CLEARFIELD – State College continued to rock opposing pitchers and Claysburg regained its winning form in Pennsylvania American Legion Region 7 Tournament action at the Lawrence Township Recreation Park Field Monday.
Both teams posted Mercy Rule victories.
In the winner’s bracket final of the double-elimination tourney, State College cruised past Homer City 14-1 in seven innings with four home runs highlighting a 15-hit attack.
Claysburg remained in the hunt by rebounding from an 18-3 loss to State College Sunday to oust Greensburg 16-6 in eight innings.
The final four contenders will return to the LTRP Field Tuesday for a 1 p.m. twinbill pitting Claysburg (22-3) against Homer City (17-9) and State College (33-7) against upstart Clearfield (19-14), which eliminated DuBois in an 8-7 squeaker.
GAME 9
Pitcher Jordan Swope and Mike Blair drove in three runs apiece and were two of six players with two hits as Claysburg advanced by stinging Greensburg with a pair of seven-run rallies.
The first outburst, with all of the runs unearned because of three Greensburg misplays, gave the Cambria County League champs a 7-4 lead in the third inning. The second nailed down the win in the seventh.
Swope weathered a rocky start to hurl a complete game. Solo homers by Nick Diehl and Jordan Truscott helped Greensburg, the Westmoreland County/District 31 runner-up, build its early lead.
The losers got close with runs on a wild pitch and a throwing error in the sixth, but Claysburg erupted in the seventh for a 14-6 bulge.
Swope struck out seven and walked six. He gave up 12 hits.
Dane Diehl, Jordan Saylor, Trent Forshey and Christian Lamont joined Swope and Blair in the two-hit column for the winners. Ryan Slagenweit added two RBIs.
Greensburg (14-11-1) got pairs of hits from Diehl, Jeff Huczko, John Szmed and Logan Douglas.
Claysburg 007 000 72 – 16 14 2
Greensburg 220 002 00 – 6 12 6
Jordan Swope and Zach Morrow; Nick Draghi, Jordan Truscott (6), Dan Zerbini (7) and John Szmed.
W – Swope. L – Draghi
2 Hits – Swope, Trent Forshey, Mike Blair, Christian Lamont (C); Jeff Huczko, Nick Diehl, Szmed, Logan Douglas (G).
HR – Swope (C); Truscott (G). 2B – Jordan Saylor, Forshey, Ryan Slagenweit (C); Szmed, Douglas (G).
* * * * *
GAME 10
State College, which scored three runs in each of the first three innings, raised its tourney totals to 52 hits, including 11 homers, and 51 runs in its third win.
The Central Penn League champs were paced by Scott Glass with a solo home run and two singles and Trey Nicosia with a two-run single in the second inning and a two-run homer in the sixth.
Nick Carothers and pinch-hitter Ben Sallade also clouted homers with the bases empty.
Carothers, Shane Regel and Will Sefter each had two hits.
Matt Blaschak was the beneficiary, though he didn’t really need a lot of support.
The right-hander had Homer City shut out until Matt Wilden slugged a one-out homer in the bottom of the seventh.
Homer City threatened only in the fourth inning when Eric Cusimano, Wilden and Zack Davis singled.
Blaschak stranded the trio with one of his six strikeouts. He didn’t allow a walk in his eight-hit performance.
Wilden and Cusimano had two hits apiece for the Indiana County League champs.
State College 333 103 1 – 14 15 0
Homer City 000 000 1 – 1 8 0
Matt Blaschak and Steve Mellott; Ryan Mlakar, Matt Wilden (5) and Ty Holderbaum.
W – Blaschak. L – Mlakar.
3 Hits – Scott Glass (SC). 2 Hits – Nick Carothers, Trey Nicosia, Shane Regel, Will Sefter (SC); Eric Cusimano, Wilden (HC).
HR – Carothers, Nicosia, Glass, Ben Sallade (SC); Wilden (HC).
