POTTSVILLE - Marian’s offense lacked a good, powerful shot for most of Tuesday’s District 11 Class 1A semifinal game at Steidle Stadium.

But it didn’t really matter.

That’s because the Weatherly offense couldn’t do anything against the Colts’ Jake Bobish.

The senior righthander pitched a perfect game - and after a bit of a slow start - his teammates found their groove at the plate as Marian rolled to a 10-0 mercy-rule victory.

The win vaults Marian into Saturday’s district championship game where it will meet Schuylkill League rival, Nativity, which needed an extra inning to take down Notre Dame East Stroudsburg, 3-2, in yesterday’s opener. The teams will meet at 1 p.m. in Schuylkill Haven to decide the title and the PIAA State berth that goes with it.

Bobish racked up 10 strikeouts, and sent every batter down at least once on strikes, with the lone exception being his counterpart on the mound, Jack James, who grounded out twice to third baseman Mike Gelatko. The Wreckers only hit one ball out of the infield, that coming in the top of the fifth when Ian McLaurin flied out to shallow left.

“I felt really good tonight. Early in the season I was walking people, giving up way too many hits and walks,” said Bobish. “(Pitching) coach Pete (Radocha) told me to just follow through, land on my front toe. It was something we’ve been working on.”

While Bobish was rocking and rolling, James wasn’t mundane either for the Wreckers. The senior righthander kept the Colts from getting good swings with a cutter and a sneaky fastball.

“That cutter he was throwing kept us from being aggressive, and he was able to keep us off balance. I thought he did a great job for them,” said Marian skipper Tony Radocha. “But Bobish gave our bats a chance to come around. He gave us a star effort.

“He had been battling a hamstring injury. So we gave him a lot of rest, and I just felt with that extra rest he’d be back to 100%. We had all the confidence in him, and he showed why. It was a great performance.”

Although the Colts had just two hits in the first two innings, they still managed to hunt and peck away for a pair of runs in both at-bats. They relied on their short game to build the lead, as bunt singles by Cole DeFrancisco and Dylan Zullo played roles in building the early 4-0 lead.

The Colts then broke loose for a three spot in the fourth to take a 7-0 lead. Gelatko, who would drive in four of his teams runs, said he was struggling somewhat early in the game.

“I really wasn’t seeing the ball that well,” the sophomore said. “I just started to stay back more on the ball and see it better as the game went on.”

Leading 7-0, Marian ended the game in the home fifth. The three-run outburst was fueled by Lachlan Segedy, who had the hardest hit of the game. Segedy powered a double in the left-center ally to open the inning, and came around to score on a Zullo groundout. Brian Hinkle kept the rally afloat with a single, and Chris Petrilyak blasted a double before Gelatko’s single put the game to bed.

“You couldn’t ask for a better effort than Jack James gave us,” said Brian Kaminksy, the interim manager for Weatherly. “He was always around the plate. Jack pitched great, he started off a little rocky, but other than that, he was outstanding.”

But the Colts eventually figured him out.

“We’ll take it and get ready to play for a district championship,” said Radocha.

ON TARGET ... Bobish tossed 73 pitches, with 51 strikes. He only worked behind once in the count, and that came to McLaurin in the top of the fifth, going 3-1 before inducing him to fly to left. James tossed 89 pitches, before leaving with no outs in the fifth. He threw 55 in the zone.

AT THE PLATE … Gelatko collected two of Marian’s seven hits. The Colts had registered a pair of doubles - once each from Petrilyak and Segedy.

WOW EFFECT … Weatherly’s McLaurin was like fine sterling silver at shortstop. He made a super play behind third with a diving catch, taking away a hit and an RBI from Bobish. The play stopped what could have potentially been a big first inning from Marian. The catch earned him the “web gem” player of the game.

Weatherly 000 00 - 0 0 2

Marian 220 33 - 10 7 0

James, Tipp (5) and Eroh and James (5); Bobish and Walko. W - Bobish. L - James.