PUNXSUTAWNEY – The Clearfield Legion Post 6 baseball team has played almost as many games as any Major League club in the last month, and the hectic 25-game schedule took its toll on the overworked pitching staff.
With ace Corey Bookhamer limited to a designated hitter role because of an injury, manager Sid Lansberry elected to give Jarrett Fulmer his first start in Monday evening’s elimination bracket final of the Jefferson County League Playoffs.
The right-hander had hurled two shutout innings in Saturday’s 11-8 loss to Punxsutawney, but he was unable to duplicate that effort as the hosts chased him with five quick runs on homers by Dom Bevak and Zak Dickey in the second frame.
After adding four more runs off Tyler Jacobson before Ronny Ogden finally halted the uprising, Punxsy (18-8) went on to knock the Chiefs out of the playoffs with a five-inning, Mercy Rule 14-2 victory at Rich Kuntz Memorial Field.
The winners must defeat DuBois (18-2) Wednesday and Thursday to claim the JCL title and a berth in the Region 7 Tournament that begins this weekend in Clearfield. The regular season champs, who beat Punxsy 13-1 in five innings Sunday, need only one win to advance.
As the host team, Clearfield (17-13) also will compete in the eight-team, double-elimination regional. The Chiefs will play the Cambria County League runner-up Saturday at 4 p.m. at the Lawrence Township Recreation Park Field in the opening round.
Punxsy didn’t need a lot of offense the way Dylan Kachmar was pitching. He fashioned a three-hitter with three strikeouts and one walk.
Clearfield tallied both runs the second frame. Chad Zurat drove in the first one with a line-drive triple that landed on the right field foul line and scored the second on a wild pitch.
But the lead was temporary, erased by Bevak’s home run to deep left center with Tyler Skerkavich and Jacob Stumpf aboard via singles.
Then, Spencer Levy doubled ahead of Dickey’s circuit clout that also cleared the left center fence and prompt Lansberry to replace Fulmer, who became the ninth Chief with a decision this season. And that doesn’t count two pickups who pitched in wood bat tournament games.
Punxsy didn’t let up against Jacobson.
Singles by Kyle Neal and Jordan Mesoraco and an error loaded the bases. Skerkavich walked to force in a run and Tommy Bush rifled a single to left for two RBIs. Ogden was on the mound when Bush scored the ninth run of the inning on a dropped pop fly.
Skerkavich singled home a run in the third inning and Neal doubled for two RBIs and scored on a forceout to make it 13-2 after four.
Two walks and Mesoraco’s two-out double off Andrew Redden ended it in the lower fifth.
Mesoraco rapped three of Punxsy’s 14 hits. Neal, Skerkavich, Bush and Bevak had two apiece.
CLEARFIELD — 2
Jarrett Fulmer p-2b-ss 2000, Derek Danver ss-c 3000, Andrew Redden c-p 2010, Luke Peterson 2b-3b-2b 0000, Ronny Ogden p 0000, Corey Bookhamer dh 2010, Justin Hoffman rf 2100, Chad Zurat cf 2111, Kyler Kephart 1b 2000, Tyler Jacobson 3b-p-3b 2000, Kyle Timchak lf 1000, Shane Harper ph-lf 1000. TOTALS: 19 2 3 1.
PUNXSUTAWNEY — 14
Kyle Neal 2b 3322, Taylor Neal 2b 1000, Jordan Mesoraco rf-3b 5131, Braedon Pennington lf 4101, Tyler Skerkavich 1b 2122, Tommy Bush 3b-ss 3122, Jacob Stumpf cf 3110, Dylan Kachmar p 1000, Dom Bevak dh 2223, Spencer Levy c 3110, Tyler Wingard ph 0100, Zak Dickey ss 2212, Brodi Lowmaster rf 0000. TOTALS: 29 14 14 13.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 020 00 – 2 3 2
Punxsutawney 091 31 – 14 14 2
Errors – Peterson, Kephart; Pennington, Dickey. DP – Punxsutawney (Mesoraco). LOB – Clearfield 3; Punxsutawney 10. 2B – Redden; K. Neal, Mesoraco, Bevak, Levy. 3B – Zurat. HR – Bevak, Dickey. SB – Jacobson.
Pitching
Clearfield – Fulmer 1-1/3 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 2 K; Jacobson 1/3 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K; Ogden 2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 0 K; Redden 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 1 K.
Punxsutawney – Kachmar 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K.
HB – Jacobson 1 (Stumpf).
W – Kachmar. L – Fulmer (0-1).
Umpires – Kenny Knepp (bases); Joe Shick (bases).