"Ever since the first day of practices, this was our goal — to get here, to keep going and to win a state championship," Gaudio said.
Archbishop Hoban took a 2-1 lead in the fifth inning on small-ball execution and fielders' choices by Zak Zellers and Scottie Albrecht.
CVCA senior Connor McGough tied the game in the bottom of the fifth with a 325-foot solo home run over the left field fence.
"I looked pretty bad on the curveball all day," McGough said. "I figured if I was the pitcher I'd be throwing me a curveball, too.
He did, and with the ball spinning like that, you gotta smack it and it kind of does the job on its own."
Starting pitcher Peyton Drabick allowed four hits and two runs over five innings, striking out six. Mammone threw two innings of relief to close the game.
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"Hoban is one of the best teams in the area," Herblet said.
"Peyton went out and dealt and Alex came in like he has done all year as a reliever and closed it out for us."
Drabick credited the team's grit. "We had grit," he said.
"We knew this was going to be a really tough team to beat. We knew we could beat them, and we just gave it our all.
... Connor coming in in the clutch with a bomb, that was awesome."
Senior Kyle Shaw set up the regional final by pitching 6 2/3 shutout innings in a 2-0 semifinal win over Chardon on June 3.
