With the tag, the Bulls had finally nailed down an 8-7 win at Limeport Stadium that evened the best-of-five Tri-County League baseball semifinal series at a game apiece.

Game 3 is set for 5:45 tonight back at the Yankees' home field in Scherersville.

Bartolacci, a Notre Dame High product who is transferring from Moravian to Temple, may have had a sleepless night were it not for that game-ending tag at the plate.

''One time in little league I had a play like that, but it has been awhile,'' Bartolacci said. ''I thought I was going to get trucked [bowled over] by Kay but he just came in hard. Ricky's got an arm and put out a hose.

''I was pretty angry at that throw. I would have taken it hard if we had lost, but the play at the end made up for it.''

Bartolacci played a big role in the Bulls building an 8-2 lead.

He had a two-run single in a four-run second inning that followed a four-run first and Limeport        (26-10-2) carried the six-run lead into the top of the fifth.

''We started off hot, we just got to keep it going,'' Bartolacci said.

The top-seeded Yankees didn't give up.

They got three runs back in the fifth as Ryan Birkenstock (3-for-4) singled in a pair and Mike Fignar singled in one.

It was still 8-5 when Kay, one of the league's top hitters, had his squibber with two on and two out in the seventh.

But Bartolacci's throw into right field allowed one run to score and left runners at second and third. After a walk to load the bases, Limeport changed pitchers, bringing Jake DeBoer back to the mound.

Faust, with two strikes on him, went sharply the opposite way to left for his hit.

One run scored easily and there was no doubt that Yankees third-base coach and manager Brian Polaha was sending the speedy Kay from second as well.

Even after it didn't turn out well, Polaha wasn't second-guessing himself.

''He's our fastest guy and he's so fundamentally sound that I knew he was going to get a good lead,'' Polaha said. ''He's going to do everything he can to score on a base hit. I can't play for two hits there. If the throw is not on the plate, he's safe and we're tied. It was real a good throw and play by them.''

But the late excitement showed that the Yankees (28-6) are never out of a game.

''It was good to see our guys come back like they did,'' Polaha said. ''Limeport was geared up and everything they hit early in the game found holes. But we battled all of the way back. We believe in our lineup. We know we're going to score runs.''

Limeport manager Steve Smull knows it, too. That's why he knows his team has to put the Yankees away when it has the chance.

''We had the bases loaded a couple of times and didn't take advantage,'' Smull said. ''You let up on a team this good and they're going to come back on you. They almost stole one from us.

''This was a must-win and we held on, barely, but we held on.''

Northern Yankees  020  030  2 -- 7  8  1

Limeport Bulls        440  000  x -- 8 11 2
 

Bates, Figner (3) and Venarchick, Faust (5); Swenson, DeBoer (5), Tonte (7), DeBoer (7) and Bartolacci. Notes: Bortz 3-3, Serfass 3-4, 2 RBIs for Limeport.