Ford, Spiegel win postseason awards in Johnstown summer baseball league

Local battery mates became postseason award winners in the Johnstown Collegiate Baseball League.

Pitcher Hayden Ford and catcher Josh Spiegel, key players for Paul Carpenter Capital Advisors, the regular season champion of the league, will bring home hardware from their summer league.

Both players graduated from Penn-Trafford.

Ford, a crafty left-hander, picked up the Bill Jenkins Award as the top first-year pitcher, the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat first reported Wednesday.

Ford took a 5-1 record and a 0.76 ERA into the playoffs. A Frostburg State pitcher, he had a team-best 42 strikeouts and gave up just 17 walks.

Spiegel was co-winner of the Ken Horoho Award as the top rookie position player, sharing the honor with Martella’s Pharmacy shortstop Grant Norris.

A former Oklahoma State catcher who is planning to transfer to a program closer to home, Spiegel hit .395 with six home runs, 23 RBIs and 36 runs.

“I honestly didn’t know what to expect this year, but after the first pitch I threw I felt comfortable on the mound,” Ford said. “I was also fortunate to play with such a talented team. I was honored to receive the award and it is a reminder that everything I do off the field is worth it.”

Paul Carpenter’s Nate Davis was the recipient of the Pete Vuckovich Award as the league’s top regular season pitcher. Davis went 5-0 with a 0.80 ERA.

Jake Swank of Laurel Auto Group won the batting title with a .443 average and was named league MVP.

Norris, of Somerset, hit .373 with a league-leading 10 homers, 34 RBIs and 30 runs. He plays at Duke.