TyronePA.com

Martin Oil gained a split over the weekend with a quick efficient win over Park Furniture on Sunday, getting a forfeit after one and 1/2 innings had been played. On Saturday, Martin Oil matched hits with ReMax Realty, with each team claiming six base hits. ReMax made theirs count however, with Jeff Vaughn shutting out Martin Oil 7-0.
On Sunday, in the home half of the first inning, at Stadium Drive field in Bellwood, Martin Oil paraded 11 batters to the plate, scoring six times on seven hits, that included a home run and a pair of doubles.
Justin Manning singled to left to open the frame, and Jake Manning dropped down a perfect bunt that he was able to beat out for a base hit. On the play, starting pitcher Nick Rusich threw the ball away, allowing both Mannings to move up a base, to second and third. Nate Gray’s grounder was misplayed by ReMax shortstop Nate Shultz with Justin Manning scoring. Jake Manning was thrown out trying to swipe third base for the first out of the inning. Chad Coho belted a ball over the 30-foot high fence in left field to score Gray in front of him for a 3-0 lead.
Mike Albright beat out a swinging bunt and Nate Plummer rapped a double. Justin Miller drove a pitch high off the netting in left for a double, to score both Albright and Plummer, and after he went to third on a wild pitch, Alex Miller was safe on an error that scored J. Miller. Trey Mock doubled, but Rusich got the next two batters to end the inning.
Albright pitched two scoreless innings for Martin Oil, hitting a batter in the first, and allowing a single to Nate Rossman in the second, with one strikeout and no walks.
When Martin Oil came in to hit in the bottom of the second, Park Furniture forfeited. Rusich had a sore arm and couldn’t go back into the game, which left Park with only eight players, forcing them to forfeit at that point.
On Saturday, ReMax took advantage of two walks, a wild pitch and two hits to take a 4-0 lead in the top of the third, after Martin Oil starter Nate Gray had retired the first six ReMax batters in a row, including the first four on strikeouts.
ReMax added an unearned score in the fourth on a single, walk and error, and finished out the scoring with a two-run Chris Perry home run in the fifth.
A bright spot for Martin Oil was two scoreless innings of relief by 16-year old Jared Coho to end the game.
Martin Oil had chances early, stranding a runner at second base with one out in the first, and had runners at first and second  with one out, finally leaving a runner at third, in the second inning.
“We got off to a good start on Sunday, maybe the best of the year,” said Martin Oil manager Ed Davis. “It was good to see some of the guys who haven’t been hitting get base hits early. Lack of hitting and lack of discipline at the plate, have been our biggest problems all season.
“Mike Albright pitched two  very good innings for us, quickly getting through both innings, throwing strikes and letting his fielders do the work. We would rather have kept on playing, but a win is a win.”

Saturday, July 26 at 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tyrone Hospital is have a Kids Health Fair with over 20 vendors and local performances from dance companies and karate dojos.  We are also asking children to bring their favorite toy for a check-up with one of our specialists.

A work party was held at the Tyrone Grandview Cemetery on Saturday morning. Members of Rotary, Kiwanis, Church of the Good Shepherd, the Cemetery Association and local individuals volunteered their time to mow, trim and take care of the necessary maintenance to the cemetery lawn, including weeding. Grandview Cemetery is a historic part of the Tyrone community and the service of many volunteers is needed to help keep up this part of Tyrone’s history. Anyone interested in helping is always welcome. For more information, call 684-4208. (The Daily Herald/Amanda Golden)

June 20
ACO 11  Hollidaysburg 10
Hollidaysburg broke on top in the first on the bat of Brandon Simpson, who slugged a three-run home run. Fagans reached on an error and Willis had a base hit in front of Simpson’s blast.
TACO bounced right back in their half of the inning. Jordan Faretta singled to begin the frame. Korry Cowher singled to drive in Faretta. Derrick Dasher reached on an error. Ian Murray singled to drive in Cowher and Dasher to tie the score.
In the second, it was Fagans, Willis and Simpson again, with the first two getting singles and Simpson crashing a double to score Fagans and Willis and then Greenleaf singled to get Simpson home.
In the bottom of the second, A. J. Welsh singled, Derrick Emigh walked and Tyler Hertzler singled to score Welsh. Faretta and Cowher walked. Evan Brush scored Faretta and Emigh with a single, and Cowher scored on a fielder’s choice by Dasher. After two wild innings, TACO led 7-6.
After both clubs took a few innings off to get set for the final rallies, in the top of the sixth, offense took over again.
Hollidaysburg got a Greenleaf single and Kelleher double. Dalgarn singled to score Greenleaf and Kelleher and then scored in front of Sweeney, who drilled a home run to center. Madden singled, and Keefer doubled to score Madden to put Hollidaysburg in front 10-7.
With one last chance, in the bottom of the seventh, Cowher and Brush singled. Down to their final out, Austin Barefoot walked to load the bases and Ridge Colyer just as quickly, smashed a double to unload them, scoring Cowher, Brush and Barefoot to knot the score 10-10. Welsh then ended the game with a walkoff single that scored Colyer with the winning run.
June 23
TACO 5  Bellwood 0
TACO wasted no time in taking the lead over Bellwood in a game that was halted after four and 1/2 innings and will be completed at a later date.
Jordan Faretta and Korry Cowher walked in the first. Doug Rudy singled to score both base runners for a 2-0 advantage.
In the fourth, Derrick Dasher singled, Evan Brush reached on an error and Ian Murray walked. Austin Barefoot singled to drive in Brush and Murray. Finally, in the fifth, Faretta singled, Cowher singled and Rudy scored Faretta with the third single of the inning.
June 25
TACO 11, Club Altoona 3
Playing at  Tyrone, Jordan King reached on a TACO error, Zack Veckov singled to left and Zack McCloskey singled to get King home for Club Altoona, the third game in a row, that the opponent had scored in the first inning.
Then for the third straight game, TACO came right back to score. Jordan Faretta led off with a single and Doug Rudy doubled him home to tie the score.
Continuing in the bottom of the second, Ridge Colyer singled and John Kimberling tripled scoring Colyer to give TACO the lead.
A walk and steal by Quinton and a King single tied the game in the top of the third for Club Altoona, but the tie didn’t last long.
In the bottom of the inning, Cowher singled, Rudy doubled him in, Murray singled to score Rudy, Colyer singled. Austin Barefoot drove in Murray and Colyer with a single. Kimberling walked. TACO led 6-2 after three complete innings.
Hughes doubled and a single by Quinton singled to drive him in for Club Altoona, in the fifth, but that would be all they would be able to put on the scoreboard.
In the home half of the inning, Evan Brush was safe on an error, and Murray and Barefoot walked. Caleb Snyder smacked a double to score Brush, Murray and Barefoot.
Finally, in the sixth, Rudy walked. Brush doubled to score Rudy and Brush came around to score on two passed balls.
With the win. a complete-game triumph for Doug Rudy, TACO improves to 7-5 in VFW Teener Area 4.

Cloud of dust With first base flying, Martin Oil’s Mike Albright successfully slides into first base during Martin Oil’s 14-2 win over Steel Connections at Bellwood on Friday evening. (The Daily Herald/Stacey Manning)

Martin Oil manager Ed Davis was worried about his club’s lack of hitting in the early going. Normally a good hitting team over the years, with the exception of three games in a row, in early June, Martin Oil had been held to six hits or less in their other six games. Davis and the Martin Oil coaching staff were hoping when a streak of 12 ballgames in 13 days at the end of the month would be the catalyst to get the sticks going.
With his team struggling to stay above the .500 mark and play competitive baseball, actually falling to 5-6, at one point, the team may be beginning to jell.
On Friday evening, Martin Oil put away their fourth straight win in convincing style, bashing Steel Connections for 11 hits and 14 runs in a five-inning Mercy Rule, 14-2 triumph. This was their fourth game of the last five with double-digit hits, a string that actually began with a 12-10 loss to Barkman Oil/Russell Trucking, which will be considered a turning point if the wins keep coming.
On Friday evening, combined with the hitting parade, was a fine performance on the mound by Nate Plummer. Just a 16-year old newcomer, Plummer had some tough outings to begin the season, but turned in his best effort of the season with a compete-game two-hitter. Plummer struck out seven, walked a pair and threw just one bad pitch, a two-run home run by Noah Langer in the top if the second inning that accounted for all of Steel Connections’ scoring.
Plummer was in trouble just once other than the second inning. In the fourth, a pair of errors and a walk loaded the bases for Steel Connections with one out. Plummer bore down to record a strikeout, and a ground out to first baseman Chad Coho to strand all three base runners.
“Nate Plummer pitched a whale of a ball game,” said Davis. “He got off to some tough outings, but now has pitched well in two straight games and is becoming a force to be reckoned with on our pitching staff. He was throwing strikes, got behind on very few counts, and made them put the ball in play. He had seven strikeouts and only two walks, and had no ball-two strike counts on 10 batters and got outs on all 10.”
Jake Manning walked to begin the bottom half of the first inning, played at Stadium Drive field in Bellwood. Jimmy Watters, who had the best game of his two-year federation career, slugged the third pitch he saw from Steel Connections starter Nick Pettenati on a line drive over the right center field fence for a two-run homer. Coho reached on an error, and Mike Albright belted a double to put runners at second and third. Alex Miller drove in  Coho with an RBI grounder and when the ball was thrown away, Albright scored and Miller continued on to second base.
In the second with two outs, Watters and Nate Gray cracked back-to-back doubles, with Watters scoring on Gray’s two-bagger. Coho was hit by a pitch, and Albright, who had his second three-hit game in a row, singled to score Gray,
Up 6-2, Martin Oil batted around and then some in the home half of the fourth. A total of 13 batters paraded to the plate, unlucky for Steel Connections, with eight of them scoring.
Watters rapped his second double to open the inning and closed out the scoring later in the inning, with a bad-hop single to right that scored two runs. Gray and Coho walked, following Watters two-base hit, to load the bases. Albright, who was three-for-three with two walks, against Steel Connections on Wednesday, when the two teams played at Asheville, then blooped a ball into short left field that fell in for a single to score Watters. Alex Miller walked to force home Gray, then Plummer helped himself with a double just inside the third-base line for a double that scored Gray and Coho. Trey Mock walked and with one out, Jake Manning singled on a bad-hop into right to plate Albright and Miller. Watters then scored Zach Doyle and Mock with his fourth base hit of the game.
“We finally may have gotten on track at the plate,” said Davis. “Everybody had a part in the win today. Jimmy Watters and Mile Albright really had terrific days at bat. That is the way we expected them to hit. Plummer helped himself with a single and double. I think, this group may finally be coming together as a team.”
Martin Oil (9-6) hosts second-place ReMax (11-2),. at Bellwood’s Stadium Drive field today at 2 p.m
Martin Oil 14  Steel Connections 2, Inn.
Steel Connections – Smick, cf-p, 3-0-0; N. Pettenati, p-cf, 3-0-0; Link, 2b, 2-0-0; Nash, c, 2-0-1; Jeffries, ss, 1-1-0; Langer, 3b, 1-1-1; Rickens, rf, 2-0-0; McCoy, lf, 1-0-0; A. Pettenati, lf-p, 1-0-0; Bem, 1b, 2-0-0. TOTALS 18-2-2.
Martin Oil – Ja. Manning, c, 3-2-1; Watters, rf, 4-3-4; Gray, ss, 2-2-1; Gorby, ph, 1-0-0; C. Coho, 1b, 1-2-0; Doyle, cr-ph, 1-1-1; Albright, 3b, 3-2-3; Davis, cr-ph, 1-0-0; A. Miller, lf, 2-1-0; Plummer, p, 3-0-2; DeGennaro, cr, 0-0-0; Mock, cf, 2-1-0; J. Coho, 2b, 0-0-0; Kovac, dh, 3-0-0. TOTALS 26-14-11.