HYDE – Corey Bookhamer shut out Brookville on three hits, and Clearfield did the little things that turn into big plays in a close game to prevail 3-0 in District 9 Northern Allegany League Big School baseball action at the Bison Sports Complex Tuesday afternoon.
\”I knew it was going to be a low scoring game,\” coach Sid Lansberry said after the Bisons\’ fourth win in a row. \”Look at the flag. It\’s blowing in. Plus, the infield\’s slow. And the outfield is real slow.
\”That\’s when you\’ve gotta play good fundamentals. And we pretty much did that.\”
The Bisons, who solved Chase Lyle for only five hits, executed two pick-offs when the game was scoreless that proved all-important.
And they laid down four sacrifice bunts, two of which figured in the scoring, in climbing above .500 at 6-5 and remaining in the D9NAL chase at 3-2.
Derek Danver bunted Aaron Sayers to second after he led off the lower second by lining a single to right center. After Lyle hit Kyle Timchak, Sayers dashed home when Andrew Redden\’s hard grounder was booted for the lone error of the well-played game. Jarrin Campman followed with his second hit, a line single to right center, to plate Timchak.
In the fifth, Justin Hoffman sliced a double to right to drive in Tanner St. Clair, who had singled and moved up on Bookhamer\’s bunt.
Three runs proved to be more than enough, but they might not have been without the pick-offs.
Brookville had Bookhamer on the ropes early.
The senior left-hander issued six of his eight walks in the first two innings.
Nick Bishop, the first Raider batter, walked but was caught breaking from first too soon. Trevor Flanagan relayed Bookhamer\’s throw to shortstop Parker Herrington at second for the first out.
In the second frame, Bookhamer filled the bases with free passes but whirled and nailed Dakota Singleton straying too far off second base, Herrington again making the putout.
Then, Flanagan, a sophomore making his first varsity start at first base, stabbed Lyle\’s grounder for a big out and Bookhamer got Bishop on a roller to the right side after he walked Cayliff Worling to re-load the bases.
\”Those pick-offs were big, because that\’s when (Bookhamer) was shaky a little bit,\” Lansberry said.
Brookville (4-9, 2-6 D9NAL) had three runners reach second base over the last five innings.
Bookhamer, whose other win was a one-hit shutout against Cambria Heights in the Dean Patterson Curve Classic, set down 10 of the last 11 batters he faced. He struck out seven Raiders.
\”Bookie pitched a solid game,\” Lansberry said. \”He definitely saved the other arms that we have.\”
Clearfield has lost No. 1 starter Michael Moyer and Isaac Butler to serious injuries.
Moyer (2-4), a senior right-hander, will undergo surgery to repair the ACL and meniscus in his left knee.
Butler, a junior who was counted on to provide some relief pitching, is scheduled for surgery on a torn labrum in his left shoulder in early June.
On Monday, reserve outfielder Garrett Samsel suffered a broken foot in rundown drills.
\”We\’re like the walking wounded,\” said Lansberry, who is not sure how he\’ll shuffle his hurlers for games at St. Marys Wednesday and at home against Punxsutawney Thursday, not to mention five games in as many days next week.
On a brighter note, Lansberry was pleased with sophomores Flanagan and catcher Andrew Redden, who hit the ball hard twice in his first start.
BROOKVILLE — 0
Nick Bishop 2b 2000, Dustin Dombrowski ss 4000, Ryan Zimmerman rf 2010, Jared Heschke 1b 3010, Dakota Singleton 3b 2000, Chad Brocious lf 2000, C.J. Beitz dh 0000, Zane Hackett c 2000, Chase Lyle p 1000, Taylor Songer ph 1000, Cayliff Worling cf 2010. TOTALS: 21 0 3 0.
CLEARFIELD — 3
Jarrin Campman 2b 3021, Parker Herrington ss 2000, Tanner St. Clair lf 3110, Corey Bookhamer p-1b 1000, Justin Hoffman rf 3011, Aaron Sayers cf 2110, Derek Danver 3b 2000, Trevor Flanagan 1b 0000, Kyle Timchak dh 1100, Andrew Redden c 2000. TOTALS: 19 3 5 2.
Score by Innings
Brookville 000 000 0 – 0 3 1
Clearfield 020 010 x – 3 5 0
Error – Singleton. DP – Brookville 1 (Dombrowski, Bishop and Heschke). LOB – Brookville 8; Clearfield 8. 2B – Hoffman. Sac – Herrington, Bookhamer, Danver, Redden. SB – Zimmerman; Sayers.
Pitching
Brookville – Lyle 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 0 K.
Clearfield – Bookhamer 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 8 BB, 7 K.
HB – Lyle 2 (Timchak 2). WP -Bookhamer 3.
W – Bookhamer (2-0). L – Lyle (1-3).
Umpires – Garry Shirey (home plate); Lynn Gilham (bases).
