Split Gives Chiefs 2-1-1 Record in Hillbilly Hardball Classic

ELKINS, W.Va. — The Clearfield American Legion Post 6 baseball team split two games at Harpertown Field on the Davis & Elkins College campus Saturday to finish 2-1-1 in the Pizza Hut Hillbilly Hardball Classic.

An 8-3 win over Moorefield (W.Va.) Post 64 gave the Chiefs the opportunity to play for the Orange Division title in the 36-team tournament for 19-and-under players.

However, Charleston Post 94 proved why it has been a perennial West Virginia power by rolling to an 11-4 victory against the Chiefs for a 5-0 start to its season.

South Charleston, which draws players from seven high schools, has won four championships and finished second nine times in the last 15 state tournaments.

In the opener, Eli Glass kept Moorefield in check except for the fifth inning en route to a complete game in his first start. He logged six strikeouts while allowing two walks and eight hits.

Clearfield had five of its nine hits in the second inning to grab a 6-0 lead.

Singles by Harrison Peacock and Blake Prestash around a walk to Matt Bailor produced the first run, and Kyle Elensky came through with a two-run single. Two Moorefield misplays prolonged the rally before Glass cracked a two-run double.

The Chiefs made it 8-0 in the bottom of the fourth when Hayden Williams singled to chase home Prestash, who was hit by a pitch, and later scored on a wild pitch.

Glass and Peacock had two hits apiece for the Chiefs.

Williams got his first start against South Charleston and was on his way to a third scoreless innings before three Clearfield errors resulted in four unearned runs, two crossing on a double by Darin Flowers, who wound up with four RBIs on two hits and a bases-loaded walk.

The winners came right back with four hits off reliever Nate Barr in the fourth inning to widen the cushion to 8-0, with two of those four runs unearned, too.

A fifth error was costly again in the fifth frame, making two of South Charleston’s last three runs unearned. The Orange champs wound up with a 47-12 run differential.

Aided by back-to-back walks to Bailor and Elensky, the Chiefs broke through in the bottom of the fifth on RBI singles by Barr and Glass, a sacrifice fly by Seth Bumbarger and an RBI double by Allan Myers.

Glass, extending his hitting streak to eight games, and Williams had two singles apiece in the game that was postponed because of rain Thursday.

Williams also had hits in every tourney game, as did Myers and Barr.

The Chiefs, 5-2-1 overall, will return to Jefferson County League action with road games against Punxsutawney Monday and Curwensville Tuesday.

MOOREFIELD (W.Va.) — 3

Karson Reed lf 4111, Garret Haggerty cf 2000, Josh Mallon ph-cf 10111, Lane Ours c 2000, Nate Travis 3b-p 2010, Jayden Moore rf 4011, Mason Ours 1b 4010, Dawson Price ss-p-3b 4000, Jake Frederick 3b-c 3010, Branson See 2b 2100, Coleman Mangold p-ss 2120, John Lahmeyer dh 1000.  TOTALS:  31  3  8  3.

CLEARFIELD — 8

Nate Barr ss 3110, Hayden Williams 3b 4212, Eli Glass p 3022, Seth Bumbarger 1b-rf 3000, Allan Myers c 2010, Harrison Peacock cf 3120, Matt Bailor lf 2100, Blake Prestash rf 1211, Hunter Dixon 1b 1000, Kyle Elensky 2b 1112, Isaac Durandetta ph-2b 1000. TOTALS:  24  8  9  7.

Score by Innings

Moorefield   000 030 0 – 3  8  2

Clearfield     060 200 x – 8  9  2

E – Price, See; Barr, Williams. PB – L. Ours. DP – Moorefield 2 (Price unassisted; See and M. Ours); Clearfield 1 (Glass and Barr). LOB – Moorefield 8; Clearfield 4. 2B – Glass. Sac – Elensky. SB – Myers.

Pitching

Moorefield – Mangold 2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 0 K; Price 2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K; Travis 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K.

Clearfield – Glass 7 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.

HB – Price 1 (Prestash). WP – Price 1; Glass 1.

W – Glass (1-0). L – Mancuso.

* * * * * *

SOUTH CHARLESTON (W.Va.) — 11

Isaac Miller cf 5210, Alex Jarrrell rf 4111, Mason Hamrick rf 1000, Noah Cummings 1b 3222, Mike Stone dh 5222, Dane Peterson lf 5111, Darin Flowers c 3124, Cole Bumgarner 2b 2100, Brandon Lucas 3b 3000, Peyton Stover ss 2100.  TOTALS:  33  11  9  9.

CLEARFIELD — 4

Barr ss-p 3111, Williams p-ss 4020, Glass cf 4121, Bumbarger 1b-rf-1b 3001, Myers lf 3011, Peacock 3b 3000, Dixon 1b-rf 2000, Prestash rf 1000, Bailor c 1100, Elensky 2b 1010, Durandetta 2b 1100.  TOTAL: 26  4  7  4.

Score by Innings

South Charleston   004 430 0 – 11  9  0

Clearfield               000 040 0 –   4  7  5

E – Barr, Williams, Peacock 2, Dixon. PB – Bailor. LOB – South Charleston 10; Clearfield 6. 2B – Miller, Cummings, Flowers; Myers. Sac – Bumgarner. SF – Bumbarger.

Pitching

South Charleston – Enzo Lewis 4 IP, 4 H, 0 E, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K; Connor Fizer 2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K; Casey Kemplin 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K.

Clearfield – Williams 3 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 0 K; Barr 4 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 1 K.

HB – Williams 1 (Lucas).

W – Lewis. L – Williams (0-1).