Sugar Valley moves a step closer to playoffs
By John Lipez
LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – Bucktail and Sugar Valley Rural Charter staged a good one at Taggart Park in Lock Haven Friday afternoon, the Phoenix using a four-run bottom of the sixth to pull out a 5-3 win over their cross-county rivals.
The win was especially significant for Sugar Valley. Combined with a forfeit win when Neumann Regional Academy could not make its Friday finale with the Phoenix, Sugar Valley jumped to 8-8 and .500 on the season. If the Phoenix can hold that mark through its final few games into next week, the team would qualify for the District 4 1A playoffs for the first time in its better than quarter century history.
Friday’s contest started as a pitchers’ duel as Phoenix starter Bentley Andrus and Bucks’ starter Thomas Tarantella were in a 1-1 deadlock through the first five innings.
Things changed in the top of the sixth when the Bucks used singles from Tyler Hillyer, Levi Stevenson and Luca DeMarte to plate two runs and threatened for more but Sugar Valley brought in Layden Bryan to end the inning with a strikeout.
Sugar Valley answered back in the bottom of the inning, sending eight batters to the plate and scoring four runs. There were some hard hits, some infield hits, a two-RBI game-tying single from Bryan and a clutch two-RBI single from Dace Hastings for the go-ahead runs, all off the hard-luck loser Tarantella. Tyler Hillyer came in to get the final two outs with a strikeout and a groundout, but the Phoenix moved into the lead at 5-3.
Bryan pitched a 1-2-3 seventh for the Phoenix to quash any Buck comeback hopes.
Brody Swanger, Andrus and Daedrynn Hopkins all had two singles for the Phoenix, Tobias Conway, Bryan and Dace Hastings with a single each. DeMarte and Otis Emerick each had two singles for the Bucks, Hillyer, Stevenson and Teagan Stone one each.
Andrus and Bryan combined for eight strikeouts for the Phoenix. Coach Mike Toner said both hurlers have “come along very well…we asked them to throw strikes and they have.”
It was a cleanly played game on a windy day, both teams showing considerable improvement from earlier in the season. SV had downed the Bucks, 15-2, in their first meeting in Farwell in April. Bucktail was hampered by base-running errors in the second inning when two runners were caught in the vicinity of third base for outs.
Sugar Valley is scheduled to compete in a 4-team tournament at Northeast Bradford on Saturday, starting at 10 a.m., weather permitting. Back at .500 they need to at least split their two games Saturday and two early next week to make sure they’re in the districts. Bucktail, now 4-13, was scheduled to play Neumann Regional Academy Saturday but with the anticipated forfeit win, will move to 5-13.
Bu 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 = 3-7-1
SV 1 0 0 0 0 4 x = 5-9-1
