Miller's 14 strikeouts spark PHS to Class A championship

PLATTSBURGH | Plattsburgh High left no doubt. The Hornets, behind Warren Miller's 14-strikeout performance, cruised to a 12-1 win over Peru in the Section VII Class A baseball final on Thursday, May 23, at Chip Cummings Field. Miller allowed only two singles and escaped one jam in the fifth inning, when Plattsburgh High turned a 5-2-3 double play. "It feels great," Miller said after the program's third sectional championship in four years. "We always have the goal every year of making it back here and making it further. With our coaching staff and our players and our dedication, we can make it happen. "We had a couple rough patches, but we pulled through in the end. I've got good defense behind me, so we're good." The Hornets blew the game open in the second inning. Plattsburgh High sent 13 batters to the plate, scoring seven runs on four hits and one Nighthawks error to take a commanding 7-1 lead. Braeden Calkins and Andre Anderson accounted for RBI hits in the half-inning. The Hornets were methodical in their approach at the plate, totaling five walks to keep the line moving. Calkins finished 3-for-5, and Anderson accounted for a 3-for-3 performance with a walk and three RBIs. "We just got things going," Calkins said. "Got runners on base, put the ball in play. That's how we've played all year. Good approach at the plate. "That (seven-run inning) was huge. We knew (Miller) had to keep his foot on the pedal and just keep throwing strikes. That was the big thing. No errors today. Defense was great, and that's what wins games." Plattsburgh High added three insurance runs in the third inning. Nate Baker's RBI triple coupled with an error chased Peru sophomore Jake Frechette from the mound. The Hornets loaded the bases with three walks, but relief pitcher Landen Duprey induced a fly out to left field to avoid further damage. Plattsburgh High scored one run in the fifth inning, as Calkins singled, stole second base and scored on Anderson's two-out, RBI single. Jack Sorrell concluded the scoring in the sixth. He led off with a walk and eventually scored on the Nighthawks' fourth error in the field. Miller retired five of the last six batters he faced by strikeout to shut the door. Kalib Smith and Donnie Mitchell both singled for Peru, and Frechette scored in the second inning on Brennan Peters' sacrifice fly to center field. The Hornets will face Albany Academy, which captured a Section II title as a No. 6 seed, in a NYSPHSAA sub-regional at 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 30, at Chip Cummings Field.

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Miller's 14 strikeouts spark PHS to Class A championship

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