Baseball: Gonzalez goes the distance as Northern Lebanon blanks Conestoga Valley

Written by Braydin Adams 

Adams is a senior at Northern Lebanon High School.

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Gonzalez goes the distance as Northern Lebanon blanks Conestoga Valley

Northern Lebanon finally got its season underway Thursday, and the Vikings made the opener count.

After Tuesday’s home opener was postponed by weather, the Vikings opened the 2026 season with a 2-0 win over Conestoga Valley behind a strong performance on the mound from senior right-hander Adrian Gonzalez.

Conestoga Valley threatened early with a double in the top of the 1st, but Gonzalez worked out of trouble with a strikeout and a flyout to keep the game scoreless. The Vikings also came up empty in their first trip to the plate, and the game settled into a scoreless battle through the opening innings.

Northern Lebanon’s defense and Gonzalez kept Conestoga Valley off the board again in the 2nd after an error gave the visitors a free baserunner. Gonzalez answered with another strikeout, and the Vikings got out of the inning without damage.

The Vikings had a chance of their own in the bottom of the 2nd when senior speedster Andrew Via reached second on an errant throw and then stole third, but Northern Lebanon could not bring him home.

Conestoga Valley put more pressure on in the top of the 3rd with a pair of singles and a stolen base, but Northern Lebanon held its ground again and kept the game scoreless heading to the bottom half of the inning.

That is where the Vikings finally broke through.

Sophomore Ryan Clemmer opened the bottom of the 3rd with a walk, and an error put runners on 1st and 2nd. Senior catcher Conner Stoltz was then hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. Northern Lebanon cashed in from there, scoring the game’s only 2 runs on a fielder’s choice and an overthrow off the bat of Gonzalez to take a 2-0 lead.

That was all the support Gonzalez needed.

He stayed in control the rest of the way, including a dominant top of the 5th in which he struck out all 3 batters he faced. Conestoga Valley managed a few more baserunners over the final innings, but the Vikings never let the game slip away.

Northern Lebanon also had chances to add on. Christian Anspach singled in the bottom of the 4th, Clemmer drew his second walk of the day, and Gonzalez singled in the 5th before moving to second on a wild pitch. But Conestoga Valley kept it a 2-0 game.

Gonzalez finished what he started, recording the final outs and the game-ending strikeout as Northern Lebanon secured the shutout win. In the victory, Gonzalez struck out 10 Buckskin batters, while walking none and scattering four hits.

After the game, Gonzalez kept his reaction simple: “God is good.”

Northern Lebanon, led by head coach Travis Thome, opens the season at 1-0 and will travel to Middletown for an 11 a.m. game Saturday. Thome said the Vikings did enough to win behind their work on the mound and in the field.

“We got good pitching and good defense,” Thome said. “We need more timely hitting, but when pitching is as good as it was, you only need 2 runs to win the ball game.”

Northern Lebanon 2, Conestoga Valley 0

Full Box Score

Northern Lebanon Leaders

Adrian Gonzalez: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K

Adrian Gonzalez: 1-3, 2 RBI

Andrew Via: 1-2, BB

Christian Anspach: 1-3

Kaden Beamesderfer: 1-2, 1 run

Ryan Clemmer: 0-0, 1 run, 3 BB