Blue Streaks fall apart late as Barons walk it off in the 7th

Following the loss of a regularly scheduled game last Thursday at Solanco due to rain, Monday afternoon’s home game against Manheim Central was in jeopardy of also being postponed with heavy rains inundating Lancaster County all morning. While the Blue Streaks field was in no condition to play a ball game, the Barons were able to play host on their updated turf field in Manheim. Township has taken 4 of the last 5 meetings between these two teams including the 9-1 regular season road win in 2023.

Batting in the top of the 1st for the first time this season, the Blue Streaks made some noise early. A 1-out walk to Jacob Carrasco and 2-out walk to Josh Boll allowed a bloop single to right-center off the bat of Traeton Sauder to make it 1-0 MT right away. Tyler Shirk, making his first ever Varsity start as a sophomore, took the mound for the Blue Streaks in the bottom of the 1st. A fielding error and walk set the Barons up to counter on the scoreboard with only 1 out, but a 4-6-3 double play for Kaden Kemp, Christian Kleckner, and Trey Eckman snuffed the opportunity.

While the Township offense went quiet for the next few innings, Shirk stayed strong on the mound allowing no more than a handful of hits while striking out a couple and keeping Central quiet. The Blue Streaks scored their second run in the top of the 5th after Kleckner singled, stole second, and scored on an overthrow of a Ben Connors grounder to third base. Shirk (5 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 3 K) finished his day strong with a scoreless 5th inning while picking up his third strikeout on the day and preserving a 2-0 MT lead. 

In the top of the 6th, Connor Delvecchio, pinch running for Kemp after a leadoff walk, scored three batters later on an Andrew Flury SAC fly to center field to push the Township lead to 3. The home team found some life in the bottom of the 6th after loading the bases on Township’s first reliever JJ Good. Sauder entered from the DH role to the mound, still with no outs, and the Barons tied up the game 3-3 on a pair of singles and a wild pitch before the 6th inning wrapped.

A 1-out walk to Ryan Turner in the top of the 7th followed by a fielder’s choice on a Connors grounder, a stolen base, and wild pitch landed the go-ahead runner on 3rd with 2 outs and Carrasco at the plate. A 7-pitch at bat ended with a strikeout and Central held the 3-3 tie heading into the final half inning. The Barons put two men on with no outs in the bottom of the 7th before a slow roller back to Sauder on the mound led to a collision at 1st on the throw over. The winning run crossed the plate as the passed ball on the play trickled towards the Township dugout. MC 4, MT 3.

With more rain in the forecast this week, the schedule could change, but for now we will be on the road at Warwick on Wednesday afternoon for our first Section 1 contest on the young season. 4:15 PM first pitch.