Medina riding "Ace" Woodworth train to Far West Regional round

Medina has been the king of Class B baseball for three years now. The Mustangs have won three straight Section VI titles and three consecutive sub-regionals. They made it to a state semifinal in 2024. All that’s left is to reach a state championship game.

The Mustangs took another step toward their first-ever state title on Tuesday evening, defeating Bath-Haverling, 5-1, at Frontier High to reach another Far West Regional. They’ll meet Oneonta (Section 4), the team that beat them a year ago at this stage, Saturday at 1 p.m. at Frontier.

Junior right-hander Preston Woodworth pitched a 1-hitter and struck out 10 against a Haverling squad that had won 18 consecutive games and averaged more than 11 runs a contest over that stretch on its way to the Section V Class B championship.

It was a big day for Section VI at Frontier, featuring a pair of 1-hit masterpieces. Earlier in the day, Thomas Albarella tossed a 1-hit shutout against Pittsford Sutherland. Elsewhere, Niagara Falls and Hamburg also won the subregional, putting all four teams from the top classes one win away from the states in Binghamton.

Nowadays, it’s news when Medina merely allows a run. The Mustang swept through four sectional games without allowing one. Woodworth finally allowed a run on a balk in the seventh. But by then, the matter was well in hand. It was nearly identical to Woodworth’s performance in last year’s subregional, when he spun a 3-hitter with 11 strikeouts in a victory over Wellsville.

“Preston did a good job, pumping strikes and keeping the pressure on them,” said Medina head coach Chris Goyette. “That’s the name of our game. We don’t walk anybody, make ‘em swing the bat. He’s been clutch for us all year.

“Our team goal is literally to get three or four runs a game,” Goyette said. “That’s it. With our pitchers, if they do the job and we limit the damage from the other team swinging the bats, that’s all we need. We’re really hard to beat if we score three or four runs.”

The Mustangs (20-2) have scored three or more in all their wins. For the second game in a row, they struck early. Shortstop Aidan Papaj, who was named Niagara-Orleans player of the year on Tuesday, led off by getting hit by a pitch. Woodworth drove him home with a double over the third-base bag. Camden Fike smoked a one-hop double over the right-field fence to make it 2-0.

Two runs was more than enough, as Woodworth, who is committed to play collegiate baseball at Mercyhurst in 2027, settled down after a tough first. Haverling had runners at second and third after a throwing error and infield hit. But Woodworth fired a called third strike past Dante Nealey to escape the early threat.

Woodworth then breezed through the next five innings, allowing just two walks. Vinny Gray hit an RBI single up the middle to make it 3-0 in the second. Carlos Doval smacked an RBI double in the fifth and Fike got his second RBI with a sacrifice fly in the sixth.

“I did a good job getting ahead in counts,” said Woolworth, who has been all-league three years in a row. “I lost a couple of guys, but my confidence was up since we scored a couple runs in the first inning. We started off hot like we did last game, but we kind of shut down toward the end, which can’t happen next game.”

Medina will need to be at his best against an Oneonta team that nipped them, 2-1, in the Far West regional a year ago. Goyette said the Yellow Jackets are loaded with players who will play in college. Their top player and star pitcher, Nolan Stark, is committed to UNC Wilmington.

“Oneonta is a really, really good team, one of the best teams we’ve come across,” Goyette said. “Last year was a great game and it came down to one mistake. That’s what it usually comes down to when you have two really good teams.”

Medina is 62-6 going back to the start of the 2024 season, which was the freshman year for Woodworth and Papaj. Goyette said he’ll likely go back to Woodworth, who was under the pitch limit against Haverling and will be working on three days’ rest.

Woodworth said he’ll be ready.