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PHILADELPHIA – Kevin Gillen tried to sneak a first-pitch fastball past Billy Fleming in the second inning of Tuesday’s Carpenter Cup semifinal game at Citizens Bank Park.
Not a good idea.
Council Rock South’s gifted sophomore got all of it, ripping a double to deep right center off the St. Joe’s Prep senior ace that plated a pair of runs.
“I was going to go up there looking first-pitch fastball since he gave me one my last at-bat, and I just tried to jump on it and put it in the gap,” Fleming said.
Fleming’s clutch two-out double spotted the SOL National-Bicentennial squad a 3-0 lead over the Philadelphia Catholic League, and the SOL-BAL held on for a 3-2 win to earn a spot in Wednesday’s title game against Burlington County at Citizens Bank Park at 10 a.m.
“We thought it was going to be a pitching battle because both teams have great pitching,” Fleming said. “It was great to go out and get three runs and try and see if we could hold it, and we did.”
While Fleming delivered the big blow at the plate, a quartet of SOL-BAL pitchers silenced the bats of a dangerous Philadelphia Catholic League lineup.
Abington’s Jake Ruch tossed three scoreless innings to open the game, and Holy Ghost Prep’s Andrew Strenge closed it out with three near-perfect innings, fanning the side in a one-two-three ninth. In between Truman’s Josh Patman and Neshaminy’s Ray Hyjurick were effective as well.
“You look at both of those lineups, and you never would have thought you would have a 3-2 game,” said Neshaminy coach Dennis Cox, an assistant for the SOL-BAL. “The pitchers from both sides did a phenomenal job.
“Jake is a (heck) of a pitcher, and we have a lot of faith in all of these guys. Jake was going to be our closer in the last game, but Strenge was throwing lights out, so we left him in there. There’s not a single kid who hasn’t done a really good job.”
Ruch- who notched the big win - allowed two hits in three strong innings to open the game, and he admits it was a thrill to get the starting nod.
“I was looking forward to it,” he said. “I was a little nervous at first, but I put it aside and did my job.”
In a tournament that has been dominated by the hitters, Tuesday’s game was a dramatic change of pace as the pitchers owned this one. The Catholic League managed just four hits while the SOL-BAL had five, but they bunched four of those in one inning – the fateful second.
Rock North’s Kelly Adams got the ball rolling when he lined a one-out double to deep left field. He scored on a two-out infield single by William Tennent’s Pat Traczykiewicz.
“There’s some nerves in there because you know you have to do your job, and your team is relying on you,” he said. “I tried to stay calm and put the ball in play somewhere and let it happen.”
The Tennent junior admitted that playing at Citizens Bank Park was a special thrill.
“It’s a dream come true,” Traczykiewicz said. “It hadn’t sunk in until I walked in, and then you just think about how you see people playing here on TV every day, and you think, ‘I’m going to be playing here.’ I was just stunned.”
Truman’s Johnny Schiotis kept the inning alive with a bloop double to shallow right center to put runners on second and third with two outs.
“They’re a great team,” he said. “I know a lot of their players, and they’re awesome.
“Jumping on them early was big because we knew they were going to score runs.”
And what was it like playing on the field the Phillies call their own?
“It’s an awesome feeling,” Schiotis said. “It would be more awesome if it was a full stadium, but it’s awesome looking up and seeing all the seats and (getting) the feeling the pros get when they come out on this field.”
Schiotis’ double set the stage for Fleming, who, despite the high stakes, says he wasn’t nervous.
“No nerves,” Rock South’s sophomore standout said. “Right when I came out, I was kind of struck, but after I got out on the field and started playing with these guys, all the nerves went away.
“It was a lot of fun.”
Fleming’s two-run double into the gap put the SOL-BAL on top 3-0.
“That was big,” Ruch said. “It gave me the extra confidence I needed to go in and keep at it.”
Ruch kept the Catholic League off the scoreboard for three innings, and the tone had been set.
“He was awesome,” said Abington coach Dave Torresani, an assistant for the SOL-BAL. “There’s a lot of pressure. First of all to start the game at Citizens Bank Park and to pitch against a team like the Philadelphia Catholic League - I was so proud of him.
“I told him before the game, ‘Go out there, take a deep breath, look around and do your job.’ He really had good stuff. It set the tone for the game.”
While the SOL-BAL managed just one hit the rest of the way – a one-out single by Truman’s Christopher Bechter in the sixth, the Catholic League began chipping away at the SOL-BAL’s lead. A two-out triple by LaSalle’s Tyler Freeman plated a run in the fourth.
In the fifth, Archbishop Wood’s Brian O’Grady hit a two-out RBI single to right to make it a 3-2 game. Neshaminy’s Ray Hyjurick worked a one-two-three sixth, and then Strenge came in to close it out.
“He’s a great pitcher,” Ruch said. “He throws strikes and gets the outs.”
The win propelled the SOL-BAL into Wednesday’s championship game where they will have a chance to defend a title they own.
“That’s important,” Traczykiewicz said. “From day one they said, ‘We’re the defending champs – defend our title,’ and that’s what we’re doing right now.”
“It feels great,” Schiotis added. “I wasn’t on the team last year, but a bunch of kids were. They said it’s awesome.
“Hopefully, we’ll repeat.”
There’s no mistaking the thrill of playing in Citizens Bank Park. Several players, according to Cox, put some dirt from the field into a Gatorade bottle to take home as a souvenir.
“You just get all your enjoyment from seeing the enjoyment on the kids’ faces,” the Redskins’ coach said. “Especially when they first come out here – it feels like they’re walking on air.
“Some of the kids were with us last year, but over half of them are new to the experience, and they’re just really taking it in.”
SOL NATIONAL-BAL 3, PHILADELPHIA CATHOLIC LEAGUE 2
Philadelphiia Catholic: Joe Aloia rf 3 0 0 0; Ben Keller rf 1 0 0 0; Brian O’Grady cf 3 0 1 1; Giovanni Morales cf 1 0 0 0; Mark Donato 1b 3 0 1 0; Jeffrey Courter 1b 1 0 0 0; Jeff Lynch dh 3 0 0 0; Jon Schmidt dh 0 0 0 0; Albert Baur 3b 2 1 1 0; Kevin Conroy 3b 1 0 0 0; Tyler Freeman ss 3 0 1 1; Marty Venafro ss 1 0 0 0; Joey Armata c 1 0 0 0; Michael Kerns c 2 0 0 0; Kyle McCrossen 2b 2 0 0 0; Mike Zolk 2b 1 0 0 0; Michael Riverso lf 1 1 0 0; Ryan Hires lf 1 0 0 0; Kevin Gillen p 0 0 0 0; Joseph Harvey 0 0 0 0; Ryan Etsell p 0 0 0 0. TOTALS 30 2 4 2
SOL National/BAL: Billy Fleming ss 3 0 1 2; Rick Brebner ss 1 0 0 0; Corey Hower dh 1 0 0 0; Scott Runzer dh 2 0 0 0; Greg Olenski c/1b 3 0 0 0; Brian Beyer c 1 0 0 0; Eric Ebert 3b 1 0 0 0; Shane Coleman 3b 2 0 0 0; Brad Lampson 1b 2 0 0 0; Ryan Seiz c/1b 1 0 0 0; Kelly Adams cf 2 1 1 0; Christopher Bechter cf 2 0 1 0; Nick Mascioli rf 2 0 0 0; Tyler Orr rf 1 0 0 0; Pat Traczykiewicz lf 2 1 1 1; Brian Fiocco lf 1 0 0 0; Johnny Schiotis 2b 1 1 1 0; Matt Hone 2b 1 0 0 0; Jacob Ruch p 0 0 0 0; Josh Patman p 0 0 0 0; Ray Hyjurick p 0 0 0 0; Andrew Strenge p 0 0 0 0. TOTALS 29 3 5 3.
Philadelphia Catholic 000 110 000 2-4-1
SOL National/BAL 030 000 00x 3-5-0
E-Philadelphia Catholic 1. LOB-Philadelphia Catholic 7, SOL-BAL 6. 2B-Donato, Fleming, Adams, Schiotis. 3B-Freeman. SB-Ebert
IP H R ER BB SO
PHILADELPHIA CATHOLIC
Gillen (L) 2 1/3 4 3 3 2 0
Harvey 3 0 0 0 1 5
Etsell 2 2/3 1 0 0 0 2
SOL NATIONAL-BAL
Ruch (W) 3 2 0 0 1 0
Patman 2 2 2 2 2 0
Hyjurick 2 0 0 0 2 0
Strenge 2 0 0 0 1 4
HBP-Etsell 1 (Seiz)
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