Luke Macdonald-Oley Valley

After Garet Blankenbiller graduated and moved on to play at Millersville University, many were wondering who would become the ace of Oley Valley’s pitching staff. The 6’5 right-hander threw a 2-hitter in the District 3-3A championship game against Trinity. Blankenbiller led the Lynx to 21 wins and an appearance in the Class 3A state final last year. Oley Valley found a new pitcher to lead the rotation in senior Luke Macdonald. He stepped up again in the Berks County semifinals on Tuesday at FirstEnergy Stadium. The eighth-seeded Lynx held off fifth-seeded Wilson 8-6. They’re going to the BCIAA final for the first time since 2013. Macdonald escaped two difficult situations. He took over for sophomore Paul Petersen with two runners on and one out in the bottom of the sixth inning. Macdonald got pinch-hitter Christo Hunsicker to ground out to third with men on second and third to end the inning. Macdonald then induced a grounder to second by Nick Ruiz with the bases loaded to end Wilson’s comeback attempt in the seventh. In 38 innings, Macdonald has allowed just two earned runs and 18 hits. He fired a complete game 6-hitter in the quarterfinals versus top-seeded Gov. Mifflin. Macdonald told me that his mental approach to pitching is his biggest attribute. He said, “I don’t overpower people. I don’t throw hard. I don’t really do anything super special.” Macdonald has confused opponents all season by utilizing his curveball in fastball counts. He gave Peterson a lot of credit for the semifinal victory. The sophomore gave up six runs, three earned, on four hits over 5.1 innings. He struck out five and walked two. The (9-10) Bulldogs were limited to five hits. All of their runs came in the second inning when the Lynx committed two of their three errors. Nick Crocona provided an RBI single to left. Wilson got a pair of sacrifice flies from Trevor Bilodeau and Evan Gabaldon. The next two runs came via wild pitches by Petersen. Oley Valley went back on top with four runs on four hits off of Owen Geng in the sixth frame. Joey Vaccaro stroked an RBI single to right field. Chase Reifsnyder tied it with a sacrifice fly to right. A wild pitch gave the Lynx a 7-6 advantage. Macdonald’s fielder’s choice to second made it 8-6 when the throw home was late. The senior hurler got out of jams in the last two innings to seal it. The (13-7) Lynx have won nine of their last eleven contests. Macdonald stressed that they’re no longer playing selfish baseball and that has made a huge difference. I asked him about being a #8 seed and facing much larger schools in the county playoffs. He responded, “We fight. These guys are my brothers and I love them.” Andrew McMullen, Tyler Drobek, and Vaccaro each had two hits. Sophomore Bradley Auge hit a 2-run single to put Oley Valley up 3-0 in the second. Matt VanOstenbridge allowed four runs on five hits in four innings. The sophomore lefty had seven strikeouts and six walks. He entered Tuesday with 42K and only 4ER over 27.1 innings. The Bulldogs have dropped seven games by two runs or less this year. They made three errors against the Lynx. Wilson battles Boyertown on Wednesday in a non-league matchup. The Bulldogs are trying to qualify for the District 3-6A tournament. The top twelve teams get in and Wilson is currently #13 in the power ratings. Macdonald, who has a 4.2 GPA, talked about his favorite teacher and class at Oley Valley. The Lynx advanced to Wednesday’s county final at FirstEnergy Stadium. They’ll take on second-seeded Muhlenberg at 6pm.