Bedford 1984 Baseball Team

Back in the era when the PIAA had only 2 classifications for baseball, Bedford and Somerset
battled for the District 5-3A title with Bedford earning most of the titles in the late 1970s through
the 1980s.
The first game in the PIAA playoffs proved to be a tough mountain for those Bedford teams to climb. They lost to Boyertown (1979), Shaler (1981 and 1982) and Beaver (1983 featuring future major leaguers John Burkett and Doug Piatt). However, the Bisons finally got past that round with one of their best teams in school history with the 1984 team.
The Bedford coaching staff of head coach Gary Waugerman with assistants Dan England and Kevin Kline were hoping this would be the team to get them far in the PIAA playoffs.
They had a 4-3 win over Derry Area at Mt. Pleasant High School in a memorable game for all that watched. Bedford held a 4-1 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth with Don Elliott scoring on an error, Keith Engle squeezing in Scott Beegle, Kelly Blevins singling in Elliott, and Mike Cottle driving in Rob Doman.
Doman, a tall left-handed flamethrower, got in some trouble in the final 2 innings. Derry got a run in the inning to cut the deficit to 4-2 and loaded the bases. However, a popup got the Bisons out of the inning.
The Trojans loaded the bases again in the bottom of the seventh with 1 out. After a strikeout, the Bedford Gazette reported “What was probably the biggest play of the game, (Derry’s) Mike Platt lined a single off third baseman John Topper’s chest for an infield single. Topper, who was shaken up on the play, kept Derry from scoring the tying run. ‘He made an outstanding play,” commented Waugerman.”
The comeback attempt ended with Doman striking out the final batter of the game.
The season came to a halt in the next game, a 7-3 loss to Central in the state quarterfinals. Bedford topped Central in the opening game of the season, 11-3, but the Scarlet Dragons threw lefty Wes Shaw, who won 28 games for West Virginia University.
The 1984 team went 18-5 that season including 16-4 in the regular season. They won the Bedford County League with a 9-1 record, with another loss coming against Altoona. There were 2 other losses earlier in the season that are not accounted for.
The Bisons scored in double digits in 11 of the victories and featured a line-up that included four Bedford County All-Stars in shortstop Matt Logsdon, pitcher/outfielder Doman, third baseman Topper, and outfielder Blevins. They averaged over 9 runs per game.
Logsdon batted .471 with 5 home runs, 18 RBIs, and 27 runs scored. He also pitched with a 3-2 record.
Doman batted .386 with 4 home runs with 22 runs scored. He went 3-0 including the win against Derry, but had some arms issues and did not pitch much during the regular season.
Doman was drafted in the third round of the 1985 January draft, but he didn’t sign. The Baltimore Orioles selected him in the 20th round of the 1988 June Amateur Draft. He played with Erie in the New York Penn League for a season with a 0-1
record and 2 saves and 4.97 ERA.
Blevins hit .423 with 4 home runs and 27 RBIs, and he was 3-0 with a 2.88 ERA.
Topper batted .245, but Waugerman said, “John is one of the best defensive third baseman I have ever had. He is also the most gutsy player I ever had.”
Logsdon went to Virginia Tech to play baseball, while Doman went to Allegany Community College (ACC) and James Madison University.
There were 3 honorable mentions on the team with second baseman Ed Hardinger, outfielder Cottle, and utility player Elliott.
Elliott and Beegle played baseball at ACC, while Cottle is already in the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame (BCSHOF) for his football exploits at Juniata College.
Waugerman and England are also in the BCSHOF.
The other members on the team were Dick Baker, Mike Baker, Steve Corley, Mike Doman, Steve Hardinger, Jeff ‘River’ Kline, Kevin Metz, John Morseberger, Ken Rose, Brooks Shoemaker, Scott Waugerman, and Bill Wise.

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