Class 6A

4-Wilkes-Barre Area (13-9) vs. 2-Hazleton Area (17-5)

Defending champ: Hazleton Area

When: Thursday, 4:30 p.m.

Where: Wilkes University

Admission: Tickets are on sale now. Presale tickets are $6 through Hometown Ticketing. Visit piaad2.org and follow the prompts to get you to the link. Tickets can be purchased at the game for $10.

Up next: The champion advances to the state playoffs to play the No. 3 seed from District 3, Hempfield or Ephrata, in the first round June 1.

How they got here: Wilkes-Barre Area defeated Scranton in the first round, 4-3, in 11 innings and Williamsport, 5-2, in nine innings in the semifinals. Hazleton Area defeated Wyoming Valley West, 8-0, in the semis.

Breakdown: Wilkes-Barre Area advanced to the final the hard way. The Wolfpack beat Scranton in 11 innings, then went on the road to beat No. 1 seed Williamsport in nine innings. … Hazleton Area received a first-round bye as the No. 2 seed and won its semifinal in typical Hazleton Area fashion. The Cougars scored a few runs early, then applied the pressure on the bases and at the plate to post the victory and advance. … Wilkes-Barre Area closed the regular season on a five-game losing streak, but rebounded nicely once the district playoffs began. … Wilkes-Barre Area is hitting .315 with 52 doubles, 11 triples and four home runs. Nathan Fritz leads the team in hitting at .431. Jake Howe is batting .406 while Alex Hufford is at .342 and Koleton Davies .333. Dalton Flowers is batting .310. Fritz leads the team with 20 RBIs. He has nine doubles and two triples. Howe has two home runs and 17 RBIs. Derrick Nah has two home runs and 19 RBIs. Tyler Daugherty has 16 runs, 17 RBIs and four doubles. … The Wolfpack have a team ERA of 4.40 with 119 strikeouts and 96 walks in 144.2 innings. Fritz is 4-4 in eight starts with a 3.80 ERA. Hufford made six starts and is 3-1. Jack Kapelan appeared in nine games and threw 18 innings. … Hazleton Area won the two regular season meetings between the teams, 7-1 and 11-2. … The Cougars are batting .310 with 11 home runs, 13 triples and 41 doubles. Logan Hearity is batting .500 with 22 RBIs and 30 hits. Jeudi Hidalgo is batting .377 with five home runs, 25 RBIs and 20 runs. Chris Knelly is batting .339 with 19 RBIs, five doubles, four triples and one home run. Dominic Marino is batting .308 with 24 RBIs, six doubles, three triples and two home runs. … As a staff, the Cougars have an ERA of 2.68. They have 179 strikeouts and 92 walks in 146.1 innings. Fred Corrado is 4-1 with a 2.55 ERA. Jack Esposito is 6-0 with a 1.72 ERA. Corrado made eight starts while Esposito started seven. Nick Cunniffe made 11 appearances and is 3-3 with a 2.59 ERA.

Class 5A

3-Dallas (16-6) vs. 1-Pittston Area (19-3)

Defending champ: Pittston Area

When: Thursday, 5 p.m.

Where: University of Scranton’s Volpe Field

Admission: Tickets are on sale now. Presale tickets are $6 through Hometown Ticketing. Visit piaad2.org and follow the prompts to get you to the link. Tickets can be purchased at the game for $10.

Up next: The champion advances to the state playoffs to play the No. 2 seed from District 3, Lampeter-Strasburg or Lower Dauphin.

How they got here: Dallas defeated West Scranton in the first round, 5-2, and Wallenpaupack in the semifinals, 2-1. Pittston Area had a first-round bye, then defeated Abington Heights in the semifinals, 6-2.

Breakdown: Dallas slugged its way to the championship game with two solo home runs being the difference in a 2-1 semifinal round victory on the road over No. 2 seed Wallenpaupack. … Pittston Area won both regular-season games against Dallas. … Dominick Zangardi leads the team in hitting at .486. He has a team-best 35 hits. He has nine doubles, four triples, three home runs and 23 RBIs. Brady Youngblood is batting .429 with 11 doubles, one triple, four home runs and 27 RBIs. Peyton VanValkenburgh is batting .352 with three doubles, two triples and one home run. He has 20 RBIs. Conor Healey is batting .338 with three home runs, three doubles, one triple and 12 RBIs. … The pitching staff has a team ERA of 3.66. The Mountaineers struck out 180 and walked 76 in 141.2 innings. Healey is 5-2 with a 2.20 ERA. Nick Bednar is 4-3 with a 3.81 ERA, Zangardi is 4-1 with a 3.94 ERA. Bednar appeared in 12 games with eight of them starts. Zangardi made seven starts and Healey five. … Pittston Area won Division 1 of the WVC after defeating Hazleton Area in a one-game playoff. … The Patriots are hitting .378 with 34 doubles, 13 triples and 11 home runs. Jacoby Harnen leads the team at .448 with six doubles, one triple and three home runs. Elijah Barr is batting .447 with two triples and five home runs. Harnen leads the team with 29 RBIs. Beau Widdick is batting .443 with 14 extra base hits and 22 RBIs. Dom Salvo is batting .397 with 20 RBIs. Joe Bradley is batting .387, Josh Barr is hitting .382 and Zach Budzak is .343. Nick Innamorati is hitting .343 with 17 RBIs. … The pitching staff has an ERA of 4.28. Elijah Barr is 4-0 with a 1.45 ERA. He has 35 strikeouts and seven walks in 29 innings. Alex Rosencrance is 4-1 with a 5.83 ERA and Dominic Cocco is 5-0 with a 2.23 ERA. The Patriots struck out 124 and walked 84 in 135.2 inning.

— Steve Bennett