Gilbertsville gets Tri-Co season title

By Jack Lapos
Of The Morning Call


It's a jinx. Coplay just can't beat Gilbertsville in the Tri- County League. Gilbertsville last night whipped Coplay for the eighth straight time in two years 12-6 to repeat as seasonal champion as their series came to an end in Coplay.

Gilbertsville, which won at home 7-0 over Coplay in the opener Thursday, thus takes a 15-game winning streak and 24-4 overall record into the post- season playoffs. Gilbertsville also won the playoff title a year ago.

"I am surprised and I'm not," Gilbertsville Manager Todd Slonaker exclaimed. "I knew we had a lot of talent on the team to repeat as champion this year," he said. "However, after we started out with a 6-3 record this year I was not so optimistic.

"As you know," he pointed out, "out guys have gone out and won their next 18 out of 19 games and I do feel we have good momentum as we enter the post-season playoffs Sunday.

"Right now I feel good about things," he noted. "Our pitching staff is rested . . . our club is on a roll . . . obviously we have put it all together."

Gilbertsville last night did indeed look like a team that had put it all together by jumping into a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning and never looking back. Gilbertsville's lead grew to 8-1 in the second inning and then it was fairly easy sailing the rest of the way.

Kevin Mackey was the starting and winning pitcher. He got into a an argument with the home plate umpire in the sixth inning and was ordered out of the contest. Tom Murphy finished up. Coplay collected a total of eight hits against the pair of righthanders.

Coplay, now 21-7 as it approaches the post-season playoffs, used three hurlers. Righthander Rich Fenstermaker was the starter and loser. Jim Emerick, also a righty, came on in the sixth and lefthander Steve Weidner pitched the last inning. Gilbertsville had 10 hits in all, nine of them given up by Fenstermaker. Four errors also hurt Coplay's cause. Bill Sassaman of Gilbertsville was the only player in the contest to register as many as three hits. He also came up with a sparkling defensive performance in center field much like the days when he was a standout for the Allentown Wings of the Atlantic Collegiate League.

The game's biggest blow was a home run over the left-center fence by Gilbertsville's Derrick Acker with two men on base in the second inning.

Gilbertsville's four-run outburst in the first inning saw 10 men go to bat. Keith Endy and Charlie Baer each batted across a run. The other runs came on a wild pitch and an error.

Coplay made it 4-1 in its time at bat on a run-producing single by Eric Csencsits.

Acker's homer was the key hit in the beginning of the second. The other run came on a double by Jeff Evans.

After Gilbertsville tallied in the top of the third on an RBI single by Sassaman, Coplay cut the deficit to 9-4 in bottom of the inning. One run scored on an error and the other on a single by Matt Mondschein, who had two hits for the night.

Gilbertsville boosted its advantage to 10-4 in the fifth on an RBI single by Sasssaman and a long fly out by Scott Gilbert.

Coplay came back again, scoring twice in the sixth on a wild pitch by Mackey, who then was tossed out of the game.. Mackey insisted Coplay had interfered at home and of course he lost the argument with the ump.

Gilbertsville then wrapped up the chilly night's scoring with two runs in the final frame. One of the runs came on a Scott Gilbert single and the other on a bases-loaded walk to Baer.

As far as the regular schedule was concerned, Gilbertsville won the Southern Division title and Coplay the Northern Division crown.



  

From The Morning Call -- August 3, 1985

Copyright © 1985, The Morning Call