DUBOIS, Pa. – Down 8-1 following a Carter Himes grand slam in the third inning, DuBois kept chipping away before exploding for nine sixth-inning runs on its way to a 15-8 come-from-behind victory over rival DuBois Central Catholic in the baseball version of the City Classic at Showers Field in DuBois.
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“(The mood) was a little down (when it was 8-1),” DuBois’ Hunter Allman, whose pinch-hit, two-run single in the sixth gave the Beavers the lead, said. “But we were trying to keep it up at that point, just keep it going. It was the third inning. We knew there was a lot of game to play. Clearly, it worked out in the end.”
Rallying really wasn’t something new for the Beavers, who have found themselves behind at different times during the season only to rally back into games.
“We really just never give up,” Allman said. “It’s just standing more battle counts, getting hits when they are needed, drawing walks. It’s just really a big team effort to pull back and get a win.”
Allman had a hit when it was needed.
After the Beavers had scored three in the fourth and two in the fifth to get within two, 8-6, they pushed across a run in the sixth on a wild pitch and had the bases loaded when manager Dan Bowman called on Allman to pinch hit.
The junior, who came in just 4 of 19 on the year, got behind in the count 1-2 before taking a ball from Brayden Fox and then ripping the 2-2 pitch into the hole between first and second to score two runs to give DuBois the lead.
“I was really nervous going in,” Allman said. “But, I have seen that pitcher before. I was really prepared to go in there and battle off. When it got down to two strikes, I just knew I had to put something in play. I put it through the four hole. It was very exciting.”
Watch the full Cole Orthodontic Associates postgame interview from Allman, who was named the Allegheny Grille of Foxburg Player of the Game.
In a game that lasted over three hours and was played in a steady rain, strikes were hard to come by for DCC pitchers.
Five Cardinal hurlers threw 208 pitches in six innings but only 110 for strikes.
That led to 12 walks and a hit batter. Add five errors in there and it is easy to see how DuBois was able to mount the comeback.
Four walks, an error, and a balk helped DuBois get within 8-4 with two runs in the fourth before three more walks in the fifth helped give the Beavers two more runs with Tyler Chamberlin also also delivering an RBI single.
Then came the sixth with Carter Himes on the mound for DCC.
Noah Farrell led off by being hit by a pitch, and then a double play ball hit by Kaden Clark turned into just one out when Andrew Green had to flip the ball with his glove to second for the only out.
Then a throwing error on Green on a ball hit by Sammi Deeb opened the floodgates with a wild pitch getting the Beavers within a run before Allman’s go-ahead single off Fox.
A grounder by Chamberlin turned into a run when Himes, now at shortstop, threw late and high to home before a bases-loaded walk to Trey Wingard made it 11-8.
A wild pitch and an error on the wild pitch by catcher Trent Miller then made it 13-8 before a Kaden Clark infield single made it 14-8 before a throwing error on pitcher Blake Pisarcik made it 15-8.
Early on it was all DCC against Tycen Roy, the DuBois starter.
The Cardinals scored three times in the first before adding five in the third capped by Himes’ granny to take the 8-1 lead.
But Farrell came on in relief and settled things down going 4 ⅔ innings of scoreless relief to get the win. He struck out eight, walked one, and hit a batter.
Chamberlin and Kaden Clark led the DuBois offense with Chamberlin going 2-for-5 with two RBIs and three runs scored and Clark going 2-for-5 with an RBI and three runs scored.
Ricky Clark drew four walks and scored three times.
Miller was 1-for-2 with a run scored and two RBIs for DCC while Pirarcik was 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored.
Himes took the loss in relief going 1 ⅔ innings allowing five runs, four earned, on two hits, five walks, and a hit batter. He struck out one.
