Oneonta (15-5, 11-3 STAC) def. Vestal (14-5, 12-3 STAC) 12-9 at Mirabito Stadium on Saturday, May 16, to capture the 2026 STAC title.
Bottom line: Vestal and Oneonta went back and forth loading the bases in the first half of the title matchup, ultimately combining for 26 hits, but Oneonta’s second-half pitching capped the game at 12-9, earning the Yellowjackets their first conference title since 2012.
Key plays and sequences
Key Stats: Carr and Imperato had three hits each, while Oneonta had each player touch home, including Stark, C. Jervis and Carr, who each had two runs in the victory.
Vestal’s Isaac Rittenburg had four hits while Kalina, Lay and Fimbres added two hits apiece. Kalina finished with five RBIs, and Fimbres with two.
The lead-up to the championship matchup
< Vestal (14-4, 12-3 STAC) vs. Waverly (17-2, 15-0 STAC) >
Bottom line: Vestal’s five-run inning in the second forces Waverly to play catch-up, which they did, cutting the four-run deficit, but the Golden Bears manage to hang on to their 6-5 victory.
Axel Murray, the right-handed freshman starting on the mound for Waverly, took time to find his accuracy in the second inning, giving the Golden Bears a few free bases off two significant pitches that touched Gavin Brady and Colin Fimbres.
A ground ball from J. Kweller, that grazed past Waverly’s third baseman, followed by a single line drive to right field from H. Lay, brought Terrell, Griffiths, Brady, Fimbres and Kweller home, creating the 6-2 deficit for Waverly to climb back from.
Murray, harnessing better luck on offense, hit a single ground ball to center field to bring Ronin Ault home at the bottom of the third and spark the Wolverines’ first attempt at leveling the playing field. A late play by Waverly’s Hogan Shaw and Jack Pipher, who saw an opportunity to steal, took third and second base, respectively, and Ault’s pop fly to right field in the same play brought Waverly back into winning contention, cutting the deficit to 6-5 at the bottom of the sixth.
The attentiveness of Vestal’s outfield and Terell’s pitching cut off any chance for Waverly to change the tone of the game, ending the Wolverines’ late climb at 6-5. The heavy hitting from Vestal’s Parker Terrell, Spencer Griffiths and Isaac Rittenburg amounted to seven of the Golden Bears’ 12 hits. Henry Lay added three, while Fimbres and Kweller added one hit each.
< Oneonta (14-5, 11-3 STAC) vs. Horseheads (13-6, 12-2 STAC) >
Bottom line: A defensive masterclass from Oneonta’s outfield and Horseheads’ pitching early on kept the game scoreless until the Yellowjackets managed to turn Horseheads’ errors into a 4-0 victory.
Horseheads’ Mason Markle’s six-strikeout start was cut by Oneonta’s Jameson Brown, who doubled on a line drive to right field and helped bring Carr home, who capitalized on Horseheads’ outfield error to put the score at 1-0 at the top of the fourth inning.
The tenacity of Oneonta’s Nolan Stark and N. Woytach, hitting a triple and a single in the fifth inning, respectively, turned the game in favor of the Yellowjackets, with Stark’s hit setting just inside the walls at center field, and Woytach hitting a hard ground ball to third, putting the score at 4-0.
A series of groundouts and precise pitching from Stark prevented any significant late plays from Horseheads, capping the game at 4-0.
Brady Carr had two hits, while Stark and Woytach each drove in one run and collected two hits in the win.
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Oneonta takes the STAC baseball title over Vestal in a 12-9 victory
Reporting by Aniya Sumner, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin / Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
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