The offensive catalyst was senior leftfielder P.J. Acierno, who will switch his focus to golf at La Salle University. The 5-foot-9, 160-pounder went 2 for 4 with four RBIs, including a two-run triple in a four-run fourth.
"I didn't want this to be my last baseball game at La Salle," the 18-year-old said. "I'm looking forward to playing golf in college, but that can wait a little longer. This has been a great ride."
At 1 p.m. Friday at Penn State's Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, the Explorers (23-3) will try for top honors against Council Rock South (23-2). The Golden Hawks blanked District 6 champion Altoona, 4-0, Monday at Hershey High.
Against Hatboro-Horsham, which equaled La Salle's eight hits, the Explorers rallied from a 5-2 deficit.
"There was no panic whatsoever when we were down," Parisi said. "The confidence level for this group is extremely high."
Hatboro-Horsham starter Casey O'Donnell, a senior lefthander, had control issues from the start. The Philadelphia University recruit issued seven walks (one intentional) in 31/3 innings.
"I'll go to battle with Casey O'Donnell any day of the week," Hatters coach Pete Moore said. "He's always going to compete for us."
For the Explorers, senior Kevin Long struck out five and walked six in six innings. Fellow righthander Dom Cuoci, a sophomore, notched a 1-2-3 seventh to pick up the save.
Since he played in the Horsham Little League, Long, who has made a commitment to Lehigh, battled against many familiar faces, including Grant Opalisky.
"He was so hyped up because he grew up with all these kids," Parisi said.
The Hatters (22-5) advanced to the state semifinals after placing third in the District 1 playoffs. Their trademark was thrilling, late-inning wins.
"Down the road, when they look back at what they did, the players should be awfully proud of themselves," Moore said.
In the Hatters' five-run outburst, Casey Saverio started things with a double to right-center, and Chris Hens and Zach Prendergast followed with RBI singles.
Hatboro-Horsham 005 000 0 - 5 8 0
La Salle 020 401 x - 7 8 0
WP: Kevin Long. LP: Casey O'Donnell. 2B: HH-Casey Saverio. 3B: LS-P.J. Acierno.
Contact Rick O'Brien at robrien@phillynews.com, or @ozoneinq on Twitter. Read his blog, "The O'Zone," at www.philly.com/ozone
