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LANCASTER − Will Smoot saw a fastball.
The junior said it arrived right when he needed it most. Christian School of York trailed by a run in the bottom of the seventh inning in the District 3 Class 1A championship. Fairfield had taken the lead two frames earlier, and the Defenders' status as defending 1A champions was in jeopardy.
But Smoot liked fastballs. To him, they were the pitch he hit best.
"I just had to put the ball in play," Smoot said. "Just trying to have fun up there. He gave me a fastball inside, and that's exactly what I was looking for."
Smoot launched a shot to deep left field. Teammates Maverick Browand and Bryson Byrd bounded home. The duo hit home plate as Fairfield's connecting throw crossed the turf toward second base. Smoot was there to greet the throw, and he stood to meet the Defenders as they poured from Penn Medicine Park's home dugout in celebration.
Final score: Christian School of York 3, Fairfield 2.
"(Smoot) is an incredible guy," Christian School of York coach Ed Bills said. "He's very talented, and he's been working really hard on his stance and his swing. He just came through for us. He was clutch."
Smoot's walkoff double capped a game the Defenders and Knights battled to control all afternoon. Someone had to break sooner or later. Fairfield starter Vaughn Lewis and Defenders pitcher Austin Holbritter tore through the first three innings, giving up just one hit combined.
Lewis kept the Defenders playing by his tempo. The senior didn't allow a single hit through the first six innings, and his only allowed run came after Byrd hit a sacrifice fly to score Chase Wentz in the fourth.
"I knew what (Lewis) could bring," Fairfield coach Steve Bell said. "He's been in big games inside stadiums like this for me, and I knew what he could do. We tried to ride him as long as we could."
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Behind Lewis, Fairfield jumped ahead. Riley Brown and Jacob Liller, filed third and fourth in the batting order, contributed both the Knights' runs. After Brown walked in the fourth, Liller belted a shot into right field and watched it run to the warning track. Before the connecting throw had crossed into the infield, Liller slid into third base and Brown had crossed home plate.
Two innings later, the duo did it again. Brown singled and Liller hit an RBI double before attempting to score on an error. The Knights were in their first district championship ever as a program, and they refused to squander the opportunity.
Holbritter ensured the Knights stopped there. The junior held the Knights to five hits through his seven innings of work and struck out nine along the way. Behind him, the Defenders committed just one error.
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"Both pitchers did really well, so it's exactly what you look for in a championship game," Bills said. "We really had to take some pitches (in the seventh). Just to see if we could get a walk or whatever it took to get guys on base."
With their district champion status on the line, the Defenders lived up to their name. Deep in the seventh inning, Browand knocked in a single off Lewis, and Byrd drew a walk. After a pitching change, Smoot stepped up to the plate. The rest is history.
"It feels fantastic," Smoot said of the Defenders' repeat title. "We have a nice program here that we've built up over many years. I'm just happy to be back, and hopefully we can go win a third."
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Christian School of York walks off to win 1A District 3 baseball title
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