(EDITOR’S NOTE: Since May of 1999, the Times News Sports Department has featured an On This Date practically every day, highlighting an event that happened in the past. With the coronavirus putting a halt to sports locally and nationally, the On This Dates have been expanded to the stories that actually ran in the next day’s newspaper. Today’s On This Date story is from May 29, 2007).

By Rod Heckman

rheckman@tnonline.com

Panther Valley opponents know they have to keep Justin King off the bases.

Their only problem is no one has quite figured out how to do that.

The Panthers’ pesky leadoff hitter was once again a thorn in someone’s side as he finished 3-for-3 with a walk, two stolen bases, three runs scored and seven RBI.

That offensive explosion, which was highlighted by his third-inning grand slam, helped PV gain a surprisingly easy 14-1 victory over top-seeded Notre Dame in Tuesday’s District 11 Class AA semifinal game. The Panthers (19-3 and riding a 16-game winning streak) will now play for the district title this afternoon at Blue Mountain against Pine Grove.

“He’s a strong kid,” said Panther Valley head coach John Cooper of his senior shortstop. “He’s not very big, but he’s got some pop. He didn’t have a great game against Wilson (in the quarterfinals), so I was pleased he had an opportunity to redeem himself. He came up big all day with runners in scoring position.”

“Anytime you have a table-setter like him (King), you’re in trouble,” said Notre Dame mentor Mike Bedics. “Coming in, we talked about keeping him off base, but unfortunately we didn’t get the job done. They put the ball in play, and they have a nice team. We just picked the wrong day to have our worst game.”

King contributed to the Crusaders’ woes right from the start by opening the contest with a walk and a pair of stolen bases, eventually scoring on Brian Rivera’s double. He then delivered an RBI hit during the Panthers’ three-run second frame, which included a two-run single by Kevin Hoben.

But his biggest moment of the afternoon came with two out and the bases loaded in the third. After Notre Dame pulled their starting pitcher Vinnie Guadagnino, King jumped on a first-pitch fastball from reliever Alex Brown and drilled it over the right fielder’s head for a grand slam and an 8-0 advantage.

“I was looking for anything to hit, the first good pitch I got I was going to jump on it and try to get some more runs in,” said King, who hopes to walk on at Bloomsburg next season. “Running is a big part of my game, as well as hitting to all parts of the field. We wanted to jump on them quick and get them down a bit.”

While PV’s offense got Notre Dame down, Matt Zedalis made sure they stayed down.

The hard-throwing lefty limited the Crusaders (17-7) to no runs and a couple of infield singles through the first four innings, allowing a meaningless run in the home fifth.

“Today was Matt’s best outing of the year,” said Cooper. “He’s pitched well all year for us, but today he had the best command of his pitches ... He did a good job working both corners of the plate. He used his breaking ball well and he was tough today. This is the hardest he’s thrown in a while. He looked good.”

“I tried to stay focused, and the ball was working really well,” said Zedalis, who struck out three and walked just one. “I was happy with my performance today. I felt comfortable with the guys working behind me.”

The Zedalis comfort level expanded in the fourth inning when the Panthers pushed across another five runs. Jeremy Liggitt walked with the bases loaded, while King and Hoben each came through with two-run singles.

The scoring output was the 11th time in the last 12 games PV has managed double-digit runs, and it also gave assistant head coach Phil Shelton (back from Afghanistan) a firsthand look at the team’s offensive abilities.

“I told the kids before the game that we wanted to play until he got back, and now we can show him what he’s been missing,” said Cooper, whose team also benefitted from seven walks. “So I was glad we came out offensively the way we did and could show him the kind of hitting team we’ve been all year.”

Besides King and Hoben, Brian Rivera finished with two hits while the team’s No. 5 through 9 hitters (Phil Rivera, Chris Wehr, Jon Liggitt, Jeremy Liggitt and E.J. Poeldnurk) each scored two runs.

Panther Valley 135 50 - 14 11 1

Notre Dame 000 01 - 1 3 1

Zedalis and Hoben; Guadagnino, Brown (3), Pennypacker (5) and Bartolacci. W - Zedalis. L - Guadagnino. HR: Panther Valley - King (3rd, three on).