Tri-Co's South Whitehall plays it cool and beats ICC

By Ted Meixell
Of The Morning Call

 

With an influx of young talent and a new upbeat "attytood," the Tri-County League North Division-leading ICC Pirates figured it'd be a cold day in June when the South Whitehall Serpents could slither into Bethlehem Township and beat them in their own yard, the Serpents' own four-game winning streak notwithstanding.

Precisely.

The South Division-contending Serpents (they're chasing defending Tri-Co champ Limeport and Gabelsville) made it five in a row Wednesday night with a 9-2 romp over the Pirates. The calendar read June 3 -- and it was cold, baby, cold!

The Serpents (6-2) took full advantage of some shoddy Pirates defense to score six times in the second inning. Then they stood back and watched crafty left-hander Bruce Sokol hogtie the townshippers with location and changes of speed for his second complete-game victory in as many starts.

"The pitcher was the star of the game," Manager Kevin Hutter said, deferring to Sokol, who limited the normally hard-hitting Pirates (also 6-2) to seven hits, despite posting only one strikeout. Since he doled out four walks and hit a batter, and his teammates committed two errors, Sokol spent a lot of time pitching from the stretch. He found the pitches he needed to strand 12 Pirate base-runners.

"That's five straight complete games by our pitchers," said Hutter, who plans to use hard-throwing lefty Rob "Gunner" Gontkosky Friday night (7:30) at Limeport and also uses Judd Frank and Todd Schmalze on the mound. "Gontkosky also has two straight complete-game wins, and he's got at least 22 strikeouts."

ICC starter Joe Stavisky, an East Stroudsburg University grad and Montoursville native, didn't pitch badly, either. In fact, he pitched well. But he had his own problems afield, and they helped the Serpents to those six second-inning tallies.

Frank beat out an infield hit to start the second inning, and Stavisky walked Eric Csenscits, who was trying to bunt, on four pitches. Paul Woodling did get a bunt down, but the sacks were loaded with no one out when third baseman Cory Schneck bobbled it.

Designated-hitter Lou Falco followed with a "seeing-eye" single that took a huge hop over shortstop Jarrett Hughes' head and plated two runs. John Hymans knocked in the third run with a flare to right that should have been caught, after which Hutter dropped another bunt. Stavisky fielded it and tried to gun down Woodling at third, but he threw wildly and another run scored. Ray Schwartz's two-run single capped the outburst.

The Pirates got one back in the bottom of the inning on a triple by Tim Gluck and Chris Medei's sacrifice fly, and another in the fourth on Josh Mohlmann's RBI-single, but Sokol refused to allow them to make any further inroads.

"Ironically," Hutter said, "those were the first two sacrifice bunts we've gotten down all year. They sure helped."

"Maybe we got caught looking ahead a little bit, to Limeport," said Pirates' skipper Mike Brosious. ICC also plays the Bulls this weekend (at 7 p.m. Saturday, in a game that will be televised by Service Electric Cable TV).

Both Hutter and Brosious agree ICC will see Bulls' ace Dennis Kinney, even though Limeport and the Serpents are in the same division.

"Two reasons," Brosious said. "It's part of that Bucky Dent clinic they're running that day. And it's on TV."

TRI-COUNTY LEAGUE

Sports Page 2, Stahley's 1 -- Jim Brezak and Jeff Maglowski came up with RBI fielder's choices in the first and second innings before a Tri-County League pitcher's duel developed as Sports Page improved to 7-2 on Wednesday.

Joe Corvino tossed a four-hitter and struck out six for the win. Chris Frey scattered six hits and struck out five.

Stahley's (4-3) picked up an RBI-single in the sixth from Matt Hlay.

Lehigh Township 9, Milford 6 -- Shawn Andrews belted a two-run double in the top of the eighth inning for the winning runs as Lehigh Township kept Milford winless in Tri-County League baseball on Wednesday.

Steve Smull also drove in a pair of runs for Lehigh Township, which dropped Milford to 0-10 on the season.

Upper Perk 10, Quakertown 3 -- Upper Perk benefitted from good pitching from right-hander John Ziegler (five-hitter, 10 Ks, six walks), who went the distance, and from the home-run hitting of Bob Graber and Andy Hawkins, each with a two-run shot, in Upper Perk's Tri-Co win over Quakertown.

UP's Mark Rodenberger had two hits, and Quakertown got two hits and three RBIs from Brian Schaffer.

The win puts Upper Perk at 4-6; Quakertown has now dropped six.

Valley Athletics 18, Cetronia 17 -- Valley Athletics barely escaped Cetronia with a win after 41 hits produced 35 runs of which Valley Athletics had the greater number (18-to-17) in Tri-County League action at Cetronia.

Homering for Cetronia were Tommy Williams, who was 3-for-5 with three RBIs and two runs scored. For VA, Mike Turrano had four hits and two RBIs, and Pat Sedler, brother Joe and catcher Greg Kosciolek each had three hits.

Valley is 3-6; Cetronia is 1-6.



ted.meixell@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- June 4, 1998

Copyright © 1998, The Morning Call