CLEARFIELD — After coming from behind to knock off Indiana County League champion Blairsville 5-4 in the first round of the Pennsylvania American Legion Region 7 Tournament at the Lawrence Township Recreation Park Field Saturday, the Clearfield Post 6 baseball team was unable to hold off Bedford Sunday in a 9-6 loss.
The Chiefs will try to extend their season Monday when they play Murrysville in an elimination bracket game at 1 p.m.
The pitching of Thomas Summers and Brandon Orsich was the key against Blairsville, which had swept the ICL regular season and playoff title.
They combined for a three-hitter with nine strikeouts.
Summers went five-plus innings to earn the victory.
The left-hander allowed only three hits, one a two-run homer by Scott Thompson in the first inning. He struck out three and walked one, departing after Clearfield’s 5-2 lead was trimmed to one run in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Orsich relieved and slammed the door on Blairsville, pitching one-hit ball with six strikeouts and just one walk over 3-1/3 innings to log his first save for the Chiefs.
“Both pitched real well,” manager Sid Lansberry said. “Summers just got tired after 90-some pitches. Brandon came in and did a good job.
“I was real pleased with that win. We played well.”
Summers also led the Chiefs at the plate with two doubles and two singles, including a two-bagger that drove in Sawyer Rowles for a brief lead that was wiped out by Thompson’s home run.
Run-scoring singles by Curt Collins in the third and Spencer Herrington in the fifth regained the lead for the Chiefs, and they made it 5-2 in the top of the sixth on hits by Summers, Josh Kennedy and Josh Sorbera and a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Jon Janocko.
The latter proved to be the deciding run when Blairsville chased Summers. Jon Distefano’s single and two walks loaded the bases, and two runs scored on Dylan Dirienzo’s single that was misplayed in the outfield.
Orsich entered and registered a big strikeout with runners at second and third. He issued his free pass but then induced an inning-ending pop-up.
Orsich retired eight batters in a row before Reed Ratkus singled with two outs in the ninth. He closed it out by striking out the dangerous Thompson.
Logan Puit and Sorbera had two hits apiece for the Chiefs.
Clearfield (11-14), one of the Central Penn League’s two representatives, owned leads of 1-0, 3-2 and 5-4 against Bedford (23-6), but Jake Stover’s three-run double in the bottom of the fifth inning turned it around for the Cambria County League runners-up.
Stover was the last batter Kennedy faced after keeping the Chiefs in the game by stranding six Bedford runners over the first four innings.
The Chiefs got one run back on Jon Janocko’s RBI groundout in the seventh, but Bedford added a pair off Janocko in the eighth Dylan Downs singled to score Austin Montgomery, who doubled to the base of the fence in center field, and sprinted to the plate on a wild pitch for the final run.
Downs collected four of Bedford’s 14 hits, including a two-run double in the first inning.
His double following a single by Eric Grace set the table for two runs in the third frame as they scored on groundouts by Isaac Kline and Travis Hickey.
Grace wound up with three hits and also saved the win for reliever Jeremiah Bingham with a scoreless ninth, though Clearfield did get the tying run to the plate when Summers doubled and Puit walked. Grace ended it with his second strikeout.
Summers had two doubles and Collins chipped in with two singles for the Chiefs.
“We made some mistakes that hurt us, errors and two baserunning mistakes,” Lansberry said. “That being said, we also did a lot of good things to stay in the game.
“The pitchers, I thought, did a decent job. We started Kennedy hoping to get three or four innings, and I know Jon can’t go nine. None of our pitchers can. Unfortunately, we had to use two pitchers (Saturday). That’s what happens with nine innings.
“I’m not upset. We could have won.
“In two games, I think we’ve proved we are competitive with these other teams. We know we’re the so-called host team with an under-.500 record. So far, we’ve competed well.
“I think it says a lot about our league, too. The competition we play during the season is very good.”
Bedford had advanced with the most one-sided win of the first round, over Westmoreland County champion Unity 14-1 in a Mercy Rule-shortened game that ended in the seventh inning at the Bigler Community Field.
Montgomery and Grace fronted the Hurricanes’ offense with three hits and four RBIs apiece. Both slugged home runs, Montgomery’s a two-run blast in the second and Grace’s a three-run shot that capped an eight-run outburst in the top of the seventh.
Downs pitched a complete-game seven-hitter with six strikeouts, four walks and one hit batsman.
Bedford’s opponent in the winner’s bracket final will be a familiar one.
Awaiting for the Monday’s 4 p.m. headliner will be Claysburg (25-3), which beat Bedford four times in six games en route to the Cambria County League South Division and playoffs titles.
Claysburg topped Murrysville 9-5 Saturday and rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh inning to stun Central Penn League kingpin Beech Creek 7-6 Sunday.
Mike Mock pitched six innings for the win against Murrysville, striking out six and allowing five hits and four runs, and also had a single and a two-run homer.
Kasy Hamm was the hitting star with two doubles, three singles and two RBIs.
Austin McMonagle recorded a save with six strikeouts in a three-inning stint.
Anthony Falce, who doubled, and Jordan Kestler each had two hits while losing pitcher Brett Myers drove in three runs for Murrysville.
After Claysburg grabbed the lead from Beech Creek, McMonagle came on to pick up his second save with three innings of scoreless, two-hit work. He had no strikeouts or walks.
Leading Claysburg at the plate were Mock with two hits and two RBIs and Nick Hoenstine with two hits, one a double.
Trapper Kunes, Chuck Probst and Toner Corl had two hits apiece for Beech Creek.
The Crickets (20-6) squeezed past Indiana 3-2 Saturday with runs in the seventh and ninth innings as both teams were limited to five hits.
Caleb Seyler, the third Beech Creek hurler, got the win after allowing only one hit and striking out four over the final four frames.
In elimination bracket action Sunday, Murrysville ousted Indiana 14-4 in seven innings and Unity ended Blairsville’s season, 9-3.
Murrysville benefited from 12 walks and three hit batsmen in its romp, Ben Ramey going six innings for the win.
Max Cengia’s grand slam home run in the fifth inning highlighted Unity’s bounce-back victory.
He and winning hurler Rick Ross each had a trio of hit.
Ross pitched seven innings of shutout ball before giving up two hits around a walk in the eighth. Nick Palumbo got the final six outs.
Unity will play Beech Creek at 10 a.m. in the first game of Monday’s tripleheader.
GAME 4
CLEARFIELD — 5
Sawyer Rowles cf 3200, Spencer Herrington ss 5011, Curt Collins 2b 5011, Thomas Summers p-rf 5041, Logan Puit lf 5100, Brandon Orsich 1b-3b-p 4120, Josh Kennedy 3b-rf-3b 3010, Josh Sorbera c 3121, Zach Timchak rf 2000, Jon Janocko ph-1b 1001. TOTALS: 36 5 11 5.
BLAIRSVILLE — 4
Anthony Faulk cf 3100, Reed Ratkus p-2b 4010, Scott Thompson c 5112, John Distefano ss 4110, Cameron Livingston 2b-3b 1100, Andrew Schultz 3b-p, Colton McMillan rf 2000, Taylor Sheriff 1b 2000, Beau Sheriff 1b 1000, Dylan Dirienzo rf 2011, Lucas Palmer rf 4000. TOTALS: 30 4 4 3.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 101 012 000 – 5 11 3
Blairsville 200 002 000 – 4 4 2
E – Janocko, Orsich, Timchak; Sheriff, Ratkus. DP – Blairsville 1 (Distefano, Livingston and B. Sheriff). LOB – Clearfield 9; Blairsville 8. 2B – Summers 2. HR – Thompson. Sac – Kennedy; Schultz. SF – Janocko. SB – Faulk.
Pitching
Clearfield – Summers 5-1/3 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 7 BB, 3 K; Orsich 3-2/3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K.
Blairsville – Ratkus 8 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 K; Schultz 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.
HB – Ratkus 2 (Rowles, Sorbera). WP – Ratkus 2 . PO – Summers 1 (Livingston).
W – Summers (4-3). L – Ratkus. Sv – Orsich (1).
* * * * *
GAME 8
CLEARFIELD — 6
Rowles cf 3100, Herrington ss 4110, Collins 2b 5220, Summers dh-1b 4021, Puit lf 3100, Janocko 1b-p 5112, Orsich 3b 3010, Sorbera c 3010, Timchak rf 3010.
BEDFORD — 9
Zach Shaffer ss 4010, Spencer McInroy cf-3b 4010, Austin Montgomery 3b-1b 5220, Eric Grace 1b-p 5230, Dylan Downs dh-lf 4343, Isaac Kline 2b 4111, Travis Hickey rf 5101, Jake Stover c 4013, Luke Waugerman lf-cf 4010. TOTALS: 39 9 14 8.
Score by Innings
Clearfield 111 020 100 – 6 8 2
Bedford 202 030 12x – 9 14 3
E – Herrington, Orsich; Shaffer 2, Kline. DP – Blairsville 1 (Shaffer, Kline and Grace). LOB – Clearfield 9; Blairsville 10. 2B – Summers 2; Montgomery, Downs, Stover. Sac – Puit. SB – Collins 2, Puit; Kline, Waugerman.
Pitching
Clearfield – Kennedy 4+ IP (faced 4 batters in 5th), 10 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K; Janocko 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K.
Bedford – Braden Hengst 3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 0 K; Jeremiah Bingham 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K; Grace 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER 1 BB, 2 K.
WP – Kennedy 1, Janocko 1; Hengst. Balk – Janocko 1. PO – Janocko 1 (Shaffer).
W – Bingham. L – Kennedy (0-3). Sv – Grace.
* * * * * * * * * *
GAME 1
Beech Creek 010 000 101 – 3 5 0
Indiana 000 200 000 – 2 5 3
(BC) Cole Hanley, Toner Corl (4), Caleb Seyler (6) and Ethan McGill; (I) Matt Griffith, Bobby Bell (7) and Chase Kromer.
W – Seyler. L – Bell.
2B – (BC) McGill; (I) Kevin Jack.
* * * * *
GAME 2
Bedford 012 300 8 – 14 13 1
Unity 000 100 0 – 1 7 3
(B) Downs and Stover; (U) Ray Sowinski, Randy Bates (6) and Elias Imbrogno.
W – Downs. L – Sowinski.
Three hits – (B) McInroy, Montgomery, Grace. Two hits – (B) Hickey; (U) Ryan Torrance, Rick Ross.
HR – (B) Montgomery, Grace; (U) Alex Powell. 2B – (B) McInroy, Montgomery.
* * * * *
GAME 3
Murrysville 201 010 001 – 5 7 2
Claysburg 041 010 03x – 9 13 1
(M) Brett Myers, Bryce Halleck (7) and Anthony Falce; (C) Mike Mock, Austin McMonagle (7) and Kasy Hamm.
W – Mock. L – Myers. Sv – McMonagle.
HR – (C) Mock. 2B – (M) Falce, Ben Ramey; (C) Hamm 2.
* * * * *
GAME 5
Indiana 000 102 1 – 4 7 4
Murrysville 411 230 3 – 14 7 2
(I) Chase Kromer, Bo Putt (4), Homer Woody (6) and Bell; Ben Ramey, Halleck (7) and Falce.
W – Ramey. L – Kromer.
2B – (M) Ramey.
* * * * *
GAME 6
Blairsville 000 000 030 – 3 8 6
Unity 201 040 20x – 9 9 0
(B) Taylor Sheriff, Andrew Schultz (5), Dirienzo (6) and Thompson; (U) Ross, Nick Palumbo (8) and Imbrogno.
W – Ross. L – Sheriff.
Three hits – (U) Ross, Doug Cengia.
HR – (U) Cengia. 2B – (B) Faulk, Max Hrebik; Livingston; (U) Ross.
* * * * *
GAME 7
Claysburg 000 201 400 – 7 6 2
Beech Creek 400 110 000 – 6 8 0
(C) Ethan Lewis, Josh McKnight (5), McMonagle (7) and Hamm; (BC) Chuck Probst, Bryce Hanley (7), C. Hanley (7), Kenny Heverly (9) and McGill.
W – McKnight. L – C. Hanley. Sv – McMonagle.
Two hits – (C) Nick Hoenstine, Mock; (BC) Trapper Kunes, Probst, Corl.
2B – (C) Hoenstine; (BC) Probst, Clayton Butler.
Region 7 Tournament Scoreboard:
(All games at Lawrence Township Recreation Park Field)
SATURDAY, JULY 19
First Round Game 1 – Beech Creek 3, Indiana 2 Game 2 – Bedford 14, Unity 1 (7 innings) Game 3 – Claysburg 9, Murrysville 5 Game 4 – Clearfield 5, Blairsville 4
SUNDAY, JULY 20
Elimination Bracket First Round Game 5 – Murrysville 14, Indina 4 (7 innings) Game 6 – Unity 9, Blairsville 3
Winner’s Bracket Semifinals Game 7 – Claysburg 7, Beech Creek 6 Game 8 – Bedford 9, Clearfield 6
MONDAY, JULY 21
Elimination Bracket Second Round Game 9 – Unity vs. Beech Creek, 10 a.m. Game 10 – Murrysville vs. Clearfield, 1 p.m.
Winner’s Bracket Final Game 11 – Claysburg vs. Bedford
TUESDAY, JULY 22
Semifinals Game 12 – Game 9 Winner vs. Game 11 Loser, 1 p.m. Game 13 – Game 10 Winner vs. Game 11 Winner, 4 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 23
Championship Game 14 – Game 12 Winner vs. Game 13 Winner, noon Game 15 (if necessary) – Game 14 Winner vs. Game 14 Loser 30 minutes after completion of Game 14
