The Tyrone Legion baseball team used pretty much the same script to win their second game in a row in George B. Kelley Federation action at Hollidaysburg on Friday night. Play it close for awhile, score in bunches and then manage to escape from the other team’s big final inning.
On Friday, host Hoss’s used runs in the second and third to ease into a 2-0 lead.
Ben Royer drove in Jason Hutchinson with an RBI groundout in the second and Nick Vipond singled home Chris McCarl in the third for the early lead. Hutchinson had opened the at bat with a single to right and moved up on a passed ball and wild pitch. McCarl started the third inning with one of several infield hits for Hoss’s, went to second on a wild pitch and when catcher Derrick Soellner’s throw went into center field, continued on to third.
Tyrone Legion had runners on in every inning, but were still scoreless until the top of the fourth, when they batted around.
One out walks to Ben Gummo and Nick Cushion began the attack. Brandon Maceno singled to load the bases. a double by Andy Garofoli plated Gummo and Cushion. Jason Wilson scored Maceno on a ground out. Barry Gummo beat out an infield hit to get Garofoli in. Nick Friling completed the five-run inning by singling in Barry Gummo, who continued on to second when his infield hit was thrown away.
Two innings later, the Legion struck again for four more runs again sending everybody to the plate.
After Hoss’s had scored to cut the deficit to 5-3, pinch hitter Justin Clark walked to begin the at bat. Barry Gummo singled, but was erased on a fielder’s choice by Nick Friling . Tyler Mertiff walked to load the sacks again. Chris Tremmel singled to right to score Clark and Friling. Tremmel and Mertiff worked a double steal with Tremmel taking off for second and Mertiff, delaying a second, then swiping home for the third tally of the frame. Ben Gummo singled to right to get Tremmel home for a 9-3 Tyrone Legion advantage.
Tyrone put two more runs on the board in the top of the seventh. At the time, it seemed like nothing more than excess, but when Hoss’s rallied to score six times in the last of the seventh, they became the winning runs.
Matt Germino led off by drawing a walk. Germino moved to second and third on wild pitches. Barry Gummo struck out, but reached first base when the Hoss’s catcher couldn’t handle the pitch down in the dirt.
Nick Friling singled to right to score Germino. Then Tyler Mertiff beat out an infield hit that scored Barry Gummo with the final run.
“We had some timely hitting,” said Tyrone Legion coach Jim Cushion. “One of the key plays was Jason Wilson laying down a safety squeeze in the fourth inning. He made things happen. It seemed to open the door and we scored five runs. Barry Gummo and Nick Friling at the top of the order each had three hits and although he struggled, Tyler Mertiff reached base three times.
“Barry Gummo did a good job on the mound for us. I put him in the game tonight as the starter because I thought I could count on him to be around the plate and he threw strikes. We got everybody into the game and we try to keep them happy, even though that’s tough to do at times.”
Barry Gummo picked up the win going six strong innings giving up three runs, just one earned on five hits, before tiring in the seventh, with seven strikeouts and only one walk. Tyler Mertiff pitched the seventh, striking out the side although touched up for four runs.
Tyrone Legion 11 Hoss’s 9
TYRONE LEGION- Ba. Gummo, p-1b, 5-2-3; Friking, cf, 5-1-3; Mertiff, ss-p, 3-1-1; Soellner, c, 2-0-0; Tremmel, rf, 3-1-1; Be. Gummo, 3b-ss, 4-1-2; Cushion, 1b-3b, 2-1-1; Maceno, 2b, 4-1-1; Garofoli, rf-c, 3-1-1; Germino, ph, 0-1-0; J. Wilson lf, 2-0-0; Clark, ph, 0-1-0; Myers, rf, 1-0-0. TOTALS 34-11-13.
HOSS’S – Barroner, 2b, 4-1-12; Peacock, cf, 4-1-1; Vipond, c, 3-0-1; Stewart, cr-ph, 1-1-1; Hutchinson, ss, 4-2-2; Fisher, lf, 2-0-0; Kuhn, lf, 2-0-0; Royer, 1b, 3-1-1; Young, ph, 1-0-0; Beerbower, 3b, 1-2-0; Wicks, p, 3-0-1; McCarl, rf, 3-1-1. TOTAL 31-9-9.
Tyrone Legion 000 504 2 11-13-3.
Hoss’s 011 100 6 9-9-1.
2B: Garofoli 1.
RBI: Trimmel 2, Garofoli 2, Ba. Gummo 1, Friling 1, Be. Gummo 1, Wilson 1, Barroner 2, Vipond 1, Stewart 1, Hutchinson 1, Royer 1, McCarl 1.
SO: Ba. Gummo 7, Mertiff 3, Wicks 2.
BB: Ba. Gummo 1, Wicks 4.
WP: Ba. Gummo LP: Wicks.
