Jul 3, 2002 By Jim Kriek For The 3 min read

MILL RUN – A late afternoon rain in the mountain area cooled off everything except Mill Run’s bats. Mill Run broke loose for 16 hits to back up the pitching of Todd Bell and Doug Gallick on the way to a 12-1 win over Anthony Crane in County League action Tuesday, doing all its scoring in the first three innings.

Bell worked a four-hit shutout over the first five innings, and then Gallick came on for the last two innings and ceded two singles and the only Crane run. The visitors escaped the collar in the seventh when Jason Greene walked to lead off, took second on an error, went to third on an out and scored on Bill Rouse’s single.

Mill Run manager Bugs Orndorff was happy with the win, but he was just as happy with the offense that led to the win, noting, “Sixteen hits, now that’s the way a Mill Run team is supposed to hit the ball. We had been dragging our feet a little bit at the plate, but we came alive today.

“We had all the ingredients needed to win a game, good pitching, good hitting, good defense everything that gets you a win and gives a pitcher confidence on the mound. As a manager, I couldn’t ask for more than they gave us today.”

Crane had a couple early threats going, leaving the bases loaded in the fourth and two runners aboard on three other occasions. But until the seventh, only two runners advanced past second. Both pitchers were effective in keeping the ball in the infield with only two putouts recorded by the Mill Run outfield, both by Rich Orndorff in center.

Anthony Crane manager Lou Pasquale said, “They had that big first inning, but after the second it was a better game. Pitching and hitting were the big points for them today. They got the hits and made the most of them.”

Crane was also missing three regulars.

Ron Dellarose and Rouse split four of the Crane hits, with Pasquale having the other. Mill Run’s offense was led by Jeremy Miller with a home run, triple, single, and five RBI and Orndorff with three doubles and three RBI. Jim Warrick had a double, and Dennis Show, John Warrick, Mike Doppelheuer and Dan Gratchic all had two hits.

Mill Run iced the game in the first inning, taking a 7-0 lead. Show led off and hit the first pitch for a single; Kris Firestone singled; Miller tripled them in; John Warrick singled; and with one out, Jim Warrick doubled; Gratchic was hit by a pitch; Orndorff hit his first double; and Show, up for the second time in the inning, again hit the first pitch to single in the final two runs.

It was 8-0 in the second when Miller walked, stole second and came around on an out and Doppelheuer’s single.

The final four runs crossed in the third. Gratchic singled, Orndorff doubled him in, Show was aboard on an error, and with two out, Miller homered to center to the Little League field fence.

Anthony Crane (6-9-1) plays today at Masontown, while Mill Run (10-6-1) is off until Sunday, then plays a doubleheader at Perryopolis, starting at 1 p.m.