Jon Bower struck out ten batters over six innings in Holley’s 3-1 win over 15th-seed Bloomfield and Dylan Hillabush matched those numbers exactly in a 2-0 win over Canisteo in the quarterfinals to lead the Hawks into the Class CC baseball Section V playoffs.
In the first round game, Bower was helped over the first two innings by running catches in the gap and the game remained scoreless after three innings.
Joe DeFelice started a fourth inning rally with a one-out single. He stole second and third before scoring on a wild pitch to give Holley a 1-0 lead.
Nick Passarelli led off the fifth inning with a double and was driven in on an RBI single by Bower.
The second-seeded Hawks scored their final run in the sixth as DeFelice and Luke Silvis singled. DeFelice later scored on a fielder’s choice RBI by Justin Parker.
In the quarterfinal victory, the Hawks scored the only runs of the game in the fourth on five consecutive hits off the bats of Josh Porter, DeFelice, Silvis, Hillabush and Parker.
“We played great defense and fended off a lead-off double threat in the top of the fourth by recording three ground ball outs that were not easy plays,” Holley head coach Jason Cole said.
Hillabush threw six innings of shutout ball with the ten strikeouts before DeFelice struck out the side in the seventh to earn the save and Holley’s 16th win of the campaign.
They defeated Alexander 3-2 in the semi-finals to advance to the championship game May 29 against top-seed East Rochester. The Hawks last Section V baseball title came in 2009 in the Class C bracket. They also won back-to-back Class C titles in 1996 and 1997 plus Class B crowns in 1995, 1979 and 1963.
