Brewers fall to Bulls in 8

Bases-loaded walk by Vito gives Limeport 2-1 semifinal series edge.


By Keith Groller
Of The Morning Call

 

Lehigh Township didn't get a victory Monday night in Limeport.

But the upstart Brewers did get a couple of things from the regular season champion Bulls in the third game of their more competitive than expected Tri-County League semifinal series.

At the very least, Lehigh Township got Limeport's attention, and, most likely, the Bulls' respect.

Of course, the Brewers wanted a victory even more, but that eluded them when Jonmichael Vito's bases-loaded walk with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning allowed Limeport to post a hard-fought 3-2 victory.

The Bulls (29-4) can earn a return trip to the Tri-Co's championship series with a win at 5:45 tonight in Berlinsville. A fifth game, if needed, would be played Wednesday night back in Limeport.

As much as the Bulls enjoy their home park and playing under the lights, they would prefer to skip the extra game.

"That's a good team over there," said Vito, who also singled and scored a run in the third inning. "This has been a great series so far. We've still got our work cut out for us. We've got to start hitting like Limeport."

The Bulls, who batted .370 as a team during the regular season, have scored three runs in the first three games of the series. That's the bad news.

The good news is that they have won two of those games.

"They have been pitching the hell out of the ball," said Limeport manager Scott Heppenheimer of the Brewers. "We haven't been hitting like we can. Fortunately, our pitchers have kept us in the games."

Veteran Randy Baer more than kept his team in the game with a three-hitter through six innings. However, he couldn't keep the Brewers' Jose Medina in the park with one out in the top of the seventh.

Medina slugged a 3-2 fastball over the left-field wall to tie the game.

Baer, who helped South Whitehall win the league title two years ago, wasn't flustered by the home run. He finished out the seventh without a problem and closed with a four-hitter before turning the ball over the Bulls' ace Chad Arnold, who worked a 1-2-3 eighth.

Meanwhile, Lehigh Township's Mike Petrucci scattered seven hits through the regulation seven. Three of those hits came in the third when Limeport broke through for a pair of runs on Joe Pochron's RBI single and Glenn Bubser's sacrifice fly.

Petrucci, showing some fatigue, walked off the mound after Glenn Kushma led off the eighth with a single through the middle. Medina came on in relief and struck out Bubser.

Medina seemed ready to escape as he intentionally walked Pete Remaly and got Steve Unger on a flyout to right. But then the walks weren't planned.

He walked Jeff Erie (2-for-3) to load the bases and then tossed four straight balls to Vito.

"I'm not usually very patient up there," said Vito, a Central Catholic grad. "I like to get in my swings.. I don't have too many walks this season. But in that situation, you got to find a pitch to hit. You don't want to be swinging at anything bad."

Heppenheimer wouldn't let him go hacking at all.

"I know he's a free swinger up there, that's why I had the take sign on for him," he said.

Only one of four pitches was close. The game-winner was outside and low.

Lehigh Township catcher and manager Shawn Andrews didn't blame his reliever.

"Jose hasn't pitched that much for us, so it was a gamble," he said. "We put him in there in a tough spot and he battled. If he threw strikes, he would have been tough. Maybe the ball got a little slippery, I don't know."

Andrews would like his team to remain elusive in Game 4 tonight. His 21-15 club, which had never won a playoff game before this year and then knocked off perennial power ICC in the first round, will remain pesky.

"We won't give up," Andrews promised. "We've still got Josh Friebolin to pitch for us. He's something special. I know he just pitched Saturday and has pitched 17 innings in the last week, but he'll go 17 more if we need him. He said he's got all winter to relax.

"We thrive on being the underdog and being counted out. This was one was tough, but it'll make us battle that much harder (tonight )."


Lehigh Township  001 000 10 -- 2 4 0

Limeport              002 000 01 -- 3 8 0


Petrucci, Medina (8) and Andrews; Baer, Arnold (8) and Vito. W: Arnold. L: Petrucci. HR: LT, Medina (7th, none on).



keith.groller@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- August 8, 2000

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