Governor Mifflin ready to rise to the occasion against Hollidaysburg in PIAA Class 5A baseball final

Gov. Mifflin’s Bryce Detwiler celebrates his big home run with teammates that gave the Mustangs a 6-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning against Exeter at Rulon Griffith Field. (BILL UHRICH – READER EAGLE)

As they approach their first appearance in a state championship game, one thing is obvious to the members of Governor Mifflin’s baseball team: The Mustangs aren’t just there.

“We have to take care of business Friday,” Governor Mifflin coach Chris Hole said. “I said in our group (after the semifinal win), ‘I don’t know about you guys, but I’m really tired of being in second place.’

“We will take advantage of this opportunity. We will work hard. We are going to play against a great team on Friday. They will want it as much as we do. So we have to be the team that goes out and executes better.

What has already been a historic season for the Mustangs will culminate Friday afternoon at Penn State’s Medlar Field, as Governor Mifflin faces District 6 champion Hollidaysburg at 4:30 p.m. for the Class 5A baseball title.

The Mustangs (23-5) finished second in the Class 5A District 3 tournament and second in the BCIAA baseball tournament, but had an impressive run in the PIAA tournament.

Having never won a state playoff game, Gov. Mifflin has won by five points or more in each of its three 5A tournament games and has a point differential of 24-4 over that span, although it does not scored only six points in four games. District 3 tournament.

After a 7-2 win over Selinsgrove in the semifinals, junior Dylan Barrett spoke about the extra motivation the team played with in pursuit of a coveted championship.

“There were a lot of people talking a lot after those two (championship) games,” Barrett said. “So it’s kind of standing up to them and we’re just a lot more confident at the plate, I think, against these top teams. We have a lot of multi-sport athletes and they are very competitive.

While the redemption factor is obvious, what truly bonds the Mustangs is the sense of unity they have shared for many years.

“We break every caucus with (the word) ‘family,'” Hole said. “The boys buy into it. They work hard for each other and play for each other and the results speak for themselves.

Several members of Governor Mifflin have played together since their Little League days, and the bond the team shares often manifests itself in momentum-changing games.

In Monday’s semifinal against Selinsgrove, All-Berks catcher Travis Jenkins made two pick moves, one to third and one to first base, to end the inning with multiple runners on base.

“We’ve been playing together since we were eight,” Jenkins said. “Everyone on this team knows each other pretty well and we have the signs to prove it. We should all know ourselves and where to be at the right time.

“When we see runners getting too long, we just make eye contact and know the pick is made,” said junior pitcher Bryce Detwiler, who started on the mound in Monday’s game.

In addition to the emotional connection shared on the field, the individual numbers touted by the Mustangs speak for themselves.

With five regulars hitting over .300 and its two star pitchers with ERAs below 2.00, dominance can easily be achieved on the mound and at the plate for Governor Mifflin.

The reigning Berks Player of the Year, Detwiler, a junior and UConn commit, has a 1.72 ERA and fellow junior pitcher and All-Berks selection Ethan Grim, has a 1.82 ERA. Detwiler has 10 victories and Grim seven.

At the plate, Detwiler is hitting .458 and Grim .425, while Jenkins is hitting .373, Barrett .357 and senior Joey Berg .327. Detwiler leads the team in home runs (8), triples (3), doubles (23) and RBIs (34).

For Detwiler, playing for a title is the result of years of hard work and team building that he hopes will produce a proud moment for the community he and his fellow Mustangs hold dear.

“We all play Mifflin Youth Baseball and ever since we were little we’ve been on the same teams,” Detwiler said. “(Sometimes) we play against each other, but we all play in the (Gov.) Mifflin bracket and on the (Gov.) Mifflin travel teams and now it’s paying off.

“It’s amazing that we all started when we were playing 8U again and we grew up in (Gov.) Mifflin and we’re from home. It’s just amazing that the work we started in January is paying off and I hope we can win one more and bring home a state championship.”

The Golden Tigers (17-5) are also seeking their first state title after reaching the championship for the first time following a 3-1 victory over Monsignor Bonner in the semifinals.

Senior Carson Kensinger, who is 10-0 this year, earned the win and freshman Kevin Boland picked up the save with two outs and the bases loaded in the seventh, eliminating the Division entry I Rider Austin Cannon.

The Mustangs are the first Berks team to reach a state final since Oley Valley in 2021, and with a win, they would be the first Berks team to win a state championship since Conrad Weiser in 2010.

Governor Mifflin was 0-4 all-time in the PIAA playoffs before this tournament with losses in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2021.

All pressures and historical implications aside, for Hole, who is in his 12th season as coach of the Mustangs, the chance to win the ultimate prize in Pennsylvania high school baseball is something he and his players will surely make the most of .

“I’ve been doing this for quite a long time, luckily I can say I’m really not nervous, but I’m doing it, I’m enjoying it,” Hole said of training during big games. “One of the coolest things I’ve told the boys multiple times is that when Warwick qualified for the state championship two years ago, their coach would always tweet the hashtag ‘The pressure is a privilege.

“And I talked to them a lot about that, where if you play under pressure it means you’re in a big moment and you have to take advantage of it.

“You have to accept that and not be the person that cowers and doesn’t want the ball and doesn’t want to be in the moment, and I try to accept that as a coach. I don’t coach from a position of fear, I try to make sure we’re ready to go and we’re the team that wants to be the aggressor.