Titans stay hot, top Warington
Twice Wednesday night Hatfield-Towamencin had runners trying to stretch doubles into triples thrown out at third base. Nate O’Donnell wasn’t about to be the third.
“When I was rounding second I saw the cutoff man didn’t even have the ball yet,” he said. “I looked at coach, he was a little hesitant at first, too, but he eventually gave me the sign. Made it in there standing.”
O’Donnell’s three-bagger to left center field in the bottom of the fifth inning drove in the final run in the sixth straight BuxMont American League victory for the Titans, who pulled away after an early one-run deficit to beat visiting Warrington 6-1 at School Road Park.
“We mixed in a few bunts here and there, a few big base hits, a few baserunning errors but all and all, we scored six runs,” Hatfield-Towamencin coach Joe Drelick said. “I’m happy to score six. It’s higher than our average right now.”
The Athletics took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second, but Hatfield-Towamencin scored twice in the bottom of the inning plated three runs in the fourth with the help of two Warrington errors.
“We were hitting the ball hard all game. And they made some mistakes that gave us runs,” O’Donnell said. “When you put the ball in play, good things happen.”
O’Donnell went 2-for-3 while Titans No. 9 hitter Griffen Juckniewitz finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Juckniewitz tied the game 1-1 in the second with a RBI bunt single while an error on his bases-loaded grounder in the fourth put HT ahead 3-1.
“(Juckniewitz) hasn’t gotten much playing time, had an opportunity to start today and he made the most of it,” Drelick said. “That’s what you can ask for out of a guy like that. Here’s a start, here’s three at-bats and 3-for-3, 2-for-3 he was... that’s pretty good. That’s exactly what you want out a guy like that.
“And a confidence booster for him, if I need him to come off the bench later in the game sometime, he’s going to be confident, ready to go.”
Ryan Bealer was 2-for-4 with an RBI double, Corey Stouffer finished 2-for-4 with a double while Matt Marino scored twice for the Titans (10-3 Bux-Mont), who have not lost since their 10-0 defeat to Lansdale June 21.
“Everyone’s hitting the ball, everyone’s playing well in the field, pitchers are pounding the zone, staying down,” O’Donnell said. “So, yeah, we got it working on all cylinders right now.”
After grabbing a 2-1 lead in the second, the Titans took control with a threerun fourth. Atlee Hasson led off with a single while an O’Donnell walk and Marino getting hit by a pitch loaded the bases.
With one out, an error on Juckniewitz’s grounder scored Hasson. Warrington looked for runner’s interference on O’Donnell going to third on the play, but the two umpires huddled and did not call it, keeping the bases loaded.
“I didn’t really see it, it was a curveball. I just kind of reached out, poked it,” Juckniewitz said. “I knew it was a slow chopper, I just had to try to beat it first, hope something good happened.”
The Athletics (7-10) forced out O’Donnell at home on Bealer’s fielder choice then threw to first then over to third — an error on the toss to third resulting in both Marino and Juckniewitz coming home for a four-run advantage.
O’Donnell proceeded to make it 6-1 in the fifth with his two-out RBI triple that scored Zach Moretski, who walked with one out and advanced to second on an error.
“I’ve been feeling pretty good all summer,” O’Donnell said.” It’s a nice switch up, I struggled a little bit in the spring season, so it’s good to be seeing the ball a little better now a days.”
Hatfield-Towamencin starting pitcher Jon Udzinski earned the win, giving up one earned run on five hits in six innings.
Warrington starter Ryan Boyce took the loss, allowing five runs — three earned — on nine hits in 4 2/3 innings. He walked four, hit one batter and struck out one.
Mike Landry went 2-for-3 for the Athletics, who host Perkiomen 7 p.m. Thursday.
Hatfield-Towamencin, which sits second in the Bux-Mont standings behind Quakertown, plays seven games in the next five days, starting with a home contest against Pennridge 7 p.m. Thursday.
“We got to keep it rolling,” O’Donnell said. “We playing well now, we just got to ride it out through the rest of the season and into playoffs and see what happen. Yeah, if we’re firing like this in the playoffs we’re going to be a team to watch.
Warrington scored Wednesday’s first run in the top of the second. Gregg Sywulak hit a oneout triple to right center then came on Matt Cummiskey’s RBI sacrifice fly.
Hatfield-Towamencin, however, took the lead for good in the bottom of the frame. Marino hit a oneout double, went to third on a ground out then scored to make it 1-1 when Juckniewitz dropped a bunt single down the first base line.
“I heard first base coach yell over to third base coach, so I just pushed it down the line and just beat it, beat it down the line,” Juckniewitz said.
Bealer plated Juckniewitz with his RBI double to left with Bealer thrown at third going for a triple.