Connellsville breezes past Waynesburg, 13-2
If Gertrude Stein had been a sports writer instead of a poet, she might have written about this one, “a win is a win is a win.” A Duke’s Mixture of ingredients went into it, but Connellsville did what it went out on the field to do – win, and move within one step of clinching its division title.
The home team combined nine hits with 12 walks, four hit batters, and two errors to cook up a 13-2 win over Waynesburg in Fayette American Legion Baseball play Monday, and it will be going after the wrapup today.
The win left Connellsville 15-4 overall with three games left to play, and leading the North Division by three games over Charleroi in the loss column. Thus one more win will clinch the division for Connellsville, with their remaining games being today at Masontown, Wednesday at home with California, and the regular season finale on Thursday at Charleroi.
The only marring factor to the game was winning pitcher Matt Rupp sustaining an arm injury with one out left in the game. Manager Kevin Henry said “something popped in his arm when he threw the pitch. I can understand how he feels for the same thing happened to me and I needed surgery to correct mine. He will be examined to see the extent of the injury, and hopefully it’s not a bad one.”
Rupp threw no-hit ball the first five innings, then Scott Cree broke it up with a ground single between first and second, into right field. Tom Galosinski led off the seventh with a triple for the only other hit off Rupp.
Manager Henry added “Matt has the experience and knows what to throw when he gets in trouble. Plus Jon (catcher Stutzman) was calling a good game for him and he knows he has a good defense back of him.”
Also pleasing to Henry was “some of our hitters coming through. We have been struggling a little bit at the plate, but that happens to every team in every league, that’s part of baseball.”
Rupp helped his win along with a double, triple, and two RBI, Brandon Bryner had a triple and single, Chris Marsinko a triple, and Stutzman a double.
Waynesburg Manager Sam McLaughlin allowed “our defense wasn’t that bad, we just put too many on base with walks and hit batters, to go with their hits, plus we didn’t get a hit until the fifth. Connellsville is a good team and they will take advantage of anything you give them.”
Waynesburg led 1-0 in the first. Andy McLaughlin was hit by a pitch leading off, and moved around on a walk to Ross and two groundouts.
Connellsville tied in their first. With one out Chris Marsinko was nicked, Phil Gratchic walked, and Bryner and Stutzman were hit by pitches. They took the lead for good in the third on Bryner’s single, walk to Stutzman and an out. It was 4-1 in the fifth after Bryner and Stutzman walked, Shawn Durr singled, plus a fielders choice.
Waynesburg got its last run in the top of the sixth on a walk to Ross, Cree’s single, and Moore’s flyball.
Connellsville came right back with eight to ice the game. Chris Marsinko walked, Gratchic was aboard on an error, Bryner tripled them in, Stutzman walked, Rupp hit for two, Justin Marsinko was hit by a pitch, Andy Beucher singled, Chris Marsinko tripled, and Gratchic singled. The final run crossed in the seventh on Stutzman’s double and Rupp’s triple.