May 25, 2015 5 min read

When California senior Aaron Previsky stands in the outfield grass during games, he rarely catches himself being a spectator.

As a center fielder, he can’t be caught off guard when a ball is hit his way. With Collin Liberatore, a 6-3 senior right-hander for Greensburg Central Catholic on the mound, that wasn’t a concern last summer when the two were teammates with the Pittsburgh Spikes of the Western Pennsylvania Elite Baseball League.

Previsky could not help but watch Liberatore work flawlessly on the mound; mixing an 88 mph fastball with three off-speed pitches.

“I remember playing center field whenever he was pitching and he was blowing the ball right by people,” Previsky said. “I just thought to myself, ‘Wow, this kid is legit. He has some good stuff. If we ever have to face him, it’s going to be a tough match up.'”

He won’t be able to watch much tonight. Previsky will finally find out how the Trojans stack up when top-seeded California (19-1) faces Liberatore and second-seeded Greensburg Central Catholic (19-3) in the WPIAL Class A championship game at Consol Energy Park. First pitch is 8 p.m.

Liberatore, a Campbell recruit and the WPIAL Baseball Coaches Association Class A Pitcher of the Year, has been close to unhittable this spring. He has allowed only three extra-base hits in 40 innings with a 0.35 ERA, 64 strikeouts and just eight walks.

In the days leading up to the game, Previsky has made sure to pass the scouting report on to his teammates.

“I’ve been trying to relay the message to the other guys that this kid is legit,” Previsky said. “He doesn’t mess around out there. He’s going to throw strikes and he’s going to throw hard. I feel like if we keep doing what we’ve been doing all year, put the ball in play, we’ll be fine.”

It won’t be the first time California has seen a dominant ace. Four days after winning the WPIAL Class A title last May, the Trojans ran into Cranberry left-handed pitcher Dylan Cyphert, a Pitt recruit whose fastball reached 88 mph, in the first round of the PIAA playoffs.

Cyphert struck out 10 batters and allowed just three hits to cut California’s playoff run short.

“He’s a very similar pitcher (to Cyphert),” Previsky said of Liberatore. “I’m excited to see how these younger kids adjust to a faster pitcher like that since we haven’t seen one all season.”

Though California lost six starters from last spring’s WPIAL championship team, it has continued the program’s winning tradition and preparedness for big-game situations. The new starters have stepped in, including senior pitcher Garitt Woodburn, who will start against GCC, to help the Trojans return to Consol Energy Park.

Roster turnover in Class A can create parity. The is usually magnified when a high school team does not have a middle school program, but California continues to compete for championships. Much of that has to do with the Trojans’ off-season work and a unique bond created by the school’s size.

Even with different players and a different head coach from before, the personality of the team is similar to previous years.

“We only have four hallways in our school, so we see each other non-stop throughout the day,” Previsky said. “As teammates, we’re more of a family in school – even off the field and in the classroom we help each other out as much as we do on the field.”

The holiday weekend afforded the Trojans a break from the classroom, but their homework has revolved around solving Liberatore and the Centurions’ offense, which has a .348 batting average, including six starters batting above .300.

“We’re running into probably the best team we’ll face this year, and we have to play perfect Trojan baseball to get the win,” second-year head coach Nick Damico said. “That’s what we’re shooting for, playing good defense and getting timely hits.”

When the season began, Previsky and the Trojans’ five other seniors made a pact to return to the WPIAL title game no matter what. That meant not sweating over non-section defeats such as their loss to Mt. Pleasant, or worrying about section play.

They want to become just the third program to win back-to-back WPIAL Class A titles since the district adopted the classification for baseball in 1999. Measuring themselves against one of the best pitchers on the WPIAL’s biggest stage will make the quest that much sweeter.

“Nobody wants to quit now. That’s what I really love about this team,” Previsky said. “Even though we’re this far in, school is almost over, nobody wants to stop playing and nobody wants to let go of this team. We just really want that championship again.”