Northern takes series lead

Graver's tiebreaking RBI helps Yankees nip Volpe's 5-3 in Tri-County semifinals.

By Keith Groller
Of The Morning Call

 

J.R. Graver played on Coplay's back-to-back Tri-County League championship teams over the past two summers.

The franchise folded up last winter, but Graver and three other ex-Reds still have a chance at a three-peat.

Graver latched on with the Northern Yankees and he delivered the tie-breaking run with a seventh-inning single Wednesday night as his new team moved closer to the Tri-Co finals.

The Yanks added another run in the seventh and went on to beat Volpe's Fleetwings 5-3 to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five semifinal series.

Northern can earn its first-ever finals appearance with a win at 5:45 tonight at Scherersville No. 5 field.

''It's a little different with this team because it's a different bunch of guys and it took some getting used to,'' Graver said. ''But we're getting the chemistry together. There are other Coplay guys over here, which helps.''

Just as the Reds did the past two years, the Yankees overcame their own mistakes and capitalized on the ones made by the Fleetwings (26-9).

Northern (28-8-1) breezed into the last of the sixth with a 3-0 lead and J.D. Wyborny tossing a four-hitter.

But then three singles loaded the bases and right fielder Landon Parker, who earlier homered, made a mistake after catching Scott Matejicka foul flyball down the right-field line.

Parker made a bad throw toward third that went out of play. Two Fleetwings scored and another wound up on third. And that runner scored on Dave Toth's groundout to second.

''That was just awful baseball,'' Yankees manager Brian Polaha said. ''Landon has been super for us with the bat, but that was his mistake. But after giving them three runs, we responded.''

It took some help from Mother Nature to get the Northern rally started.

The seventh began with Jeremy Faust grounding to third. He reached second when first baseman Matejicka lost the throw in the setting sun.

Marshall Garger then laid down a sacrifice bunt and also reached when the throw to third was late. Graver followed with his go-ahead single to center.

''I went after the first good pitch I saw,'' the 22-year-old Tamaqua grad said. ''I've been anxious all series and haven't had many hits, so it felt good.''

Parker capped a 3-for-4, 2-RBI night with a RBI single and Wyborny worked around a one-out hit in the last of the seventh to close out the game.

Now, they'd like to finish the series.

''These games are dogfights,'' Polaha said. ''I'm tired of seeing these guys. They're veterans and they keep coming at you. They never panic or rattle.''

Fleetwings player-manager Jeremy Arner vowed his team wouldn't quit.

''We don't expect to lose three in a row,'' he said. ''We didn't execute very well tonight, but we'll clean it up.''


Northern Yankees   000 111 2 -- 5 10 2

Volpe's Fleetwings  000 003 0 -- 3  8  5


Wyborny and Faust; Hemberger and Arner. HR: Yankees, Parker (6th, none on).

keith.groller@mcall.com

610-820-6740

From The Morning Call -- August 7, 2008

Copyright © 2008, The Morning Call