It is tough to have to face a team three times in the same season. Tyrone Legion had this problem multiplied by the absence of a ton of regular starters when playing Martin Oil at Bellwood on Monday evening.
In each of the first two games, the two teams battled on even terms, although in both of the previous contests, the Legion jumped out to substantial leads, only to have Martin Oil rally for 9-8 and 8-6 victories.
During the early going, Monday, it looked like the same scenario would repeat itself. Tyrone Legion scored a run in the top of the first to take the early lead.
Without their full cast of players however, the Legion put up a brave fight, but Martin Oil with just nine people in uniform themselves, kept pecking away. Unlike the first two contests, there was no big inning, although Martin Oil did manage to put up runs on the scoreboard in all of their six at bats, finally taking an 11-1 mercy rule triumph after six innings.
Matt Morrissey continued his hot hitting, since moving to the lead off spot for Tyrone Legion. Morrissey, who went two-for-three, singled to begin the game, moved up a base on a wild pitch and to third when Derrick Soellner lined a single to left. Tyler Hoover, the hitting star for Tyrone Legion with a perfect three-for-three drove in the only run his team would score with a line shot to left to score Morrissey, who has gone six-for-nine (.667) with five runs scored in his last three starts.
Martin Oil starting pitcher Chad Coho settled down after that opening tally, to shut out Tyrone Legion on just four more harmless singles. Coho went the distance to pick up the win striking out seven and walking just one batter.
“This wasn’t the same Tyrone Legion team, but you can’t take anything away from Chad,” said Martin Oil manager Ed Davis. “He pitched a nice ballgame.”
Jamie Levinson pitching against Martin oil for the third time also went the distance to take the loss, allowing 14 hits, with one strikeout and one walk.
“Jamie pitched well today, he just left a lot of balls up today and Bellwood is going to hit those pitches.” cautioned Tyrone Legion manager Mike Boytim.
Martin Oil scored a run in the bottom of the first to knot the score at 1-1.
Brandon Beech walked to begin the frame and stole second base. After Earnie Kelley grounded out to Tyrone first baseman Hoover to move Beech to third, Zach Tomchick’s RBI ground out to shortstop Morrissey scored Beech with the tying run.
Chad Coho and Alex Miller banged back-to-back singles to start the second for Martin Oil. With one down, Coho was waved home on a balk by Levinson, and Beech drove in Miller with a single down the third base line.
The runs kept coming for the hosts. With one out in the third, Blaze Winterstein singled, advanced to second on an infield hit by Chris Alley and scored along with Coho, who hit into a fielder’s choice, on Alex Miller’s base hit.
“This wasn’t the same team that gave us big trouble in both the other games we played them,” acknowledged Davis. “Plus this was the third time we have faced Levinson. He had been tough on us both times, we were lucky to escape both the earlier games. Without their starting compliment tonight, we were able to get a little more advantage over them and finally get them by the 10-run rule.”
In the fourth Kelley drilled a one-out double to left and came in to score on a double by Troy Brunner.
An inning later, Alley doubled and scored on a single. Miller erased Coho on a force play at second before Dustin Harris singled through the left side of the infield to send Alley home. Beech scored Harris with a ground out to short.
“Troy Brunner and Chris Alley both had real nice nights at the plate, as well as Chad Coho and Alex Miller. Earnie Kelley had his usual couple of hits in every game. We just have to keep stroking the ball and see how it falls. It’s still too early to call how the playoffs are going to shape up yet. We still have a shot to get the top seed and the regular season championship if things fall the right way for us. We just have to keep playing ball.”
Needing to score twice to end the game in the last of the sixth inning, Martin Oil right fielder Tomchick was safe on a error and then moved around to third base on a pair of wild pitches. Brunner crushed a double to score Tomchick and Alley followed with another two-bagger that scored Brunner to end the game by the 10-run mercy rule. Alley has now hit 12 doubles. This was the second straight game in which Alley has gotten the hit to end a game by the mercy rule.
“The team that played Bellwood today wasn’t the team that Bellwood saw the first two times,” explained Boytim. “I was proud of the guys. Yesterday (Sunday), we lost 17-0 (to Locker Room) and we had the same kids. We came out here against a team with almost the equal record of Locker Room and we played a lot better, we got into the sixth inning.”
Martin Oil (14-6) hosts Barkman Oil/Altoona First (14-7) today, while Tyrone Legion (8-12) entertains Corporal Miller (13-8) at the Harry K. Sickler Athletic Complex. Both games are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
Martin Oil 11 Tyrone Legion 1, 6 inn.
Tyrone Legion – Morrissey, ss, 3-1-2; Levinson, p, 3-0-1; Soellner, c, 3-0-1; Hoover, 1b, 3-0-3; Hertzler, 3b, 3-0-0; Romano, cf, 3-0-0; J. Miller, lf, 2-0-0; Oswalt, 2b, 2-0-0; Rodland, rf, 3-0-0. TOTALS 25-1-7.
Martin Oil – Beech, 3b, 3-1-1; Kelley, cf, 4-1-2; Tomchick, rf, 4-0-0; Brunner, 1b, 4-1-3; Winterstein, c, 4-1-0; Alley, ss, 4-1-3; Coho, p, 3-2-2; A. Miller, 2b, 3-2-2; Harris, lf, 3-1-1. TOTALS 32-11-14.
Tyrone Legion 100 000 1-7-2.
Martin Oil 122 132 11-14-0.
2B: Kelley 2, Brunner 2, Alley 2.
RBI: Hoover, A. Miller 2, Beech 2, Tomchick, Brunner, Winterstein, Alley, Coho, Harris.
SO: Levinson 1, Coho 7.
BB: Levinson 1, Coho 1.
WP: Coho LP: Levinson
