Frankfort, Allegany and East Hardy placed five each on the All-Area baseball team, and nine schools had players selected by a vote of the area’s head coaches.
Coaches were asked to nominate players, and a ballot was distributed for them to vote on. Twelve coaches nominated players and nine returned ballots.
After capturing its first state championship since 1988, Frankfort (22-9) led the way with five first-team selections to the 12-player squad.
Area and Western Maryland Athletic Conference champion Allegany (20-3) placed three on the top squad, including Area Player of the Year Bryce Madden. A separate story on Madden’s season is in today’s Times-News.
Keyser (18-5), which had a 13-game winning streak in the middle of the season and fell to Frankfort in the section title game, put two players on the first team. One of those was Evan Jenkins, who has been voted Pitcher of the Year.
West Virginia Class A state semifinalist East Hardy (23-7) and Maryland Class 1A West Region I runner-up Northern (11-8) had one first-teamer apiece.
Overall, Allegany, Frankfort and East Hardy led the pack with five players selected to the first and second teams, followed by Northern and Keyser (three), Southern and Moorefield (two) and Hampshire and Fort Hill (one).
A list of the honorable mentions is included at the bottom of this story.
The first-team pitchers are Jenkins and Madden, both seniors, and Allegany junior Myles Bascelli.
Frankfort senior Cam Lynch is the catcher.
The infield is comprised of Keyser senior Noah Broadwater, Allegany senior Caedon Wallace, East Hardy sophom*ore Evan Hamilton and Frankfort sophom*ore Blake Jacobs.
The outfield is Frankfort juniors Jacob Nething and Uriah Cutter and Northern junior Luke Ross.
Frankfort sophom*ore Lanson Orndorf is the utility man.
First Team Pitchers
• Jenkins was named first-team All-Area as a pitcher for the second year in a row, and he is the inaugural recipient of the Pitcher of the Year. He had the area’s lowest earned-run average (0.73) and most strikeouts (109).
The right-hander had an 8-0 record and allowed just six earned runs all year on 22 hits in 57 2/3 frames with 27 walks. He was first-team Class AA All-State and first-team Division 1 All-Potomac Valley Conference. Jenkins will continue his career at WVU Potomac State next year.
• Madden, a Glenville State commit, was tabbed as a first-team pitcher after going 6-1 with the area’s third-best ERA (1.04). The righty allowed 10 runs (six earned) on just 12 hits in 40 1/3 innings pitched, striking out 65 and walking 14.
Madden, the WestMAC Player of the Year, is making his third appearance on the All-Area team. He was a first-team outfielder as a sophom*ore and a second-team pitcher last season.
• While Madden was Allegany’s ace, Bascelli finished with the team’s best ERA and the second-lowest mark locally at 0.98. The RHP went 8-0 on the mound and gave up six earned runs on 24 hits with 65 strikeouts and 24 walks in 42 2/3 innings pitched.
Bascelli was named first-team All-WestMAC as a pitcher.
Catcher
• Lynch was a near-unanimous choice behind the plate after hitting safely 39 times in 90 at-bats (.433) for the area’s sixth-best batting average. The West Virginia Tech commit homered four times, doubled seven times, tripled once, drove in 37 runs and scored 36 runs.
Lynch’s home run total was the third-most locally and his 1.28 RBIs a game were fourth-most. Lynch also swiped 17 bases and caught four runners stealing behind the plate.
The senior was first-team All-State and was voted PVC Division 1 Player of the Year. Lynch is making his second All-Area team after being voted second team infield in 2023.
Infield
• Broadwater headlines the infield after landing on the All-Area team for the fourth time in four scholastic seasons. Broadwater, a shortstop, finished with a .432 batting average (seventh in area) with nine doubles, two triples, three home runs, 17 RBIs and 30 runs scored.
The senior was first-team All-State and was first-team All-PVC. Broadwater was first-team All-Area last year and was voted to the second team following his freshman and sophom*ore campaigns.
• Wallace, a first baseman, set the tone early with a three home run game in Allegany’s opener against Berkeley Springs, and he capped his final season with a second-straight All-Area nod. Wallace was second-team infield last year.
The Allegany College commit led the area with seven home runs and batted .409 with four doubles, 33 RBIs and 26 runs scored. His 1.50 RBIs a game were second-best locally. Wallace was a first-team All-WestMAC selection.
• Hamilton finished as the area batting champion after hitting safely in 44 of 88 at-bats for a .500 average. The East Hardy shortstop racked up 11 doubles, five triples, two home runs, 25 runs batted in and scored an area-best 57 runs.
Hamilton’s 1.90 runs scored a game topped the area, and his 34 stolen bases were second most. The sophom*ore was named to the Class A All-State first team and voted PVC Division 2 Player of the Year.
• Nobody had more hits in the area than Jacobs’ 45 this year, and the Frankfort shortstop hit for power too with five homers — the second-most locally.
Jacobs, an All-State second-teamer and All-PVC Division 1 first-team pick, batted .437 with six doubles, four triples and 28 runs batted in. His 52 runs scored ranked second in the area. Jacobs also stole 14 bases.
Outfield
• Nething led all outfielders locally with a .402 average and racked up four doubles, a triple, three home runs, 36 runs batted in and 33 runs scored. His 1.16 runs batted in a game ranked seventh in the area.
Nething was a Class AA All-State honorable mention and first-team Division 1 All-PVC.
• Ross is making his third All-Area team through his junior year and first on the top squad. Ross previously made the second team twice as a pitcher.
Northern’s patient lead-off man hit safely 25 times in 64 at-bats for a .391 average, adding three doubles, a triple, 14 RBIs, 25 runs scored and 15 stolen bases. His .79 steals a game was the area’s sixth-best rate.
Ross was also named to the All-WestMAC first team as an outfelder.
• Cutter rounds out the first-team outfield, comprised entirely of juniors, after batting .349 with nine doubles, a triple, two home runs, 41 runs batted in and 30 runs scored.
An All-PVC Division 1 first-teamer, Cutter was third in the area in runs batted in per game at 1.32 a contest.
Utility
• Orndorf did it all for Frankfort along its state championship run. He was the Falcons’ ace and when he wasn’t pitching he played behind the plate and in the infield.
The West Virginia Class AA first-team All-Stater had an 8-3 win-loss record with a 1.58 ERA, allowing 15 earned runs on 50 hits in 66 1/3 innings pitched. The right-hander struck out 64 and walked 22.
At the plate, Orndorf logged a .411 average with 13 doubles, two triples, 25 runs batted in and 37 runs scored. He was also first-team D1 All-PVC.
Second Team
The second-team pitchers are Allegany senior right-hander Caden Long (Frostburg State), Northern junior lefty Robert Deatelhauser and East Hardy sophom*ore right-hander Shayne Sisler.
The catchers are Moorefield senior Alex Miller and Southern sophom*ore Reece Tasker.
The infield is made up of Hampshire senior Conner Wolford, Northern junior Wally Brands, East Hardy sophom*ore Mason Hamilton, East Hardy freshman Garrett Van Meter and Allegany freshman Kohen Madden.
Patrolling the outfield are Moorefield senior Adam Landes, East Hardy senior Brandon Jones and Fort Hill freshman Bobby Brauer.
Rounding out the second team at utility are Keyser senior Logan Rotruck (WVU Potomac State) and Southern junior Jared Haskiell.
Honorable Mention
Pitchers: Gabe Weese, Moorefield; Patrick Liller, Keyser; Peyton Tingler, Petersburg; Caden Arbaugh, Petersburg. Catcher: Liam Stewart, Northern. Infield: Jaxon Hare, Frankfort; Chase Davis, Keyser; Steven Spencer, Fort Hill; Tyson Arnold, Moorefield; Logan VanMeter, Fort Hill. Outfield: Noah Sager, East Hardy; Ben Lohr, Southern; Bubba Bean, Keyser; Kaleb Kuhn, Petersburg; Garrett Michaels, Mountain Ridge.
Alex Rychwalski is a sports reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. Follow him on Twitter @arychwal.
