Bernadowski pitches Franklin Regional into PIAA tournament

By: Paul Schofield
Friday, May 31, 2024 | 6:01 PM

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When the PIAA Class 5A baseball playoffs begin Monday, there is a good chance senior Max Bernadowski will be on the hill.

Why not? Bernadowski (7-1) pitched the Panthers into the tournament by tossing seven strong innings in a 3-2 victory against West Allegheny in the WPIAL third-place game.

The win puts the Panthers (16-8) at District 6 champion Hollidaysburg at 4 p.m. The Golden Tigers (14-6) qualified for the PIAA tournament with a 5-1 win against Obama Academy of the City League.

Bernadowski won two playoff games for the Panthers. He pitched six strong innings in their 13-1 win against North Hills and then against West Allegheny.

He allowed nine hits, but he didn’t walk a batter and struck out five.

“Max has been a bulldog for us all season,” Franklin Regional coach Bobby Saddler said. “He pounds the strike zone and limits the damage when opponents get runners on.

“That’s what you expect from him. Max commands the zone, and he wants the ball. I can’t say enough good things about him.”

Against West Allegheny, he allowed an unearned run in the first inning and pitched out of trouble in the fourth and fifth innings in preserving a 1-1 score.

West Allegheny pushed across a run in the bottom of the seventh, but Bernadowski’s teammates rallied for two runs (two-run double by Luke Williams) to pull off the win.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Bernadowski allowed a leadoff single. But he stranded a runner at third base by striking out Brady Miller to end the game.

“Our bond as a team is amazing,” Bernadowski said. “We have each others’ back. I knew we’d fight to the end, and we came through. We’re always fighting.”

Bernadowski said his fastball and changeup were working against West Allegheny.

“Everything was working,” Bernadowski said. “I pitched like I know how. We treated this game like every other one we played. Our goal now is to go all the way. We’ve made it this far. This is only the start.”

Bernadowski has an ERA of 2.70 with 20 walks and 60 strikeouts in 46²⁄₃ innings. He also contributes at the plate. He’s hitting .318 with 21 hits and 14 RBIs.

He plays shortstop when he’s not on the hill.

But, with Bernadowski on the hill, good things happen for the Panthers.

If Franklin Regional defeats Hollidaysburg, it will face the winner of the Penn-Trafford/Lower Dauphin game Thursday. The Panthers wouldn’t mind a rematch against the WPIAL champion Warriors, who defeated them 10-3 in the WPIAL semifinals.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional