Nick Crocona-Wilson

Coaches often say that the key to high school baseball is throwing strikes. Wilson senior Nick Crocona didn’t hand out a single free pass in the Bulldogs’ 6-5 victory over Muhlenberg in the BCIAA semifinals. Crocona limited the third-seeded Muhls to three runs, one earned, on six hits over six innings at FirstEnergy Stadium. He struck out two and threw 95 pitches as #2 seed Wilson extended its winning streak to eight. “I tried to throw my slider a little bit more because I think they were really starting to see my fastball and curveball,” Crocona explained. The (15-6) Bulldogs advanced despite committing five errors, including two in the top of the 1st inning. Gio Cavanna reached on catcher’s interference, stole second, and scored on a throwing error by second baseman Evan Gabaldon. Cavanna had two hits, two runs, two stolen bases, and a RBI. Wilson got the run back in the bottom half of the inning when sophomore Christo Hunsicker crushed a RBI double to left field. Hunsicker was 2-for-4 with a run. The (13-8) Muhls went back on top in the 4th thanks to a 2-run line drive single to right by Kevin Rodriguez. The Bulldogs responded immediately with four runs in the frame. Jordan Shutter delivered a RBI single before Crocona walked with the bags full. Mason Sensenig got hit by a pitch to force in another run and Tommy Hunsicker added a RBI single to center. Tommy Hunsicker, Christo’s older brother, went 3-for-4 with a run. “He’s a stud. He’s a great hitter. I’ve known him for a long time. This is what he does…He’s a gamer,” emphasized Crocona. Tommy Hunsicker and Crocona also played football and basketball at Wilson. Shutter picked up his second RBI single of the morning in the 5th. The senior catcher gave the Bulldogs a 6-3 edge. The defending county champions rallied in the top of the 7th against freshman Ben Kulp. Cavanna and sophomore Eli Keller drove in runs with singles to get Muhlenberg within 6-5. Kulp got Shane Rosenberry to ground out to second to end it. Lefty Josh Smeltzer took the loss. The junior made just his second start of the season. He was charged with five runs on six hits in 3.1 innings. Freshman Cole Moody held Wilson to one run on one hit over the final 2.2 innings. He struck out two and hit a pair of batters. Sean Patton had two of the Muhls’ eight hits. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs will take on rival Gov. Mifflin for the Berks League title on Monday at 6:05pm at FirstEnergy Stadium. Wilson is searching for its first BCIAA Championship since 2019 and 13th overall. “It feels awesome. This is something that we worked towards the entire year. I’m just really proud of our guys,” said Crocona.