College juniors put Owls on brink of title

Allen, Hoffman pitch Gabelsville to a 2-1 lead in the best-of-5 series.

By Ted Meixell
Of The Morning Call

 

Thanks to huge efforts from a pair of college juniors-to-be — Villanova's Nick Allen and DeSales' Kyle Hoffman — the Gabelsville Owls (32-11) will wake up this morning knowing they're just one win removed from their fourth Tri-County League championship in five years, their 13th overall and their 12th since 1984.

Allen, who slipped to a 5-7 record for 'Nova last spring after a superb 6-1 freshman season, used pinpoint control (he walked just one) and a diving slider to pitch a four-hitter and lead the Owls to a 4-1 win over visiting Lehigh Township (24-18) Tuesday evening.

The victory gave the Owls, who lost the first game of the best-of-five title series, a two-games-to-one lead.

They'll send Justin Konnick to the mound in Game 4 at 5:45 tonight at Bryfogle Park in Berlinsville to try to close out the series. He'll probably be opposed by first-game winner Nick Bowen, although Lehigh Township skipper Shawn Andrews said his final choice will be made at game time.

For a long time, though, it appeared Allen's great pitching would go unrewarded. Brewers right-hander Ryan Amey, an East Stroudsburg University hurler, outpitched Allen for five innings, blanking the Owls on five hits.

Enter Hoffman, a mainstay for DeSales coach Tim Neiman.

Gabelsville broke through against Amey in the sixth. It tied the game when Jason Irey blooped a misjudged single to short left, was sacrificed to second by Pete Colon and, after a walk to Al Fitch, scored on Matt Danner's sharp single off the glove of diving second baseman Joe Bubba.

Amey then made a rare mistake, serving a belt-high fastball to Hoffman, who drilled it over the fence in right-center for a winning three-run home run.

''You get a bit nervous coming down to the end and you're down a run,'' said Allen. '' was throwing very well, but our guys always find a way to get me some runs.''

Allen pitched ''only a couple of games'' for the Owls last year and is completing his first full season.

''I pitched in the New England college league last summer,'' he said. ''It's one of the best around. That didn't work out for me this year because we waited too long. Actually, though, it's worked out well for me here. I had a kind of rough spring , but I've gotten back on track.''

Of his winning bolt, Hoffman said, ''I felt a little relaxed because we'd tied the game and had a runner at third with one out. I went up there hacking, got a fastball, hit it hard and it went out.''

He wasn't thinking home run, though.

''I was just thinking about putting a good swing on a pitch,'' he said. ''A sac fly would have been just fine if it got the lead run in.''

Earlier in the second, Hoffman made a bid to give the Owls the early lead. After Fitch led off with a single, Hoffman smacked one almost, but not quite, as far to right-center. But a perfect relay from right fielder Brandon Leslie to Bubba to catcher Eric Schmitt easily nailed Fitch at the plate.

''That was a real good performance by both pitchers,'' said Owls boss ''Doc'' Moyer. ''We hadn't seen before and had no idea what to expect. But Nick bailed us out, just as he has all year.''

''We did ,'' Andrews said, ''but it was exactly the kind of game we expected with the pitching matchups.''


Lehigh Twp.  000 010 0 — 1 4 0

Gabelsville     000 004 x — 4 8 2


Ryan Amey and Eric Schmitt; Nick Allen and Matt Danner. WP - Allen. LP - Amey. HR - G: Kyle Hoffman (6th, 2 on).



ted.meixell@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- August 20, 2003

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