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Everybody contributing for surging Canon-McMillan

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Back in 2014, it was West Allegheny that ended end Blackhawk pitcher Brendan McKay’s 71 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings streak, the third-longest in U.S. high school baseball history, according to the National Federal of High Schools.

When the Indians tagged McKay for five runs to win the WPIAL Class 3A championship in extra innings, pitching coach Tim Bruzdewicz remembers the saying West Allegheny used to get there.

“Ohana!” Bruzdewicz said. “It means family (in the Hawaiian culture).”

So at the beginning fo this season, when Bruzdewicz, now in his third season as the head coach at Canon-McMillan, showed his WPIAL championship ring from the 10th-seeded West Allegheny team, to his players, it was with a message.

“I told them this was because of 25 guys working together as a team,” he said. “If you guys play for each other, and play as a team, you will get to your goals at the end of the year.”

The Big Macs take will try to take the next step toward their goal of a state championship Monday against Council Rock North in a PIAA Class 6A semifinal game at Greene Township Park in Scotland.

The game is scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m.

“It’s unthinkable at this point,” Bruzdewicz said. “The WPIAL championship was huge. I didn’t realize how big it was really going to be. But we are focusing on the next opponent.”

Canon-McMillan (18-5) solved its WPIAL semifinals slumps and defeated North Allegheny for the first title in school history in the WPIAL final, then knocked the Tigers out of the state playoffs last Thursday. Now, the Big Macs are one win away from playing for a state championship. It has been a run that started with Bruzdewicz taking a page out of the playbook of West Allegheny.

Before, after and sometimes during games, Canon-McMillan players will yell three letters, E.L.E., to represent a saying from the comedy movie “Semi-Pro,” starring Will Farrell. For the Big Macs, E.L.E., stands for “Everybody loves everybody.”

“(The past two seasons) were a very tough pill to swallow,” Bruzdewicz said of failing to qualify for the two spots in 6A that advance from the WPIAL to the PIAA tournament. “Some of these seniors are four-year starters. They knew they could do this.”

Council Rock North (18-7) has won five of its last six games, including consecutive dominating performances – a 11-1 win over Frankford and a 10-1 victory against Cumberland Valley – to begin the state playoffs.

The District 1 runner-up features starting pitcher Ryan Stalker (7-1, 1.57 ERA) and has seven players in their lineup hitting over .300. Senior Cavan Tully leads the Indians in nearly ever statistical category. Tully is hitting .400 with four home runs, seven doubles and 24 RBI.

“Their team sounds pretty familiar, almost like the team in our dugout,” Bruzdewicz said. “But I’m not trading my team for any of the other three remaining. We are doing the little things right, playing defense and getting our bunts down. I don’t think it’s going to stop. We are ready to go.”

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