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Tom Blaskiewicz named West Pittston mayor

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Luzerne County Manager Pedri still awaiting Penn Place air quality test

SWOYERSVILLE &#8212; The first double was immediately followed by a second. A quick two-run lead for Hanover Area in the top of the first.In a lot of games these past two seasons, that might have been it for the Hawkeyes. Not this time.Two doubles turned into three in a row. And then a triple for good measure pushed the lead to four runs.&#8220;That,&#8221; Hawks coach Mike Zapotoski said, &#8220;was a different team than we saw all year, hitting-wise.&#8221;No doubt.For a change, it was the Hawkeyes&#8217; bats that took the spotlight. All nine Hanover starters recorded a hit and the extra-base barrage in the first lifted them to a 5-3 win over top-seeded Holy Redeemer in Tuesday&#8217;s District 2 Class 2A quarterfinals.Now they&#8217;ll go for their third straight trip to the district finals at PNC Field when they host Riverside in Thursday&#8217;s semifinals.Hanover Area finished the regular season with 12 extra-base hits before recording four in a row in the first inning against the Royals before finishing the day with five. The five runs topped the Hawks&#8217; combined total from the past four postseason games (four).It was the third straight year that the Hawkeyes eliminated the Royals in the postseason. But this time it came on the road with Hanover Area as the No. 9 seed after a 1-0 quarterfinal win in 2015 and a 10-5 decision in the 2014 semis.Last May it was Kevin Rimmer who went the distance against Redeemer for the second-round win. He took the hill in the same round against the same opponent on Tuesday.This time he had a nice cushion to work with before he threw his first pitch.&#8220;I was excited &#8212; we don&#8217;t get much run support,&#8221; Rimmer said with a laugh. &#8220;That was big.&#8221;The senior got things started himself with a two-out double in the first. Austin Gately (2 for 3) followed with one of his own that drove in two runs.From there it was an RBI double from Mike Piscotty and a run-scoring triple by Jake Peters that made it 4-0.&#8220;They came out swinging. They earned it,&#8221; Redeemer coach Chris Ritsick said. &#8220;They were ready to play. They hit the ball well.&#8221;It was especially uplifting for the Hawks, who had been blanked by Royals starter Sean Wills when he faced them back in April. Wills, a sophomore, had finished the regular season with the top ERA among starters in the entire Wyoming Valley Conference, surrendering just one earned run and three total in nearly 30 innings of work.&#8220;We pounded it in their head that he has a pretty good curve,&#8221; Zapotoski said. &#8220;So we had to get to the fastball when we see it.&#8221;John Morgan made it 5-0 in the fourth after battling back from an 0-2 count to take the seventh pitch he saw through for an RBI single.The Royals got on the board in the fifth on a Tim Cavanaugh groundout and then made things interesting in the sixth with runners on second and third. Sophomore catcher Tom Borum (2 for 3) brought them both home with a single to pull within 5-3.When the teams last met three weeks ago, Hanover Area jumped out to a first-inning lead, only to see the Royals rally and win it in the bottom of the seventh.&#8220;I knew we would make it a game,&#8221; Ritsick said. &#8220;I knew four in the first was going to be a little bit to overcome. But I knew we wouldn&#8217;t give up.&#8221;With the Royals&#8217; 2-3-4 hitters due up in the seventh and Rimmer going past 100 pitches, it might have been another tense finish.But the senior right-hander came through with a 1-2-3 frame to send the Hawks back to the district semis.&#8220;Our kids played great today,&#8221; Zapotoski said. &#8220;Even in the last couple days of practice, something clicked with them. They were full of energy.&#8220;They&#8217;re a quiet type &#8212; they&#8217;re not a rowdy team. But they were full of energy at practice. Almost like they knew they weren&#8217;t going to accept losing this game.&#8221;Northwest 13, Montrose 5The Rangers dethroned the defending Class 2A champions in impressive fashion, putting up nine runs in the top of the first to beat the second-seeded Meteors in the quarterfinals.Brandon Reno (three RBI) and Austin Ford each had three hits apiece for No. 7 Northwest. Doug Campbell doubled and drove in three runs himself while Andrew Boberick went 2 for 4 with two RBI.Dave Piestrak got the win on the mound for the Rangers, who travel to Holy Cross for Thursday&#8217;s semifinals.Riverside 6, Nanticoke 5Alec Norton tied the game with an RBI single in the top of the seventh, but the host Vikings responded with a two-out hit up the middle by pitcher Jimmy Muth to give No. 12 Riverside a walk-off win in the 2A quarterfinals.The 13th-seeded Trojans took a 4-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth before the Vikings scored five in the home half. Steve Kreitzer had three hits including a double for Nanticoke. Norton was 2 for 4 with two RBI.District 2 Class 2A quarterfinalsHanover Area 5, Holy Redeemer 3Hanover`AB`R`H`BIMorgan cf`4`1`1`1Clarke ss`4`0`1`0Kowalski 3b`4`0`1`0Rimmer p`4`1`1`0Gately 1b`3`1`2`2Piscotty rf`4`1`1`1Peters c`3`0`1`1Wheeler lf`0`0`0`0Wasickanin dh`2`1`1`0Windt 2b`3`0`1`0Totals`31`5`10`5Redeemer`AB`R`H`BIEll ss`3`0`1`0Flanley 3b`4`0`1`0Cavanaugh 2b`3`0`1`1Choman 1b`4`0`0`0Moleski cf`0`0`0`0Bozentka dh`2`1`1`0Molitoris rf-p`2`1`0`0Wills p-rf`1`0`0`0Conway ph`1`0`0`0McClay lf`2`0`0`0Price ph`1`0`0`0Borum c`3`1`2`2Totals`26`3`6`3Hanover`400`100`0`&#8212;`5Redeemer`000`012`0`&#8212;`32B &#8212; Rimmer, Gately, Piscotty, Wasickanin; 3B &#8212; PetersHanover`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KRimmer (W)`7.0`6`3`3`4`4Redeemer`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KWills (L)`3+`6`5`1`1`3Molitoris`4.0`4`0`0`1`2District 2 Class 2A quarterfinalsNorthwest 13, Montrose 5Northwest`AB`R`H`BIEvans cf`3`4`2`0Reno ss`4`2`3`3Boberick lf`4`1`2`2Campbell 3b`4`1`1`3Harrison rf`5`1`2`1Ford c`5`0`3`0BriHardmn 1b`5`1`1`1BraHardmn 2b`4`1`2`1Piestrak p`4`2`1`0Totals`38`13`17`11Montrose`AB`R`H`BIDieck rf`4`0`0`0Washo 2b`0`0`0`0Peck dh`3`2`0`0Traver ss`2`0`1`0Rapisari ss`1`0`0`1Arnold p`4`0`1`0Jerauld lf`4`1`2`1Buck 1b`4`1`1`1Conboy cf`2`0`1`1Ruseski ph`1`0`0`0Ely c`3`1`1`0Lee 3b`3`0`1`1Totals`31`5`8`5Northwest`902`011`0`&#8212;`13Montrose`000`211`1`&#8212;`52B &#8212; Campbell, Jerauld, Buck; 3B &#8212; TraverNorthwest`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KPiestrk (W)`5.0`6`3`2`0`1BraHrdmn`2.0`2`2`2`2`2Montrose`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KArnold (L)`0.1`5`8`7`2`1Washo`2.2`5`3`3`1`1Lee`4.0`7`2`2`1`6District 2 Class 2A quarterfinalsRiverside 6, Nanticoke 5Nanticoke`AB`R`H`BIAKreitzer lf`3`0`1`0SKreitzer cf`4`1`3`0AlNorton 3b`4`1`2`2Rynkiewciz c`3`1`0`0KPkrnchk 1b-p`3`0`1`0Labenski rf`2`0`1`0Piestrak ss`2`0`0`0TPokrnchk ph`1`0`0`0Shatley p-1b`0`0`0`0Piontkwski dh`3`0`0`0Bukofski 2b`3`2`2`0Totals`28`5`10`3Riverside`AB`R`H`BINSottile ss`3`2`1`2Amaral cf`4`0`1`2Muth p`4`0`1`1PSottile c`3`1`1`0Bernardi 3b`3`1`1`0Connor 2b`3`0`0`0Kielar 1b`2`1`0`0Quick rf`1`0`0`0Weisenfluh lf`1`1`0`0Ellis ph`0`0`0`0Totals`24`6`5`5Nanticoke`000`220`1`&#8212;`5Riverside`000`050`1`&#8212;`62B &#8212; SKreitzer, NSottileNanticoke`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KShatley`4.2`3`5`5`3`3KPknchk (L)`2.0`2`1`1`2`1Riverside`IP`H`R`ER`BB`KMuth (W)`7.0`10`5`3`0`1<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Kevin Rimmer went the distance on the mound for Hanover Area Tuesday, aided by a rare four-run first inning from the offense. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_hanoverredeemer01-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Kevin Rimmer went the distance on the mound for Hanover Area Tuesday, aided by a rare four-run first inning from the offense. </caption0><photoCredit0>Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_hanoverredeemer02-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Hanover Area&#8217;s Kyle Windt fields a grounder during Tuesday&#8217;s District 2 Class 2A quarterfinal win over Holy Redeemer. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_hanoverredeemer02-2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Hanover Area&#8217;s Kyle Windt fields a grounder during Tuesday&#8217;s District 2 Class 2A quarterfinal win over Holy Redeemer. </caption1><photoCredit1>Pete G. Wilcox | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Hawkeyes aiming for 3rd straight trip to district finals</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Derek Levarsedlevarse@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta>DISTRICT 2 BASEBALL TOURNAMENT(District champions advance to states)All games 4:30 p.m. unless notedCLASS 4A (DISTRICT 2-4 REGIONAL)QuarterfinalsWyoming Valley West 10, Scranton 2Williamsport 1, Hazleton Area 0West Scranton 7, Wallenpaupack 1SemifinalsWednesday&#8217;s games&#8226; No. 4 West Scranton (9-4) at No. 1 Delaware Valley (12-0), 3 p.m.&#8226; No. 3 Williamsport (15-5) at No. 2 Wyoming Valley West (12-2)ChampionshipMonday, May 30&#8226; Semifinal winners at PNC Field, 4 p.m.CLASS 3AFirst roundPittston Area 6, Lake-Lehman 1Berwick 1, Tunkhannock 0Crestwood 3, Coughlin 2Scranton Prep 7, Dallas 4Abington Heights 5, Honesdale 1QuarterfinalsTuesday&#8217;s resultsValley View 15, Pittston Area 0Wyoming Area 7, Abington Heights 0North Pocono 3, Scranton Prep 1Crestwood 3, Berwick 1SemifinalsThursday, May 26No. 5 Crestwood (8-7) at No. 1 Valley View (12-1)No. 3 North Pocono (7-6) at No. 2 Wyoming Area (11-3)ChampionshipMonday, May 30&#8226; Semifinal winners at PNC Field, 1 p.m.CLASS 2AFirst roundMontrose 15, Carbondale 0Holy Cross 8, Wyoming Seminary 5Nanticoke 11, Lakeland 1Northwest 13, Mountain View 0Hanover Area 2, GAR 0Mid Valley 14, Dunmore 7Riverside 2, Meyers 1QuarterfinalsTuesday&#8217;s resultsHanover Area 5, Holy Redeemer 3Northwest 13, Montrose 5Holy Cross 13, Mid Valley 0Riverside 6, Nanticoke 5SemifinalsThursday, May 26No. 7 Northwest (11-5) at No. 3 Holy Cross (13-2)No. 12 Riverside (6-8) at No. 9 Hanover Area (9-7)ChampionshipMonday, May 30&#8226; Semifinal winners at PNC Field, 10 a.m.CLASS AQuarterfinalsOld Forge 3, MMI Prep 2Elk Lake 10, Lackawanna Trail 2SemifinalsWednesday&#8217;s games&#8226; No. 5 Elk Lake (6-7) at No. 1 Blue Ridge (8-4)&#8226; No. 3 Old Forge (7-6) at No. 2 Forest City (8-4)ChampionshipMonday, May 30&#8226; Semifinal winners at PNC Field, 7 p.m.</factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse</shirttailMeta></div>

Hanover offense sparks District 2 Class 2A baseball quarterfinals win