Anthony Schade rips a two-run double in the first inning for Level UP.

By Rich Bevensee

Fortunately for the Level UP Prospects Elite 15U squad, when the most crucial moments of the game demanded confidence, the two guys on the roster oozing with confidence were ready to step into the spotlight.

First, Anthony Schade rebounded from a potentially crippling fielding error which cost his team two runs by smashing a three-run triple to tie the game. 

Then it was Ashton Querrazzi’s turn. He entered the game as a reliever with the winning runs in scoring position and smoothly retired the final two batters to ensure victory. 

And that’s how Level UP secured its first pool win at Diamond Nation this weekend, a 6-5 decision over Baseball U PA-Philly in the Slugfest tournament on Saturday evening in Flemington. 

Level UP (1-1) of Hopewell Junction, N.Y., will face Diamond Jacks Super 15U (2-0) on Sunday at 8 a.m. Baseball U (0-2) of Horsham, Pa., will close pool play against Bell Ringers Maroon on Sunday at 8 a.m.

Schade, a sophomore at Arlington High in LaGrange, N.Y., drove in five of Level UP’s six runs with a two-run double in the top of the first inning and a game-tying, three-run triple in the sixth. 

“He’s always been that hitter, but he didn’t always believe in himself,” said Level UP coach Juan Rivera, who has known Schade since he was four years old. “It took failure for him to learn and a coach to believe in him.”

Rivera said it wasn’t until Schade was 11 or 12 and his team was headed for a Cooperstown, N.Y., tournament that he finally figured out he had what it took to succeed at the plate. 

“We talked about competitive ball, upper level baseball, and you could see the light bulb switch on,” Rivera said. “It was confidence. It was always confidence.”

Let’s rewind to the bottom of the fifth when Schade committed a throwing error after he fielded a ground ball to third which cost two runs and led to Baseball U claiming a 5-2 lead. 

Rivera said a miscue like that would have normally crushed Schade and left him flat for the rest of the game. But not this current version of him. 

After three straight Level UP walks to start the top of the sixth, Schade slammed a triple into the right-center field gap to clear the bases and tie the game at 5-5. Two batters later, Max Meehan’s RBI single provided what would be the winning run.

“I knew I had to make up for the error,” Schade said. “We should have won that game 6-2 so I had to make it up to them. It’s hard for me to get over an error sometimes but I knew I had to lift my team.”

Baseball U’s Spencer Joworisak is tagged out at home by Level UP pitcher Talon Bosco.

With that kind of ability and confidence at the plate, it wasn’t a surprise to see Schade respond in the clutch. 

“I know how hard it is to overcome errors, but when you have a team behind you that thinks of you as family, it’s not hard at all,” Rivera said. 

Baseball U rallied in the bottom of the seventh to get the potential tying and winning runs into scoring position when Ethan Lorah and Jake Esposito both walked and advanced one base on a wild pitch with one out. 

Querrazza, a sophomore at Red Hook (N.Y.), came to relieve Meehan and quickly put out the fire. He got Joey Acerda to line out to Schade at third and, after a walk to Jack Best, he coerced a fielder’s choice ground ball from Brayden Cohen.  

“I had confidence in myself and my team and I knew we could make it out of that without them scoring any runs,” Querrazza said. “I don’t care (about runners). I was focused on the batter.”

Querrazza said he really began to be tested as a pitcher this season, and his first trial by fire came at Diamond Nation. So Saturday’s challenge didn’t catch him off guard. 

“This is my first year pitching in pressure situations,” Querrazza said. “My first time was here, actually, and it was scary because we were up by a lot and I had to come in with bases loaded and I got out of it. So I’ve gotten used to those situations. It doesn’t really bother me anymore. Today I was ready to come in and deal.”

For Level UP, Talon Bosco pitched the first 3⅓ innings and yielded two runs on two hits and five walks with five strikeouts. Meehan threw the next three innings and allowed three runs (only one earned) on one hit and five walks with three strikeouts. 

For Baseball U, Spencer Joworisak threw 5⅓ innings and permitted six runs on five hits and four walks with six strikeouts. Logan Stangs worked the final 1⅔ innings and gave up just one walk. 

Stangs led the Baseball U offense with two hits. Lorah forced a run home with a bases-loaded walk, Rafael Agosto drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and Nate Duffy had a groundout RBI.