HERITAGE CONFERENCE BASEBALL RACE RED HOT ON FINAL WEEKEND

The setup for the Heritage Conference championship on Monday night is still to be determined.  Three teams are in contention – United, Saltsburg, and Marion Center – and all three have multiple games to play this weekend.  United will open the action with a 10 AM game today against Penns Manor, then travel to West Shamokin this afternoon at 4.  Then the Lions will play at Blairsville tomorrow in the first game of a Bobcats’ doubleheader.  Blairsville will face Marion Center in the second game.

Saltsburg will play Blairsville today and Penns Manor on Monday.

If United, Saltsburg, and Marion Center all win all of their remaining games, United would have the tiebreaker over both the Trojans and Stingers, and the Trojans have the tiebreaker over Marion Center, which would make a matchup of Saltsburg versus United for the conference championship.  Again, that’s IF all three teams win out.

THURSDAY BASEBALL

Indiana  17,  Forest Hills  7  (Teddy Bear Fund Drive game)
The Little Indians scored six runs in the bottom of the 1st  and another in the 2^nd, before plating 5 in the 3^rd after Forest Hills had cut their margin to 7-6.  Indiana then scored two runs in the 4^th before ending the game with three runs on five hits in the 5^th inning to reach the mercy rule against the Rangers, who came into the game with a 16-2 record.

Gaven Homer had three hits, including 2 doubles, and Steven Budash cracked am RBI double and a 3-run home run off the scoreboard beyond the left field fence. Austin Homer, Branden Kanick, Lincoln Trusal, and Branden Yanity all had 2 hits.

Homer Center  9,  Penns Manor  8  (Teddy Bear Fund Drive game)
The Wildcats scored three runs in the 5^th and 2 in the 6^th to come back from a 7-3 deficit.  Evan Keslar was 2-4 and drive in the winning run with a single in the 6^th after the Wildcats had scored a unique run to tie it.  Riley Clevenger struck out but reached first base on a wild pitch, then advanced to second on another wild pitch, to third on yet another, and scored on a fourth wild pitch.    Dmitri Lieb was 3-4 with a double for the Comets and Carter Smith was 2-4.

Homer-Center 9, Purchase Line 5
Marion Center 4, West Shamokin 1
Northern Cambria 11, Blairsville 3

SOFTBALL

Marion Center  10  West Shamokin  5
The Stingers completed a 16-0 regular season and are ranked #1 in the state.

Homer Center  15,  Purchase Line  3
Tied 3-3 3 entering the 6th, Homer Center scored 12 runs and shut down the Red Dragons in the bottom of the inning to end the game in the Mercy Rule.  Hanna Sisak led Homer Center with 3 hits, while Julia King, Emily Marshall, and Alaina Fabin had 2 hits each. King had a double and a triple, and threw the complete game, striking out 7 while walking 3.