STATE COLLEGE – Big innings by State College and Potter/McKean doomed the Clearfield Babe Ruth League 14-Year-Old All-Stars in the District 8 Tournament Saturday.
Leading 4-2, State College took command with seven runs in the fourth frame and then outlasted Clearfield 12-11 in a winner’s bracket semifinal at Airport Field.
Clearfield trailed Potter/McKean 2-1 going to the bottom the third inning of their elimination bracket quarterfinal at Spectrum Field. The deficit ballooned to 11-1 three outs later, and Potter/McKean ended it with no outs in the bottom of the fifth, pitcher Ryan Stratton sealing his own win with a single that set the final at 12-2 because of the Mercy Rule.
Against State College, Clearfield piled up 15 hits as Cole Kephart led the way with four singles good for five runs batted in.
Curtis Collins, Josh Kennedy, Kyle Kushner and Sawyer Rowles had two hits apiece, the latter getting Clearfield close with a two-run single in the bottom of the seventh. Chris Boal then saved the win for Mike O’Melia with a strikeout and a foul pop-up.
Kephart’s two-run single had given Clearfield a short-lived 2-1 edge in the second. State College answered with three tallies in the third before exploding to chase loser C.J. Gathagan in the fourth.
Brady relieved and was charged with State College’s last five runs, all unearned.
Clearfield was guilty of six errors and left 13 runners on base.
Eric Buskirk belted two home runs for three RBIs and also singled for State College, which got pairs of hits from Boal, O’Melia, Jack Barnes, Nick Harner and Barret McMurtry.
State College and West End of Williamsport will meet in the winner’s bracket final Sunday, the winner advancing to Monday afternoon’s championship game.
Stratton’s four-hit pitching and Potter/McKean’s nine-run salvo in the third inning ended Clearfield’s hopes of staying alive in the double-elimination tourney.
Stratton, who had only two strikeouts, walked three batters and hit Zac Timchak twice, but he was backed by a flawless defense.
Kushner had two hits and drove in both runs with a third-inning single and fifth-inning sacrifice fly.
Kephart, the first of four Clearfield hurlers, took the loss. Rowles and Brady relieved him in the third, and Gathagan pitched a 1-2-3 fourth before surrendering the final run in the fifth.
Pacing the winners were R.J. Veilleux with three singles, Kyle Clay with two doubles and four RBIs and Stratton with two singles and three RBIs.
WINNER’S BRACKET SEMIFINAL
STATE COLLEGE — 12
Ben Shawley cf 4210, Jack Barnes lf 5121, Chris Boal ss-p 5122, Eric Buskirk c 4433, Mike O’Melia p-ss 3120, Oliver Dailey p 2000, Britt McKinley 3b 4000, Nick Harner 2b 4020, Ryan Dunkelberger rf 2100, Cam Aungst rf 1000, Barret McMurtry 1b 3220, Mike White 1b 1000. TOTALS: 38 12 14 6.
CLEARFIELD — 11
Cole Kephart ss 5145, Curtis Collins 2b 5120, Josh Kennedy 3b 5121, C.J. Gathagan p 1000, Kaleb Taylor 1b 3010, Kyle Kushner lf 3221, Nate Brady 1b 4210, Sawyer Rowles cf 4022, Robby Carns cf 1100, Zac Timchak rf 4310, Josh Sorbera c 3001. TOTALS: 38 11 15 10.
Score by Innings
State College 013 701 1 – 12 14 3
Clearfield 020 213 2 – 11 15 6
Errors – Boal, McKinley, Harner; Kephart 4, Kennedy 2. LOB – State College 8; Clearfield 13. 2B – McMurtry. HR – Buskirk 2. SB – O’Melia, Harner.
Pitching
State College – O’Melia 4-1/3 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K; Dailey 1-2/3 IP 3 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 0 K; Boal 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K.
Clearfield – Gathagan 3-1/3 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 1 K; Brady 3-2/3 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.
WP – O’Melia 1; Gathagan 1.
W – O’Melia. L – Gathagan (0-1). Save – Boal.
* * * * *
ELIMINATION BRACKET QUARTERFINAL
CLEARFIELD — 2
Kephart p-ss 3110, Collins 2b 2100, Kennedy lf-3b-cf 2010, Kushner ss-lf 2022, Rowles 3b-p-1b-3b 2000, Timchak rf 0000, Carns rf 1000, Brady 1b-p 2000, Taylor 1b 0000, Gathagan cf-p 2000, Sorbera c 2000 TOTALS: 18 2 4 2.
POTTER/MCKEAN — 12
Chris Lashway 2b 2310, Chad Gaines cf 2210, Ryan Stratton p 4223, Kyle Clay 3b 3124, R.J. Veilleux 1b 3132, Andrew Rigas ss 2101, Seth Bigley lf 2100, Tyler Brand lf 1000, Hunter Free c 2001, Dakota Eaton rf 2100. TOTALS: 23 12 9 11.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 001 01 – 2 4 2
Potter/McKean 209 01 – 12 9 0
Errors – Kephart, Kennedy. PB – Sorbera 2. LOB – Clearfield 7. 2B – Kennedy; Clay 2. SF – Kushner; Freer. SB – Lashway, Gaines, Stratton, Veilleux 2.
Pitching
Clearfield – Kephart 2-1/3 IP 5 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 5 K; Rowles 1/3 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 0 K; Brady 1/3 IP 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K; Gathagan 1+ IP (faced 3 batters in 5th), 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K.
Potter/McKean – Stratton 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K.
HB – Kephart 1 (Lashway); Stratton 2 (Timchak 2). WP – Kephart 1.
W – Stratton. L – Kephart (0-1).
