DUBOIS, Pa. – From frustration to glory and ultimately the District 9 Class 4A title.
St. Marys went from leaving the bases loaded in three consecutive innings to finally getting a pair of big hits during a five-run sixth inning that turned a 3-1 deficit into a 6-3 win in the D9 4A championship game against Clearfield Monday afternoon at Showers Field in DuBois.
“You get a little bit of frustration,” St. Marys manager Jesse Beimel said. “You are just like, what do we have to do to get a run here? But everybody stayed together. They’ve been a good group like that. They stay really positive. They really play hard for each other. So we knew if we got another opportunity we were going to capitalize.”
Capitalize the Dutch (12-9) did.
After getting to within 3-2 on a bunt base hit by Charlie Coudriet that resulted in an error on Clearfield pitcher Morgan Billotte after second baseman Braison Patrick was late covering first base allowing Tysen Beimel to score the Dutch found themselves in a position to tie the game when Vinnie Lenze walked two batters later putting runners on first and second.
That brought up Carter Price, and the price was right as he roped a double down the left-field line scoring two giving St. Marys a 4-3 lead.
“I talked to my fellow teammate, Eli Rippey, and he said whatever happens happens, God is going to put the ball wherever it needs to go,” Price said. “I wasn’t nervous at all. I know my team would be proud of me no matter what. I know my dad had me in his thoughts. He would have done the right thing. Whatever happened, happened. Everything happens for a reason.”
Price was visibly excited as he stood on second base pumping his hands in the air.
“I was really hyped,” Price said. “We have been playing Clearfield for a long time. They always have a good team in every sport. So it feels good to beat them. They are a solid group of guys. They do their time in the gym and all that stuff, so it feels good to beat them.”
Watch Price’s full postgame interview
Rippey followed the Price double with a double of his own scoring two more runs to make it 6-3, and Charlie Coudriet did his job in the seventh allowing a hit batter but otherwise nothing else to finish off a solid relief performance when he got Wil Domico to pop out to right field to end the game.
The strong seventh inning helped secure the winning pitcher honor for Coudriet, who went four innings in relief of Bauer allowing two earned runs on three hits, a walk, and a hit batter while striking out three.
Bauer didn’t have his best stuff going three innings allowing an earned run on two hits and five walks while striking out two.
“(It was) a day where we’re our No. 1 didn’t have his best stuff,” Beimel said. “One B comes in and just pitches a great second half of the game.
“It’s, it’s amazing. I know that that’s what these seniors have been working towards their whole high school career. As a program, and I’m only in year two, but that’s that was our goal the last two years.”
Photo by Chris Rossetti
Clearfield took a 1-0 lead in the first when Billotte walked leading off the game and went to third on a single by Tony Lopez before scoring on a groundout by Hunter Rumsky.
But the damage could have been worse with Lopez on first and just one out. Bauer, though, struck out Hayvin Bumbarger before walking Cole Bloom and getting Domico to fly out to right.
The Bison made it 2-0 in the fourth when Billotte singled with two outs, stole second, and scored on a Lopez single to center.
St. Marys cut the lead in half in the bottom of the fourth when Price walked leading off the inning and was pinch ran for by Dan Schutz. Rippey followed with a single to left before Rumsky struck out the next two batters.
Tyson Beimel, though, loaded the bases with a single to right, and Bauer walked to score Shutz.
Photo by Chris Rossetti
Clearfield got the run back in the sixth when Christian Welker walked leading off the inning and was replaced by pinch runner Eli Quick, who scored on a two-out double to center by Billotte.
Rippey was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs while Charlier Coudiert was 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Billotte paced Clearfield going 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, a stolen bases, two runs scored, and an RBI.
Lopez was 2-for-4 with an RBI,
Billotte took the loss going 1 ⅓ innings allowing four earned runs on four hits and two walks while striking out one.
Rumsky started and went four-plus innings allowing one earned run on four hits and six walks while striking out six.
Craig Mays gave up one earned run on two hits in ⅔ of an inning.
St. Marys moves into a subregional with District 8’s Carrick. That game will be at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 30, at Showers Field in DuBois. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Bellefonte/Juniata game for the subregional title Thursday, June 1, at a District 6 site.
CLASS 2A
MONITEAU 6, CRANBERRY 1
BUTLER, Pa. – A five-run fifth inning lifted eighth-seeded Moniteau to a 6-1 win over Cranberry in the opening round of the District 9 Class 2A tournament at Michelle Krill Memorial Field at Historic Pullman Park in Butler.
The Warriors will face top-seeded Redbank Valley at Union High School at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Ian Ross had a pair of RBIs for Moniteau going 2-for-3 with two runs scored, while Dawson Wallace was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
Wallace got the win going 5 ⅔ innings allowing one earned runs on seven hits while striking out seven. Connor Ealy pitched 1 ⅓ innings scoreless allowing a hit and striking out one.
Austin Shoup was 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI for Cranberry with Cayden Baker going 2-for-3.
Shoup took the loss going 4 ⅔ innings allowing six unearned runs on seven hits, three walks, and a hit batter while striking out six.
