District 2 Baseball Championship Predictions
By: Nate Johns | SportzWire | May 25, 2026 | Photo courtesy Justin Bradley
After a chaotic week of playoff baseball, including the longest baseball game in PIAA history, the District 2 Baseball Championships are set. Games will take place on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, May 26-29. Here’s a preview of each championship game along with a prediction.
Playoff Predictions Record: 21-5
Semifinal Predictions Record: 8-3
AAAAAA: Wilkes-Barre Area vs Hazleton Area
A rematch of last season’s championship game after the Wolfpack stunned top-seeded Williamsport 5-2 in nine innings. The Cougars, who’ve won six straight district championships, return to the title game after beating a red-hot Wyoming Valley West team 9-0.
Wilkes-Barre Area entered the playoffs on a five game losing streak. The Wolfpack have now won back-to-back extra inning games to return to the championship. Nathan Fritz was the hero against the Millionaires, pitching 8.2 innings and hitting a three-run triple that gave the Wolfpack the road victory. Fritz is the team leader in batting average and RBIs and owns a 3.80 ERA. Jake Howe is another important piece for WBA with his .406 batting average and nine extra-base hits.
Hazleton Area’s 9-0 win vs Wyoming Valley West was the complete game the Cougars searched for during the last two weeks of the regular season. The Cougars had dropped three straight, including the WVC Division 1 Championship to Pittston Area 6-1. Ace Fred Corrado pitched 5.1 scoreless innings with nine strikeouts in the semifinals. Nick Cunniffe and Jeudi Hidalgo combined for five hits. Hidalgo drove in two runs and homered in the victory.
Hazleton swept the regular season series between these teams and has ranked in the top five AAAAAA schools by several publications. Wilkes-Barre Area is coming in with momentum however, with two gritty wins. Their win against Williamsport showed the Wolfpack have the talent and grit to play spoiler. I’m still picking the Cougars because of their pedigree and pitching to win their seventh straight subregional.
Prediction: Hazleton Area defeats Wilkes-Barre Area.
AAAAA: Dallas vs Pittston Area
Another round three between two WVC Division 1 opponents. Pittston returns as the reigning champs after winning a rematch of last season’s final against Abington Heights 6-2. Dallas will play for its third district title in four years, the first in AAAAA, after knocking off Wallenpaupack on the road 2-1.
The Patriots won the WVC Division 1, 6-1 over Hazleton, and are looking to win back-to-back district titles. Elijah Barr has led the postseason push with back-to-back complete games, allowing one earned run in each contest. Gavin Wardecki led the offense against the Comets with three hits and an RBI. Beau Widdick added two hits and an RBI of his own. The Patriots offense is dangerous with Josh Barr, Widdick, Jacoby Harnen, Joe Bradley and Elijah Barr all hitting over .400.
The key for Dallas this postseason has been its pitching. Dominick Zangardi pitched five innings of one-run baseball against West Scranton. Nick Bednar pitched nine innings this postseason, highlighted by a complete game, ten-strikeout performance in the Mountaineers 2-1 win over Wallenpaupack. Brady Youngblood hit the go-ahead home run in the 7th inning, one of several big hits he’s had this season.
Pittston Area beat Dallas in the semifinals last year and swept the regular season series this year. The current seniors on Dallas’s roster were on the roster for the state championship game run of 2023 and the district championship of 2024. Both programs know how to win big games, but I trust the Patriots a bit more, especially with Elijah Barr on the bump.
Prediction: Pittston Area defeats Dallas
AAAA: Mid Valley vs Wyoming Area
The top two seeds in AAAA meet in the championship game, with both teams advancing to the state playoffs regardless of the result. This is another regular season rematch, which the Warriors won 8-6 in Throop on April 15.
The Warriors got here thanks to a 7-3 win vs Valley View in the quarterfinals and a 6-2 win over Hanover Area in the semifinals. Wyoming Area is in the district championship game for the first time since 2022 when it beat Dallas 9-6. Alex Vacula leads the offense with a .534 batting average and 38 RBIs. The strength of this Warriors team is their pitching staff. Vacula, Jake Snyder and Ryan Nemshick have all pitched at least 30 innings and all have an ERA under 2.00. The offense is hard hitting with eight starters hitting over .400.
The Spartans enter as the reigning champs, having won the title last year and the AAA District Championship the year previous. Several key players from last season’s team are back. On the offensive side, Joey Romanowski and Nick Mills lead the way, with Mills launching four home runs to lead the team. Cooper Lukasavage and Brett Yanoski lead the rotation with ERAs of 2.71 and 2.81 respectively. Mid Valley’s offense has been heating up in 10-4 and 12-4 wins over Berwick and Crestwood.
The Spartans have the experience edge and the Warriors have the better resume. This one could go either way much like their meeting in mid-April. In the end, I’ll take the experience of the Spartans, who are no stranger to upsetting No. 1 seeds from the WVC to win a district title.
Prediction: Mid Valley defeats Wyoming Area
AAA: Dunmore vs Riverside
Another installment in the rematch category between two of the best small-school programs in the area. The Bucks scored four unanswered runs to beat the Vikings in the bottom of the seventh. This time around the Vikings are the home team and enter as the one seed.
The Bucks proved in the semifinals that they may be one of the most clutch programs in District 2. After trailing Lake-Lehman since the 1st inning, the Bucks rallied down 5-3 in the 7th to tie the game and force extras. Dunmore went on to win 6-5 in the 19th inning, the longest PIAA baseball game in history. The Bucks have a stellar rotation with Mason Stets, Jamie McMynne, Jackson Cady and Evan Mizenko. Mizenko leads the offense in batting average and home runs as well.
Riverside has been the best small-school program, A through AAA, all season long. The Vikings are 19-2 including their 6-0 semifinal win over Lakeland. Nicholas Boheneck is a two-way star, batting .530 with four homers and 30 RBIs with a 3.53 ERA. Cooper Borowski has a 3.77 ERA to serve as another pitcher and Jose Sosa, Chris Graff and Jason Posluzny provide depth in the lineup with batting averages .400 or higher.
The last district championship for the Vikings was in 2023. The Bucks prevented the drought from ending with one of the greatest comebacks of all time. Dunmore has momentum, but the Vikings have been consistently great all season long and are out for revenge after last year.
Prediction: Riverside defeats Dunmore
AA: Wyoming Seminary vs Elk Lake
The two teams that got eliminated in the semifinals last season both advanced to the title game. The Blue Knights are here for the first time since 2019 and the Warriors are back for the third time in four seasons.
Wyoming Seminary pulled off a stunning comeback win over division-rival Holy Redeemer in the semifinals. The Blue Knights trailed 3-0 and then scored sixth unanswered runs, five in the 7th inning, to win. Caleb Aponick pitched seven innings, allowing one run and keeping Wyoming Seminary in the game. Leo Nockley, a Tennessee commit, is the main driver of the offense who leads the team in several offensive categories. Ryan Finlay is the pitching staff ace with an ERA of 3.00.
Elk Lake avenged two regular-season losses to Lackawanna Trail with an 8-2 win in the semifinals. Brayden Miller was the star of the game, pitching six innings with 10 strikeouts and getting four RBIs on offense. This win followed a 15-5 quarterfinal win over Blue Ridge.
This game is a coin flip. The Blue Knights will have the best player on the field, but need to tighten up their team defense. The Warriors have been on this stage before and their offense is clicking at the right time. They have the ability to put the ball in play and score runs at will. I think the Warriors will return to the state tournament.
Prediction: Elk Lake defeats Wyoming Seminary
A: Susquehanna vs MMI Prep
Both teams struggled mightily this season, but both will have the chance to win a district championship. The winner of this game will play a play-in game vs the District 12 Champion.
Susquehanna scored a 5-4 comeback win vs Forest City to reach the championship. The win was a walk-off in the bottom of the 7th. Drew Hennessey and Gabe Maby are the top two arms in the rotation.
The Preppers earned a bye to the championship game by virtue of being the No. 1 seed. MMI Prep has won the last two district championships and won a state playoff game in both seasons. The Preppers have experienced pitchers, led by Caleb Skuba.
This is another game that could go either way. The Sabers have seen the Preppers in the championship before and know what to expect. MMI Prep has won on this stage before and I predict they’ll do it again.
Prediction: MMI Prep defeats Susquehanna
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