Pottstown falls to Collegeville
Collegeville’s Cole Luzins goes the distance in win over Pottstown Spartans
SANATOGA » The demographic of the Perkiomen Valley Twilight League is moving more toward college-age players.
It’s got both upside and downside for teams like Collegeville and Pottstown, who met June 21 at Sanatoga Park for the second time this season. This time around, it was the Black Sox scoring an 8-5 victory.
Scoring four runs in a fifth-inning bataround proved key for Collegeville (8-9-1), breaking up a 3-3 ballgame with the Spartans (7-12). The 8-3 lead that outburst provided ended up being critical with Pottstown staging a two-run burst in the bottom of the seventh.
“We’ve had those lately,” Collegeville manager Matt Eckman said afterward. “Opening the game up releases pressure.”
For Spartan field boss Dan Koffel, the pressure is more on putting together a lineup. All but six of the 25 players on the Pottstown roster are college age; factoring in work requirements and internships has left the team’s number of available players thin for games.
“We have so many starters that weren’t here,” Koffel said. “Kolten Von Kiel, our catcher, wasn’t here, and our number-one pitcher (Mike Haslam) hasn’t been here once. It’s all work-oriented.”
That notwithstanding, Pottstown was able to keep pace with the Sox through the first four innings. It matched Collegeville’s two-run first with one of its own, then scored in the third after the visitors went ahead in the top of the second.
But runaway pitches hampered the Spartans’ efforts. A passed ball in the first inning set the stage for Collegeville’s first run, and the Red Sox scored off wild pitches in the third, fourth and fifth innings.
“At this level, that shouldn’t be happening,” Koffel said. “It’s pretty frustrating.”
In the case of Collegeville’s second-inning run, it came without benefit of any of their nine hits. David Clay drew a leadoff walk, stole second, then went to third off Brett Umstead’s bunt down the third-base line before scoring on a wild pitch.
“That helps,” Eckman said. “I’m glad to be on that side of a play like that.”
Collegeville’s big run-producing frame started with Nick Mulvey (double), Jason Mulvey (single) and Clay (walk) all reaching base. Pottstown pitcher Seth Regensburg appeared in position to escape the jam as he fanned Ronald Pellegrino and Umstead in succession.
Then things came undone. A throwing error on Kyle Feaster’s hit to shortstop enabled the Mulveys to come home, and Clay followed off a wild pitch. Feaster continued the surge by scoring off Cole Luzins’ single to left-center.
That put Luzins in position to go the distance on the mound. He did so, weathering the Spartans’ 11-hit offense and two-run seventh that started off with Adam Regensburg (2-for-3) and Dylan Morrissette (2-for-4, two RBI) hitting back-to-back doubles and Casey Brown following with a single.
“I’m sure Cole would admit today he didn’t have his best stuff,” Eckman said. “But he battled and got us the win.”
Adam Regensburg’s solo home run in the third was the longest of Pottstown’s hits. The Spartans’ second run in the seventh saw Brown, after Michael Christy got hit by a pitch and Seth Regensburg hit into a fielders-choice play that erased Morrisssette at the plate, come on off J.T. Koury’s sacrifice fly to right field.
But the Sox avoided further damage to their lead by getting the third out.
“Ever since we started out 1 and 6, we’ve come around,” Eckman said. “We have new faces, and we’re working to feel everyone out.
“The team is coming together. We feel we can beat anyone.”
NOTES » Brown came on in the sixth to pitch for Seth Regensburg and turned in two frames of one-walk, one-strikeout relief . ... Luzins’ pitching line showed two strikeouts against one walk, but two hit batters (Nick Koffel, Michael Christy). ... Dan Koffel, comparing the modern-day Perky League to his own playing days: “When I played in the Perky League, every player was at every game. Now you have players on college internships.”