Gilbertsville goes 1-up in Tri-Co

By Keith Groller
Of The Morning Call


Gilbertsville manager Todd Slonaker had a simple explanation for his team's 7-0 victory over Coplay last night in the opening game of the Tri-County League Seasonal Championship Series at the Boyertown Junior High East field.

"They made mistakes and we didn't," said Slonaker, whose club took a 1-0 advantage in the best-of-three series which resumes at 8:15 p.m. tonight at Coplay's Balliet Stadium. A third game, if necessary, would be played at 1 p.m. tomorrow back at Gilbertsville.

In the league's postseason playoff tournament last night, Scott Davis pitched a no-hitter to lead Quakertown to a 1-0 win over Limeport and Upper Perk edged Salisbury 8-7.

The Coplay-Gilbertsville series would appear to be evenly matched since Coplay, in just its second season in the league, took the North Division title with a 21-6 regular season mark, while Gilbertsville won its last 13 games and 17 of its last 18 to finish atop the South at 23-4.

But last night, the similarity between the two teams ended with their uniforms (both wore bright red shirts and dark blue pants).

In a horrendous fourth inning, Coplay committed three errors leading to five Gilbertsville runs and that was more than enough for Gilbertsville pitcher Lew Chillot, who was hardly unhittable, but wound up with a six-hit shutout.

"Lew wasn't overpowering," said Slonaker, whose club won both the seasonal and playoff titles a year ago. "In fact, he had just two strikeouts. But what I like about him is that he grits his teeth and gets pumped up to pitch in the key games. He's a finesse pitcher who needs to keep the ball down. When he got it up tonight, they took the ball for a ride. Fortunately, he kept it down most of the night."

Through the first three innings, Coplay's Lou Falco matched Chillot in a duel of lefthanders. In fact, Falco was breezing along with a two-hit shutout when the fourth inning fielding follies began.

Jeff Evans led off the inning with a single to left - the only sharply hit ball Gilbertsville had in the frame - and Keith Endy followed with a walk. Charlie Baer, trying to move the runners up, then laid down a bunt. Falco fielded the ball, but had trouble getting it out of his glove. Then his throw to third sailed down the leftfield line, allowing Evans to score.

Then with one out and the bases loaded, Barry Moyer tapped back to Falco, who alertly threw home for the force and the start of a possible double play. But first baseman Bill Pugh dropped catcher Bill Bartholomew's relay throw, allowing Baer to score.

Pugh, having trouble shielding the sun from his eyes, then dropped third baseman Chuck Mondschein's throw on a routine grounder, allowing yet another run to score. Scott Gilbert then capped the inning by punching a two-run single to center to make it 5-0.

"That was a very good at bat by Scott," said Slonaker. "He's a left-handed batter going against a left-handed pitcher. But he hung in there and punched the ball and got us two runs."

Jim Emerick relieved Falco in the fifth and surrendered a two-run single to Baer in the sixth. By then, Coplay was already looking ahead to Game 2.

"Everything went wrong for us in that one inning," said Falco, who suffered his first defeat after seven straight wins. "But we can't make excuses. We just gotta come back at them and play solid, fundamental baseball. The fundamentals were missing tonight."



keith.groller@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- August 2, 1985

Copyright © 1985, The Morning Call