Connellsville Legion downs Farmington
CONNELLSVILLE – No manager likes to win a game any more than Kevin Henry does, but at the same time he was just as interested in the ingredients that went into forming that win. Connellsville started with seven runs in the first inning and rolled from there to an 18-3 American Legion Baseball win over Farmington Wednesday at the Connellsville High School Field with play stopped in the seventh inning under the Legion rule of one team having a 15-run lead over the other in the seventh.
Henry called the win “a big one for us, but you also have to remember that they (Farmington) are a young team. We got everybody into the game, and as a team we had some good hits to go with some good pitching. Tony Marciante, Andy Beucher, Travis Henry and Chris Marcinko all had some hard hit balls and look like they might be coming on now with their bats.”
Connellsville (5-4, 3-1) led 7-0 after one and never looked back. Its 14-hit offense included Marciante’s a home run, single, five runs scored and three driven in; Bubba Fox’ three hits and three RBI’ two hits each by Marcinko and Henry (2 RBI); Eric Luckey’s triple and winning pitcher Phil Gratchic’s a grand slam home run.
Gratchic worked five innings, fanning nine, and then Jon Stutzman went the last two.
Henry said, “Stutzman has been after me all season to let him pitch, so I put him in today, and he did a very fine job for us. He kept them off the board and struck out the side in the seventh.”
Farmington manager Marty Fagler said, “We were short some players today; plus we have had a busy week with makeup games, which has given us a problem with pitching. I was pleased with the work of Sawka (pitcher Steve) today. He did well for not having been a pitcher until now.”
Connellsville got out to a 7-0 lead on a hit batsman, an error, Marciante’s single, another error and Henry’s single that made it 3-0. Luckey was safe on an error. Fox singled to load the bases, and with two down, Gratchic unloaded them with a high shot over the fence in left.
Farmington got two in the second on Howie King’s single, a fielder’s choice and two errors. Connellsville came right back with five on singles by Marcinko, Henry, Fox and Andy Beucher, sandwiched with two walks and three errors.
In the home fifth, Beucher was hit by a pitch, and with one out, Marciante hit up the right-center alley and raced around ahead of the throw back for a two-run homer. Farmington got its final run in the sixth on a walk to Gary King and two errors.
Connellsville closed with one out in the seventh on singles by C. Marcinko, Marciante and Tyler Leonard.
Connellsville has a busy slate ahead, playing league games today at Perryopolis and Friday at home with Masontown, followed by a Sunday a doubleheader (1 p.m.) with Keyser, W. Va., at the Potomac State College Field.