Jun 7, 2025
OBSERVER Photo by Matt Spielman Gowanda’s Blake Herman celebrates following the final out of Saturday’s 8-1 Class C Far West Regional win over Kendall at Dwyer Stadium in Batavia.
BATAVIA — Section V champion Kendall walked Gowanda’s Blake Herman with a runner on base in each of his final two at-bats during Saturday’s Class C Far West Regional.
The Eagles would’ve been better served to employ that strategy a little earlier.
Herman’s two-run home run keyed a six-run third inning and the Section VI-champion Panthers — behind another efficient, dominating performance by Herman on the mound — beat Kendall 8-1 in their New York State Public High School Athletic Association quarterfinal at Dwyer Stadium.
The win sends Gowanda into next weekend’s state final four in Binghamton for the first time since 2008. The Panthers will take on Section IV champion Deposit-Hancock in the 7 p.m. semifinal Friday at Union-Endicott High School. The Eagles beat Section III champion Bishop Grimes 4-3 in another quarterfinal Saturday.
Herman will likely be Deposit-Hancock’s stiffest test of the season. The right-hander, who has committed to Canisius University next fall as a catcher, has become one of the more dominant hurlers in the state this spring.
OBSERVER Photo by Matt Spielman Gowanda’s Seth Geiger and Landen Ashley (17) celebrate following Saturday’s 8-1 Class C Far West Regional win over Kendall at Dwyer Stadium in Batavia.
On Saturday, he needed just 74 pitches to navigate the Kendall lineup not even three complete times. Herman threw 55 strikes and did not walk a batter, although he did hit one.
He retired the side in order in the bottom of the first and used a one-out double play to get out of the second inning before his Panthers jumped on Eagles starter Gavin Braun in the top of the third.
No. 9 hitter Brayden Smith walked on five pitches to bring up Herman for the second time after he struck out looking to lead off the game. A fake bunt allowed Smith to steal second base on the first pitch of the at-bat.
On the next pitch, Herman lined a home run over the left field fence onto the roof of a building inside the Dwyer Stadium complex to give Gowanda a 2-0 lead.
The Panthers would never look back.
OBSERVER Photo by Matt Spielman Gowanda third baseman Logan Ruff throws across the infield during Saturday’s Class C Far West Regional against Kendall at Dwyer Stadium in Batavia.
Carter Capozzi and Logan Ruff worked back-to-back walks with one out and then Jayden Fish reached on an infield single that turned into a run when the Eagles shortstop tried to throw out Capozzi heading to third base. The throw got away, allowing Capozzi to score, Ruff to get to third and Fish to make it to second.
Drew Kota then laid down a sacrifice bunt to make it 4-0 and after Seth Geiger was hit by a pitch, Madden Lay hit an RBI single to make it 5-0.
With two strikes on the next batter, Coach Smith employed a double steal and when Kendall attempted to throw out Lay heading to second, Geiger raced home to score just before the tag was made on Lay.
Herman was intentionally walked with Smith on second in the fourth inning and then walked on a full-count pitch with Smith on first in the sixth inning. That one came back to bite the Eagles when Kyan Austin hit an RBI single to left field to make it 7-0.
Herman worked around a two-out infield single with three more strikeouts in the bottom of the sixth inning before Gowanda tallied its final run in the seventh when Fish singled and courtesy-runner Owen Pfaffenbach eventually scored on another RBI single from Lay.
OBSERVER Photo by Matt Spielman Gowanda’s Blake Herman yells toward the crowd while celebrating with teammates Logan Ruff (5), Landen Ashley and Seth Geiger during the third inning of Saturday’s Class C Far West Regional against Kendall at Dwyer Stadium in Batavia.
The only thing remaining to be determined was whether Herman would finish his second straight shutout and if he would need less than 70 pitches again.
Neither would be accomplished. Nicholas Cole’s two-out RBI single made it 8-1 before Herman struck out Jonas Rhodes with the 74th pitch of his outing one batter later.
Just as he did a week ago at Frontier High School, Fish jumped into Herman’s arms after the final out as the Panthers began to celebrate the second regional win in program history.
They’ll hope for two more celebrations next weekend in the Parlor City.
NOTES: Section I Tuckahoe and Section IX Burke Catholic will play in one East quarterfinal Sunday morning at Cantine Field in Saugerties. The other quarterfinal Sunday will feature Section VII Ticonderoga and Section II Saratoga Catholic at Dutchmen Field at Roger Keenholt’s Park, also at 11 a.m. Those games were postponed from Saturday due to weather. Their semifinal next Friday will precede Gowanda vs. Deposit-Hancock at 4 p.m. Next Saturday’s championship game will take place at 4 p.m. at SUNY Binghamton. … Gowanda lost their Class B semifinal to Section I JFK Catholic, the eventual state champion, in 2008.
RUSH — Section VI will have 11 girls get a look at Wild Wood Country Club today ahead of the New York State …
Copyright © 2025 Ogden Newspapers of New York, Inc. | https://www.observertoday.com | PO Box 391, Dunkirk, NY 14048 | 716-366-3000
