PETERS TWP. — After a season-ending, mercy-rule loss, coach Mike Shuleski and his assistants addressed Hopewell's baseball team in a postgame huddle that lasted close to 20 minutes.
After a 12-0 loss, what could they have possibly been talking about for so long?
"Mostly, you say thank you," Shuleski said after Thursday's loss to Ringgold in the PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals.
"We got a good group of guys. They haven't caused any trouble. They've been very receptive to what we do as coaches. They compete. They came together as a group and improved throughout the course of the season. That's what high school athletics is all about."
Hopewell, which tied for third place in Section 2 during the regular season, qualified for the state tournament by beating Greensburg Salem, 4-1, in the WPIAL third-place consolation game. It then won its first-round game of the PIAA playoffs, 5-0 Monday over Grove City.
In both of those games, senior left-hander Joe Rock pitched for the Vikings (15-11). In those games, he allowed just four hits combined.
Against Ringgold (18-4), Hopewell used three pitchers — starter Jake McGovern and relievers Tyler Pigoni and Alex Kunzmann — who allowed 12 hits in just four innings.
After scoring two runs in the bottom of the first, the Rams batted around in the third and fourth and scored five runs in each of those innings.
Catcher Bob Boyer, who knocked in five runs, set the stage for the mercy rule to go into effect by hitting a three-run home run in the fourth inning that made it 12-0.
In the top of the fifth, Ringgold pitcher Josh Peters finished off the Vikings, three up, three down.
At no point in the game did Hopewell threaten. The Vikings managed just two singles off Peters.
"Obviously, hats off to Ringgold," Shuleski said. "That was heck of a performance they had offensively, as well as from their pitcher. They just beat us today, plain and simple."
Not only did the loss end Hopewell's season, it also ended the careers of several seniors, most notably Rock and catcher Mitch Heranic.
Rock, an Ohio recruit who was 9-2 this season with a 1.18 earned run average, will go down as one of best pitchers in Hopewell history.
Heranic, who'll continue his career at NCAA Division III Washington and Jefferson, has to be included among the better catchers in Hopewell history. He batted .342 this year and led the team with four home runs.
"That was a very close-knit senior class," Shuleski. "We're losing some good teammates."
Now that Hopewell's high school season is over, most players on the team will play for the community's American Legion team. Dave Dennniston manages the legion squad, but Shuleski is one of the assistants.
In all likelihood, Hopewell will play its first legion game Monday.
"Only six teams in the state don't have to give that speech," Shuleski said of his last post-game remarks to the Vikings. "Whether it's losing it the quarterfinals, or losing in the state championship game or after your last regular-season game if you don't make the playoffs, coaches have to give that last end-of-the-season speech.
"The only teams who don't do it are the six teams that win the state championship."
After snuffing out Hopewell's state title hopes, Ringgold will now play Meadville (15-5) in the semifinals on Monday.