Recap

On Tuesday afternoon, Manheim Township was on the road for the 2nd straight day to play their fifth game in six days. The Hempfield Black Knights were able to get out to an early lead and Township never was able to regain their footing after falling behind. Nick Kurtz took the mound for the Blue Streaks for the second time this season, however this game ended a bit differently than the first. Hempfield’s offense got off to a fast start by putting 2 runs up in the 1st inning to take an early 2-0 lead. Township struggled to get men on base early in the game. Tom Cesarone and Ben DeMarcoreached base in the 2nd inning but did not have the opportunity to score.

Kurtz settled down in the 2nd inning and retired 3 of 4 Hempfield batters for a quick half inning. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the 3rd, Kurtz was able to get out of the jam with a fielder’s choice from DeMarco to Colin Yablonski at 2nd base. Township bats went silent through the middle of the game as they were retired in order 1-2-3 in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th innings. Hempfield tacked on 3 more runs to chase Kurtz from the game with no outs in the 4th inning. Josh Long came in to pitch for the Blue Streaks for the first time this season. The Black Knights added a 4th run before being retired with a 6-0 lead after 4 innings.

Hempfield extended their lead to 8-0 before Township was able to get on the board in the top of the 6th. Long, in his first AB of the season, lined a double down the left foul line and stood up at 2nd as Township’s first baserunner in three innings. Jordan Yablonski came in as a courtesy runner and scored on a single by his brother, Colin. Long sat down Hempfield in order in the bottom of the 6th before Township struck for two additional runs in the top of the 7th. With 2 outs, DeMarco, Colin Morrisette, and Rece Bender each singled and brought DeMarco across the plate for MT. A wild pitch allowed Morrisette to score before the end of the game, but it was too little, too late at that point. The final score was Hempfield 8, Township 3.