The United Lions are the Heritage Conference baseball champions after a 17-7 five-inning win over Saltsburg last night at First Commonwealth Bank Field.
United scored four runs on four hits in the bottom of the first inning, then added seven in the second on five more hits and three Saltsburg errors. Three more Lions hits and two more Trojans errors in the third led to two more runs and put United up 13-3 after three.
Saltsburg fought back with five runs on only one hit in the top of the fourth, aided by five walks, a hit batter, and an error, and after scoring one more in the fifth inning, the Trojans were down by six headed into the bottom of the fifth. United then scored four runs in their half of the fifth, on a single by Bradley Felix, an intentional walk to Ben Tomb, a walk to Joe Marino, and a 2-run double by Jon Henry. Marino beat the throw home and scored on a fielder’s choice grounder, and Henry then raced home on a wild pitch to end the game.
Tomb pitched three-and-two-thirds no-hit innings to get the win. He gave up a run and struck out seven while walking three and hitting a batter.
The Lions got two hits each from Hunter Cameron, Caden McCully, Wade Plowman, Felix, Marino, Henry, and Aiden Strong.
United coach Doug McNulty said he has a good group of ballplayers, but the games will get tougher once the District 6 playoffs begin.
McNulty said the team was fired up for the championship game.
McNulty says the game is the same game he played as a kid, and the Lions have absorbed the lessons the coaches have been teaching.
With the win, United leaped over Mount Union, a 4-3 loser to Penns Valley, in the District 6 AA rankings, and while the playoff brackets have not yet been released, the Lions should get a first round home game against Mount Union on Thursday.
Saltsburg entered play last night as the #1 seed in Class A, which may have them in line for a first round home game this week against Penns Manor, barring a reshuffling of the rankings. The playoff pairings will be announced today or tomorrow.
BASEBALL
Homer Center 7, Blairsville 5
Riley Clevenger’s 2-run single in the top of the 7th broke a 5-5 tie and provided the winning runs. Blairsville had scored four runs in the 3rd, but the Wildcats fought back to tie it. Homer Center had hits from Antony Rowland, Clevenger, Evann Kesler, Aiden Bekina, and Brock Houser. Blairsville was led by multiple-hit games by Carson McCully and Cole Kennedy-Citeroni.
SOFTBALL
Blairsville 11, Homer-Center 1 (5 innings)
Hannah Foust clubbed a 2-run home run in the first inning and was 2-2 in the game, while she pitched the complete game, allowing just one hit and striking out 9. The Bobcats’ Brin Gardner was 2-3 with 3 RBI, and Blairsville also got RBI hits from Tori Foust and Madison Stutzman.
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