JOHNSTOWN —
Baltimore is the most storied franchise in the history of the AAABA Tournament, but the Youse’s Maryland Orioles were facing elimination Thursday morning against Philadelphia at Point Stadium only hours after playing Wednesday night and surviving a scare from Martella’s Pharmacy.
When the Bandits opened an early two-run lead, Baltimore’s chances of advancing to Thursday night’s showcase game against New Orleans looked perilous.
Then, the Orioles settled in and played well the rest of the way en route to a 9-4 victory.
Early on, the Orioles looked like a team a little weary from playing a draining game the night before.
“You’ve got to keep your energy up,” said Baltimore designated hitter Brady Sheetz, who reached base four times and finished with two RBI and two runs. “We gave up two runs early but then we shut them down.”
Sheetz has provided a big spark for the Baltimore offense.
He reached base as he reached base eight consecutive times during Baltimore’s last two games.
“I’ve been seeing the ball real well,” he said. “It’s easy though when everyone else around you is hitting too.”
Baltimore managed 10 hits off Philadelphia pitching and Orioles starting pitcher Lee Lester shook off the shaky start and went eight innings for the win.
“(Lester) was good and he got us to put the ball in play,” Bandits manager Mike Gossner said.
Leadoff hitter Kenny Koplove, a Duke University product, and Mike Zolk both finished with three hits. Zolk added two RBI for Philadelphia.
“The experience was phenomenal,” Gossner said. “The majority of our kids are high school kids, and this was great for them. The fifth inning is what did us in.”
Baltimore scored five in the fifth with run-scoring singles coming from Dom Fratantuono, Brenden Butler and Sheetz.
Local Sports
Baltimore ousts Philadelphia
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