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Blair 002 100 600 - 9 12

Corry 203 012 000 - 8 11

2b-Matt Bennett (B), Jeff Eaton (B), Andrew Morrison (B) 2, Kody Kondrlik (C). HR-Kyle Papalia (B), Justin Oesch (C), Scottie Frisina (C). WP-Michael Nowicki. LP-Mittchell Anderson. Save-Jeff Eaton.

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Talk about comebacks.

Not only did Blair finish second to Corry Northwest Savings Bank in the regular season, but Blair lost the first game of the best-of-three Warren County American Legion Baseball League championship finals, 20-10, on Sunday.

With pitching at a premium, Blair scored four eighth-inning runs to beat Corry, 7-3, in nine innings two days later, and saved its best comeback of the season for Wednesday night.

Blair scored six runs in the top of the seventh inning against the three-time defending champions to win the title, 9-8, at The Ballpark At Columbus.

Jeff Eaton picked an appropriate way to end his final Warren County Legion playoffs.

With a save.

Eaton - who played on Blair's title team way back in 2005 before Corry won three straight -threw three scoreless innings to end it. The only hit he gave up was a leadoff single to Corry's Kody Kondrlik in the bottom of the ninth, who he stranded at second after two flyouts and a weak groundball back to the mound.

The teams agreed to play nine-inning games to get the winner ready for the Region 8 American Legion Baseball Tournament, which begins Saturday in Erie, and also plays nine-inning games.

Three games in four days forced multiple pitching changes, culminating with Eaton.

Corry's Scottie Frisina, a pitcher in the Pennsylvania American Legion East-West All-Star Game in Harrisburg at month's end, threw on Tuesday, so he was out for Wednesday.

Trailing 8-3 entering the seventh, Blair second baseman Matt Bennett doubled and went to third on Michael Nowicki's single to center. After Eaton walked to load the bases with nobody out, catcher Andrew Morrison smashed a two-run, line-drive double to deep left, his second run-scoring double of the game. Morrison finished with three RBI and knocked Corry starter Kelsie Crawford from the game.

After Eddie Dorunda's RBI groundout scored Eaton and Jones walked and stole second, Preston McMeans tied the game off Mitchell Anderson with a base hit up the middle.

McMeans was on third base when Joel Oesch relieved Anderson. Oesch's first pitch hit the front of the plate and bounced over the catcher's head. McMeans beat the catcher's tag to score the go-ahead run. With Alex Keeney on base on a hit-by-pitch, Oesch walked two more before getting out of a bases-loaded jam.

The only close call the next couple innings was a deep drive to the left-field fence by Morrison in the eighth, which was caught by Kondrlik.

Bennett, Nowicki, Morrison and Kyle Papalia had two hits each for Blair. Papalia got things going in the top of the third, homering to cut Corry's lead to 2-1. Morrison knocked in Bennett later in the inning to tie the game at 2-2 before Corry took a 5-2 lead, then 5-3 and later 8-3.

"(We) never quit the whole series," said Blair coach Dave Papalia. "In that six-run inning, we got patient at the plate and when we did put it in play, good things happened. It was a fun series."

Of its 11 hits, Jake Stockton and Kondrlik had three each for Corry, and Justin Oesch and Scottie Frisina two hits each and a home run each.

McMeans threw the first three innings for Blair, and Nowicki the next three for the win.

Blair opens the double-elimination Region 8 Tournament at 10 a.m. Saturday at Ainsworth Field in Erie. Blair was 2-2 at Region 8 in 2005.