Tadd Lusk crushes homer to lift South baseball to state playoff victory | News, Sports, Jobs

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport players tip their hats to their fans following a win over Camp Hill after a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

South Williamsport’s baseball players had faced adversity and deficits throughout the season. So Monday’s early one-run deficit wasn’t anything concerning or alarming for the team.

After Camp Hill made it a 1-0 game in the second inning, South Williamsport went out and stayed composed and played the game it knows how.

And in the third inning, the Mounties struck and took control. Tadd Lusk got a hold of a ball and drilled a three-run home run over the right-field fence, giving the senior a special moment in his final game at South Williamsport’s field, to propel the Mounties to a 7-2 win against Camp Hill in the PIAA Class AA playoffs.

Camp Hill made it a 1-0 game when Ty Kirchhoff reached with a single into center field and then scored four batters later with two outs when Ethan Shamash reached on an error, bringing a run when the ball dropped in the infield.

“We’ve been through it all year. We’ve faced adversity all year, so I said look you got to score to win a game. It was unfortunate that it went 1-0 because I felt 100% that play’s got to be made,” South coach Chase Waller said. ” It’s just miscommunication there. But then Tadd came through huge because bases were loaded and Levi (Butler) had a nice play, threw him out and Tadd made a nice pick play. Because it could have been 3-0 there.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Cole Gerber throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

But South’s defense prevented Camp Hill from scoring additional runs on a grounder to close the second inning out.

It was the third inning where South Williamsport never looked back.

Cole Gerber, South’s starting pitcher who threw a gem, reached with a walk and would later score on a passed ball to tie the game 1-1.

With Luke Steotzel and Levi Butler in scoring position after reaching on a walk and single, respetively, Lusk came up clutch. The senior’s shot gave the Mounties a 4-1 lead and shifted momentum away from Camp Hill.

“How about Tadd picking them up on the freaking home run he hit? Because he smoked that. I was like watching it, I was like we got to get this RBI. I was telling Luke (Steotzel) at third base, ‘get back, get back.’ He’s like ‘it’s gone, it’s gone,’” Waller said. “So I was fired up for Tadd. It’s his senior year and he’s really leaving it just all out here. It’s his last game playing on this field. I know he was fired up to get a state playoff game at this field.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Chance Quimby throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

Gerber threw a three-hitter, scattering seven strikeouts in his six innings of work before Chance Quimby closed the game out in the seventh.

In the top of the fifth inning, Camp Hill’s Drew Braustetter reached on a hard double down the right-field line with just one out, but Gerber struck out the next batter before inducing a grounder to short for the third out to get out of the inning without any harm done.

“How poised is Cole? He is well beyond his years. He goes out there and I know he’s going to be in a game and he keeps us in it. They had two runs out there today and I felt both of those runs shouldn’t have scored. No offense to Camp Hill, they’re a great team, but it was just mental mistakes and errors on our part of letting those runs in,” Waller said. “ut Cole, he’s so efficient. He’s going to be around the plate and his stuff is nasty. He’s Cole Gerber. I say every game he’s pitching in, he’s just proving that it’s one game bigger. Every game he goes is the next biggest game he’s pitched in.”

His last three games were against Southern Columbia in the District 4 Class AA semifinals, rival Montgomery in the district title game, and then Camp Hill on Monday. Three tough games in which Gerber rose to the challenge.

“He’s our big-game pitcher and he wants it, he wants the ball. He’s locked in,” Waller said.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Trace Wertz attempts a tag at home on Camp Hill’s Ty Kirchhoff during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

South Williamsport added three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Stoetzel drew a walk to open the inning before he reached third on a passed ball. From there, Levi Butler drove him in with a shallow single for a 5-1 lead. A fielder’s choice by Lusk and a walk by Wertz put two runners on before a strikeout. But, with two outs, South Williamsport got fortunate of drawing three consecutive walks to bring in two more runs and lead 7-1 before Camp Hill finally got out of the inning.

Camp Hill would cut the deficit to 7-2, but never seriously threatened to rally late in the game. After a walk by Ty Kirchoff led the inning off for Camp Hill, he stole second and was able to head home on a throwing error. However Gerber would then have two strikeouts bookend a grounder to third to close the inning.

In the seventh inning, Trace Wertz made a spectacular play to force an out at home when Noah Doi of Camp Hill attempted to score on a wild pitch. Wertz grabbed the ball behind him and dove toward home, tagging Doi out and preventing a run from scoring with one out.

Beating Montgomery in the district final was a nice confidence boost for South Williamsport. But beating Camp Hill helped boost that confidence even further as the Mounties prepare for the state quarterfinals on Thursday at a site and time to be determined.

“It gives a lot of confidence. We saw good pitching leading up to this,” Waller said, noting the pitchers of Montgomery’s Briar Persing and Southern Columbia. “Hats off to Jonathan Drawbaugh for Camp Hill. I said he’s the best pitcher we’ve seen all year. His slurve was hard and he was commanding it, and luckily his fast ball started to lose a little bit of his command and we started putting together good, quality at bats.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Chance Quimby throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

“He’s a gamer. That kid’s tough,” Waller added about Drawbaugh. “He was legit and I knew he was real from watching him scouting.”

The Mounties will face either District 1 champion Faith Christian or District 12 champion Julia R. Masterman in the quarterfinals.

South Williamsport 7,

Camp Hill 2

Camp Hill 010 001 0 — 2 3 1

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Levi Butler makes the tag on Camp Hill’s Ethan Shamash and looks to first to attempt a double play during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

South Wmspt. 004 030 x — 7 3 3

Jonathan Drawbaugh, John Waldner (6) and Noah Doi. Cole Gerber, Chance Quimby (6) and Trace Wertz. W: Gerber. L: Drawbaugh.

Top Camp Hill hitters: Noah Doi 1-2, 2B, HBP, run; Drew Braustetter 1-3, 2B; Jonathan Drawbaugh 2 BB; Hayden Ziegler 1-4; Ty Kirchhoff 1-2, BB, SB, 2 runs; John Waldner BB; Ethan Shamash BB, RBI. Top South Williamsport hitters: Levi Butler 2-4, RBI, run; Tadd Lusk 1-2, 3 RBIs, HR, SB, 2 runs; Trace Wertz BB; Marc Molina BB, HBP; Torin Haug B; Cole Gerber 2 BB, run; Luke Stoetzel 2 BB, 2 runs.

Records: South Williamsport (13-10), Camp Hill (12-9). Next game: South Williamsport vs. Faith Christian/Julia R. Masterman winner in state quarterfinals, Thursday, TBD.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Cole Gerber throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Cole Gerber throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
Camp Hill’s Jonathan Drawbaugh throws during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport’s Jax Miller dives back to first in time as Camp Hill’s Alex Baturin attempts the tag during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport catcher Trace Wertz and pitcher Chance Quimby scramble to make to out at home on Camp Hill’s Noah Dol during a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent
South Williamsport coaches and players celebrate a win over Camp Hill after a first round PIAA Class AA state tournament game at South Williamsport on Monday, June 2, 2025. South won 7-2.