Brader/Stoltzfus homers not enough to secure Opening Day win

After a long nine month layoff, the Manheim Township Blue Streaks were eager to get their 2023 season started on the road at Solanco on Tuesday afternoon. After a four day delay due to rain last Friday, the Blue Streaks and Golden Mules met in Quarryville under partly cloudy skies to open the season.

The Township offense needed only 5 pitches to plate their first runs of the year after senior Tyler Mulholland drew a leadoff 4-pitch walk and fellow senior Ryan Brader sent his first pitch beyond the fence in right-center field. With an early 2-0 lead, two other Blue Streaks would reach base in the top of the 1st, but the score remained unchanged.

Gavin Glass was given the ball to take the mound for the Blue Streaks on this mild afternoon. After surrendering a leadoff double to Harnish, Glass collected a strikeout, ground out, and fly out to hold the early lead. He proceeded to strike out the side in the 2nd inning to grab full command of the game as Township’s offense looked for more runs to tack on to their lead.

Cole Stoltzfus, Township’s starting right fielder, sent the first pitch of his 1-out at-bat in the top of the 4th inning sailing over the left field fence to bump the Blue Streaks’ lead to 3-0. Later, with 1 out in the 5th, Township loaded the bases before Glass grounded into an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play to flip the momentum the Blue Streaks had built throughout the game in favor of the Golden Mules.

Capitalizing on the defensive momentum from the top of the 5th, Solanco’s Beiler, Milk, and Harnish each nabbed 1-out hits off of Glass in the bottom half of the inning. Now trailing only 3-1, an RBI squeeze bunt from Underwood and a bloop single to center tied the game at 3-3 with only 2 innings to play.

Looking to counter, Nick Tomlinson reached base on a single to third base to lead off the top of the 6th before pinch runner Traeton Sauder was picked off at 2nd during the very next at-bat. Solanco continued to roll at the plate using a walk and double off the fence in the bottom of the 6th to take their first lead of the day on Township, 4-3. Trey Eckman entered in relief of Glass after 5 1/3 and maintained the small deficit as the game entered the final frame.

With 3 outs to find a tying run, centerfielder Ty Jenkins led off the 7th with a line drive double to center field. A bunt single off the bat of Ben Connors behind him put two men on with no outs. Back-to-back fly outs from Ryan Peipher and Eckman could not bring either runner home and a 6-3 groundout closed out the Golden Mules’ opening day victory on their home field.

Manheim Township (0-1) will return to action on Friday 3/31 at 4:15pm as Solanco travels to Neffsville to complete the home and away series to kickoff the season.