|
Owls defeat Brewers 7-2
Gabelsville's Jeremy Cabot tosses 4
innings of hitless relief to even the Finals at 1-1.
BERLINSVILLE
-- Gabelsville answered a sub-par Game 1 performance with a solid, error-free
Game 2 and a relatively easy 7-2 victory to even the best-of-five series at 1-1.
The Owls have recaptured home-field advantage -- which has meant nothing to this
point -- and head back home for Game 3, to be played on Tuesday due to a field
conflict on Monday. Game time is 5:45.
Brewers' ace Brandon Leslie did not have his best stuff, but neither did his
defense on Sunday. Greg Gilbert reached on an infield error with one out in the
first and Jason Irey promptly singled him to third. Leslie induced Pete Colon
into a fly-out to short right that could not score Gilbert, and had an 0-2 count
on Al Fitch. But just when it seemed as though Leslie was going to work himself
out of the jam unscathed, Fitch worked the count full and then delivered a
clutch two-run double to left-center, giving the Owls a pair of unearned runs
and a 2-0 lead.
Lehigh Township answered immediately when Jeremy Bartha ripped a first-pitch,
two-out single to center and scored on Steve Unger's first-pitch double to deep
left-center. The lead was cut in half. However, the Owls would add two more
unearned tallies in the third.
With two outs in the third, Matt Danner hit a ball up the middle that most
shortstops would not have even reached. Bartha showed good range to gather it in
nicely, but when he whirled to throw to first, the toss sailed high for a tough
error. Kyle Hoffman made it hurt immediately with a two-run blast to
right-center and the Owls had a 4-1 lead.
Jon Eidle, starting for the late-arriving Jeremy Cabot, got himself into jams
every inning, and the third would be no exception. Eric Schmitt and Bartha
started the frame with back-to-back singles between short and third. But Eidle
induced a 5-5-3 double play thanks to the strong throw by Fitch for two quick
outs. After a Mark Nicholas walk, the red-hot Omar Torres collected his second
hit of the game and fifth hit of the series (if you count the seventh inning of
Game 1) for an RBI single and a 4-2 deficit. Eidle got a fly-out to center to
end the inning.
Leslie encountered some more tough luck in the fourth. Mitch Schueck drew an
uncharacteristic walk from Leslie with one out, and then Leslie -- even more
uncharacteristically -- plunked Gilbert to put two on with one out. A good pitch
to Irey went for naught, as the lefty stud flared an RBI single to center to
make the score 5-2. Colon then hit a RBI ground-out to second to make it 6-2
Owls. Two big insurance runs without one hard-hit ball in the inning.
But
Lehigh Township got things rolling in their half of the fourth when Mike Trimble
and Charlie Torres started the frame with back-to-back five-pitch walks. Doc
Moyer had seen enough and made the call to Cabot, who had arrived and was loose.
"Operation Shut-down" had been implemented. The right-handed hurler
from Siena College got a strikeout, weak pop-up to first and another
"K" to end the Brewers' threat and basically serve notice that a
Lehigh Township comeback was a long-shot at best.
In fact, in four innings of relief, Cabot did not allow a hit, walked two and
did not allow a runner to reach second base. Game, set and match.
The Owls were not done scoring though, as Hoffman singled with one out in the
fifth, was balked to second with two outs and scored on a RBI single by Rodney
Miller. It was now 7-2 Owls and that is how the game would finish, thanks to
Cabot, and thanks to two shutout innings by Brewers' reliever Josh Hillman, who
threw the sixth and seventh.
Hoffman was 3-for-4 with a homer and Irey was 2-for-4 to lead Gabelsville. Omar
Torres was 2-for-3 and Bartha was 2-for-4 to pace the Brewers.
Game 3 is set for 5:45 at Gabelsville on Tuesday and Game 4 is at Lehigh
Township on Wednesday. If Game 5 is necessary, it will be played at Gabelsville
on Thursday at 5:45.
|
