It turned out to be the right decision.

All Johnson did this spring was lead the Jayhawks in hits, batting average, on-base plus slugging, and extra-base hits.

Basile made another recruiting pitch to the Lakewood resident on Monday, just three days before Jamestown opened its Perfect Game College Baseball League season.

Let’s just say Basile, the Tarp Skunks manager, is batting 1.000 when it comes to evaluating Johnson’s worth on the diamond.

Times Observer Photo by Scott Kindberg Ryan Rafalski delivers a pitch for the Jamestown Tarp Skunks on Thursday against the Olean Oilers at Diethrick Park in Jamestown, N.Y.

All the Southwestern Central School graduate did Thursday was drill a run-scoring single in the second inning — Jamestown’s lone hit of the game — steal a base and make two putouts and five assists at second base to spark the Tarp Skunks to a 2-0 nonleague victory over Olean at Diethrick Park on Thursday night.

While Jamestown’s offense was hardly operating at peak efficiency — Johnny Kampes’ sacrifice fly in the third inning was the only other run the hosts could muster — its pitching was stellar. Starter and winner Ian Korn and relievers Eddie Galatas, Warren’s Ryan Rafalski and Eric Crouse, who was credited with the save, limited the Oilers to four hits and combined for 10 strikeouts.

The game featured plenty of talent from Western New York and the northwestern Pennsylvania.

In addition to Rafalski, who walked one and induced a double play groundball in his hitless outing, Warren’s Ben Berdine and Michael Grosch saw action for Olean, which plays in the New York Collegiate Baseball League. Berdine, one of seven Oilers’ pitchers, worked two-thirds of an inning, struck out two and walked one; and Grosch, the starting third baseman, walked among his four plate appearances. Kennedy, New York native Matthew Gullotti also saw time out of the Olean bullpen, issuing a walk and a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning.

The Tarp Skunks will be back in action today when they travel to Niagara Falls for a 5:30 p.m. game at Sal Maglie Stadium.

Times Observer Photo by Scott Kindberg Ben Berdine is congratulated after throwing two innings for the Oilers.

NOTES: Participating in the pregame ceremonies were three Chautauqua County residents — Art Asquith of Cassadaga, New York, Roger MacTavish of Jamestown and John Venable of Gerry, New York — who are veterans of the Jamestown-Olean PONY League battles in the 1950s. Asquith, 93, was a pitcher/outfielder for Olean in 1953. A retired teacher and coach, Asquith worked in the Cassadaga Valley Central School District for 50 years; MacTavish, 88, was a catcher for Olean in 1954 and 1955. A retired basketball referee, he officiated games for 65 years; and Venable was a pitcher for the Jamestown Falcons in 1955. An Arkansas native, he married a Jamestown girl and made this area his home. He is a retired contractor.