HYDE — A win one day earlier invigorated the Clearfield Bison hard-ballers, as they returned to their home baseball diamond on Thursday afternoon ready for yet another Mountain League showdown. This time, the Penns Valley Rams made the trip over, and with the sun out and the heat rising, everyone was eager to get the game started.
But, this afternoon did not go according to plan for the home squad. After giving up the early lead, Clearfield broke down late in the final inning, falling to the Rams, 11-1, for their tenth loss on the year.
The scoring didn’t start till the third, but it came in dramatic fashion when after a pair of singles, Miles Brooks had moved to third via a stolen base. But then, Malachi Thompson stole second and beat the throw. Suddenly, Brooks took a chance and went 90 more feet, beating the throw on a steal of home to get the Rams on the board. Two batters later, a bases-loaded walk made it 2-0, where it remained until the fifth.
That was when it was a 2-for-1 deal on one play to increase the lead as Brooks stole home after a strike two pitch from Ryan Gearhart. The next pitch, Dakota Brodzina lined one to left field, allowing Malachi Thompson to score and increase the lead to 4-0.
All that did was fuel starting pitcher Ty Houtz for the Rams, pitching a solid four-hit effort while striking out eight to get the win.
An RBI-single by Blake Prestash in the sixth would be the only run the Bison would get on the afternoon, as the final inning took everything out of the home squad.
Two consecutive RBI-singles got the scoring started, then two batters later Jon Meyer added another. An RBI-double by Brooks suddenly made it 9-1, with two outs on the board.
Elijah Quick had taken over for Gearhart on pitches, as Gearhart took the loss on the afternoon, but gave up the first five runs. Nolan Barr gave up the final two runs, first on an RBI-single by Hayden Houser, then he had one unearned go on his stat line courtesy of a balk, allowing Brooks to trot home to set the final.
Clearfield (7-10) is back on the field Saturday for a showdown with Bradford. But, this game is not at the Clearfield school, nor Bradford. This game, with the Bison designated as the visiting squad, will be played at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, New York. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.
SCORE BY INNING
Penns Valley 002 020 7 – 11 10 1
Clearfield 000 001 0 – 1 4 3
Penns Valley – 11
Hayden Houser-2B 4011, McClain Welshans-RF 5110, Dakota Brodzina-C 2012, Ty Houtz-P 4011, Jaden Simon-3B 4012, Luke Confer-CR 0200, Hunter Lyons-DH 2100, Jon Meyer-SS 4121, Miles Brooks-CF 4321, Malachi Thompson-LF 2210, Mason Greene-CR 0100. TOTALS 31 11 10 8.
Clearfield – 1
Kyle Elensky-SS 2100, Nolan Barr-2B/P 3000, Morgen Billotte-CF 3010, Blake Prestash-1B 3011, Cole Bloom-C 3000, Ryan Gearhart-PB 3010, Ty Troxell-RF 2010, Isaac Durandetta-PH 1000, Mike Fester-3B 2000, Jesse Lumadue-PH 1000, Shane Coudriet-LF 1000, Hunter Rumsky-PH/LF 1000, Elijah Quick-PH/P 1000. TOTALS 26 1 4 1.
- LOB: 6/5
- E: Houser/Billotte, Fester, Kushner
- ROE: Welshans-2, Brooks/Gearhart
- 2B: Brooks
- DP: Billotte, Elensky
- GIDP: Brodzina
- HBP: Elensky
- SB: Thompson, Brooks-2
- CS: Meyer
PITCHING
Penns Valley: Houtz-7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 6 SO, 0 BB.
Clearfield: Gearhart-6.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 1 ER, 5 SO, 4 BB; Quick-0 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 0 ER, 0 SO, 2 BB; Barr-0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 SO, 1 BB.
W-Houtz
L-Gearhart