A classic pitchers' duel.
When all was said and done, Youngsville's baseball team remained winless, but it took Titusville extra innings for the 2-0 non-region win at Davis Street Field in Youngsville.
Titusville hurler Adam Bleday struck out 50 batters in 30 innings last year as a sophomore. On Friday, Bleday struck out 23 Youngsville hitters in nine scoreless innings. Bleday allowed five hits, while walking one, and worked out of a couple jams. He also caught a break.
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Times Observer photo by Allen Seybert
Youngsville’s CC
Youngsville pitcher Cory Craig fires a pitch toward a Titusville batter during the sixth inning of a baseball game between the schools Friday at Davis Street Field.
With two outs in the fifth inning, and Caleb Linkerhof on first, Jake Marino hit a double into the right-center field gap, but the ball rolled under the fence for a ground-rule double. Linkerhof was sent back to third and Bleday got out of trouble without a run allowed. An inning earlier, Broc Horn ripped a two-out triple off Bleday that actually hit the fence and stayed in play. Horn was stranded as well.
Craig didn't have much trouble pitching, either. He allowed four hits and four walks through eight shutout innings, striking out 16. He had to come out after eight innings due to a rule allowing for a maximum of 14 innings pitched in one week.
Titusville scored twice in the top of the ninth off of Linkerhof, who relieved Craig, but both runs were unearned. With a runner on first for the Rockets, the Eagles threw the ball away to put runners on second and third. Two runs scored the second error of the inning.
"(The Titusville coach) said it was one of the better games he's seen, and I have to agree with him," said Youngsville coach Tom Craig, whose Eagles are 0-4 overall. Titusville is 4-1.
"We knew we were going to have our hands full with (Bleday)," he said. "We were just hoping Cory would match him, and he did. I take nothing away from Caleb Linkerhof; he came in and did what he was supposed to do."
Up until the ninth inning, Youngsville's defense played well, with catcher Broc Horn throwing out three would-be basestealers.
Craig got out of a jam in the sixth when rightfielder Dan McLaughlin threw home after a base hit, and Craig cut off the throw and threw to third to gun out a Titusville runner that was trying to get back.
"This is probably the best pitching performance, overall, I've ever seen in a high school game," said Titusville coach Roy Schweitzer, referring to both teams.
TITUSVILLE (2): ab-r-h-rbi - Rapp 2b 4-0-0-0, Ripper lf 4-0-1-0, Johnson ss 2-0-1-0, Hipple 3b 3-1-0-0, Bleday p 4-0-1-0, Corklin c 4-1-1-0, Schwab cf 4-0-0-0, Horn 1b 0-0-0-0, Coulter dh 3-0-0-0, Foltz rf 2-0-1-0. Totals 30-2-5-0.
YOUNGSVILLE (0): Marino cf 4-0-1-0, Hoover 2b 4-0-0-0, Turner lf 0-0-0-0, Lewis ss-2b 4-0-0-0, Craig p 4-0-2-0, Horn c 4-0-1-0, Henry 3b 0-0-0-0, Lehman dh 3-0-0-0, Linkerhof lf 2-0-0-0, Dininny 1b 3-0-1-0, McLaughlin rf 2-0-0-0. Totals 30-0-5-0.
Titusville 000 000 002 - 2 5 1
Youngsville 000 000 000 - 0 5 2
2b-Marino (Y). 3b-Horn (Y). WP-Bleday. LP-Linkerhof.
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Eisenhower 12, Iroquois 2
This is the side of the ten-run rule that Eisenhower coach Jon Vincent doesn't mind being on.
His Knights put together a winning streak for the first time in his three seasons at the helm, making it three wins in four games with a 12-2 victory over the Iroquois Braves Friday at Werner Park.
"The guys are really starting to buy into what I've been trying to sell," said Vincent. "We had 12 hits again today and our bats are really starting to warm up. Aaron Jackson had another outstanding effort on the mound today. Anytime he takes the ball, we have a chance to win the game."
Jackson put together his second sterling pitching performance of the week, allowing just two runs on three hits while striking out 16. He held the Braves hitless from the second inning onward.
On the other side of the plate, his Knights teammates did plenty of damage with the bats.
After falling behind 2-0, the Knights stormed back to tie things in the bottom of the opening inning. Eric Hastings led off with a single and Aaron Lundmark walked to put two on. With one out, freshman Kyle Hunt rapped a two-run single to knot things at 2-2.
Things remained tied until the third inning when the Knights put together a two-out rally to take a 4-2 lead. Hunt started the barrage with a double and Shane Arford walked for the first of three times in the game. Trevor Spicer was hit by a pitch to load the bases, a run scored on a balk and Ryan Williams delivered an RBI double to put Ike up by a pair.
The game was busted open in the fourth when the Knights exploded for five runs. Jeb Fedorchuk and Hastings walked and moved up on a wild pitch. Lundmark followed with a two-run single and, after Eisenhower loaded the bases again, Williams delivered his second double of the day clearing the bases and putting the Knights up 9-2.
A Gunner Schenck double and Lundmark RBI single in the fifth made it 10-2 and Spicer's two-run double in the sixth proved to be the walk-off hit, scoring Hunt and Arford.
"We've been on the wrong end of some ten-run rule games during my time here," said Vincent. "It was nice to be on the winning side of one."
Williams and Hunt were a lethal one-two punch for the Knights. Hunt was a perfect 4-for-4 with a pair of RBI and Williams was 3-for-3 with four RBI.
The Knights (3-3) will try to push their record above the break-even point Monday when they visit Titusville.
IROQUOIS (2): ab-r-h-rbi: Quinn, cf, 3-1-1-0, Yokoff, 1b, 3-0-0-0, Finke, p-ss, 3-1-1-1, Edinger, lf-ss-lf, 3-0-0-1, Lobenthal, c, 1-0-0-0, Choo, lf, 1-0-0-0, Stanford, rf-ss, 3-0-0-0, Wodarski, 3b, 2-0-0-0, Roda, lf-c, 2-0-1-0, Carpin, 2b-ss, 2-0-0-0, Totals: 23-2-3-2
EISENHOWER (12): ab-r-h-rbi: Hastings, 2b, 3-1-1-0, Lundmark, c, 3-1-2-3, Jackson, p, 4-0-0-0, Hunt, rf, 4-3-4-2, Arford, lf, 1-3-0-0, Spicer, ss, 3-1-1-2, Williams, 3b, 3-0-3-4, Schenck, 1b, 3-1-1-0, Fedorchuk, cf, 2-1-0-0, Totals: 26-12-12
Iroquois 200 000 - 2 3
Eisenhower 202 512 - 12 12
2b-Hunt (E), Schenck (E), Williams 2, Spicer (E). 3b-Finke (I). WP-Jackson. LP-Finke.
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Girard 7, Warren 3
GIRARD - Warren baseball coach Jeff Passaro hopes this will be a wake-up call.
After a 3-0 start to the season, the Dragons made a costly miscue on defense, and couldn't get the timely hits on offense, in a 7-3 loss to host Girard on Friday in the Region 8 opener for both.
"(Girard) played good ball," said Passaro. "They were the better team today. The pitcher pitched a good game. We had baserunners. We just couldn't get the timely hits."
Girard was 2-14 overall last season, and winless in the region, going 0-10. Warren beat Girard, 10-0 and 15-0, in two games last season.
The Yellowjackets didn't lose much to graduation, though, and with new head coach Craig Miller, they start 1-0 in Region 8.
Tucker Ochalek struck out nine over 6 1/3 innings, and held Warren scoreless through three while his team built a 5-0 lead. Passaro said all four first-inning runs were unearned, and Warren made three errors on the game.
Warren didn't really capitalize until scoring twice in the seventh inning. Warren, which had 11 hits for the game, left the bases loaded to end it.
"Everything that could go wrong did - I hope it's a little bit of a wake-up call," said Passaro. "We'll find out Monday (at HarborCreek). We have a tough week next week."
Eddie Dorunda was 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, and Preston McMeans and Andrew Bevevino had two hits each for Warren.
Girard could have built a bigger lead, but the Dragons got out of a bases-loaded suicide squeeze attempt in the second inning.
WARREN (3): Thomas ss 4-0-1-0, Bevevino c 3-0-2-0, Morrison 3b-p 3-0-0-1, Jaskolka dh 4-1-1-0, Fantaskey rf-3b 0-0-0-0, McMeans 1b 3-1-2-0, Danielson cf 4-0-1-0, Dorunda 2b 4-1-3-1, McIntosh p 1-0-0-0, Stanz p 1-0-0-0, Ord ph 1-0-0-0, Schwanke rf 0-0-0-0, Cerra ph 1-0-0-0, Maeder lf 3-0-1-0. Totals 32-3-11-2.
GIRARD (7): Strubel cf 2-1-0-0, Lewis 3b-p 4-2-1-1, Ochalek p-1b 0-1-0-0, Gregory lf 4-0-2-1, Bonnett c 3-1-0-0, Monico 2b 3-1-1-1, Stevens ss 2-0-1-1, Schaaf 1b 3-1-1-0, Buchholz pr 0-1-0-0, Senyo rf 2-0-0-0. Tofals 23-7-6-4
Warren 000 100 2 - 3 11 3
Girard 410 200 x - 7 6 1
WP-Ochalek. LP-McIntosh.