Gov. Mifflin ace Ethan Grim

Ethan Grim said he felt fatigued in the bullpen Friday night at Penn State's Medlar Field. Imagine how well Grim could pitch when he's feeling 100 percent. The Gov. Mifflin junior allowed just two hits over six innings as the Mustangs won their first state title. They beat Hollidaysburg 2-1 in the PIAA-5A championship. "It's a beautiful ballpark. You can't get better than the state championship. It felt amazing," Grim told Paul Roberts of SV Sports. He struck out eleven to finish the year with 113 punch outs in 71 innings. Grim (8-3, 1.77) had five strikeouts through two frames. The (17-7) Golden Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the 3rd on Jake Hileman's RBI single up the middle. The (24-5) Mustangs answered in the bottom half of the inning. Travis Jenkins, an All-Berks catcher, knocked in UConn commit Bryce Detwiler with a ground out to first base. Jenkins played a pivotal role in Gov. Mifflin's success all season both offensively and behind the plate. "He's a dog. He gives it his all every game," emphasized Grim. Bryce Wunderlich provided a two-out, RBI single in the 4th to put the Mustangs on top 2-1. "He's been big in the nine-hole the whole year. That was a huge hit," noted Grim. Wunderlich was one of just two seniors in the starting lineup. Grim, who has a fastball in the low-90s, struck out Drew Banks to end the 6th inning. Detwiler punched out the side in the 7th for the save. Branson Adams had two of Gov. Mifflin's seven hits off of Paul Wedel. The junior gave up two runs, one earned, in 5.1 innings. Hollidaysburg standout Carson Kensinger went 0-for-3 against Grim with a pair of strikeouts. He entered the night with a .366 batting average and seven homers. The Mustangs hadn't won a state playoff game until this year. They became the first team from Berks County to earn a PIAA title since Conrad Weiser in 2010.