Tim Ewring on his game-winning hit and the comeback win for the Jr. Ducks @EcybTournaments pic.twitter.com/v8DwpxBpne
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 5, 2021
Tim Ewring stepped to the plate in the fifth inning with his Jr. Ducks trailing Beast Crimson, 4-3. After a wild pitch tied the game, there was much less pressure on him and he delivered in a big way, ripping a two-run double to give the Ducks a 6-4 lead. It was a lead they would not relinquish although Beast did threaten in the last half inning.
Jr. Ducks Valiendo are a very talented team that entered this matchup with a record of 2-0 in pool play of the Labor Day Bash Powered by Axcess Baseball. They were facing another great team in the Beast Crimson, so it would take a near-flawless effort to come out on top.
After exchanging zeros in the first inning, the Jr. Ducks got on the board in the second inning on an RBI single to left field by Dom Olivo. It scored Ty Stark who led off reaching on an error by the third baseman.
The lead did not last long, though, as Beast Crimson broke through against Duck’s starter TJ Walsh. The rally began on a leadoff walk drawn by CJ Davis who moved to second on a single by Oren Haik. After a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt advanced both runners to scoring position, Ronan D’Amico came through with a two-run single that blooped in front of the left fielder.
Hunter Roegge fired a 1-2-3 inning in the third inning to keep the score 2-1 and get his offense back in the dugout. In the top of the fourth, the Beast increased their lead. John Drew led off with a two-strike double to left field and he scored on a double by Connor DeKenipp to left field to make it 3-1. That would be extended to 4-1 when the following batter, Jack Pfeifer ripped an RBI single up the middle to score DeKennip.
The Jr. Ducks went to the bullpen, calling on hard-throwing Michael Tramaglini. It was a critical time in the ballgame and the decision paid off tremendously as Tramaglini retired the next three batters in order to keep his team in the game.
In the home half of the fourth. leadoff batter Logan Urtnowski ripped a double over the center fielder’s head to get things going. He would score when the next batter, Steve Gervasi singled him home to cut the deficit to 4-2. The third-hole hitter, Joe Maxwell, came through as well with an RBI single to right to score Gervasi and suddenly it was a one-run game. Roegge escaped the jam when he retired the next three hitters but the game was close.
Tramaglini worked around a two-out walk to D’Amico in the fifth to fire a scoreless inning and keep his team in the game.
The game flipped in the home half of the fifth. Beast went to their bullpen and called on Connor DeKenipp. He allowed a leadoff walk to Dom Olivo to start the inning. Gavin Beisel reached on an error by the third baseman to put a runner in scoring position. A perfect bunt by Vinny Iorio put both runners in scoring position for Ewring. The 10-hole hitter watched one sail high and outside and away from the catcher to allow the pinch-runner to score the tying run. He then came through with a clutch two-run double to give the Ducks the 6-4 lead. To the credit of DeKenipp, he was able to avoid any further damage. He owes some credit to the center fielder who made a perfect throw to the plate to nail the runner attempting to tag up from third. This kept a run off the board and allowed DeKenipp to retire the next batter and keep the game close.
Final: Jr. Ducks 6, Beast Crimson 5
WP: Michael TramagliniTim Ewring go-ahead 2-R double @EcybTournaments pic.twitter.com/B8gJaRPvCz
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) September 5, 2021
In the top of the sixth, the Beast got a leadoff single by John Drew to put the pressure on. A walk drawn by DeKennip made the situation even more tense, but Tramaglini was able to bear down and coax a fly out to right, a fielder’s choice and a strikeout of the last batter to end the game.
With the win, the improved to 3-0 in league play and will play in the playoffs tomorrow at 9am. The winner will advance to the finals at 1:30pm.
