Hatfield-Towamencin rallies past Harleysville in tourney
“We came out a little flat in the first inning starting back, but we really picked it up. It was a great job by everybody getting the energy level back up and being ready to get back out there.”
– Jack Picozzi - Hatfield-Towamencin infielder.
UPPER GWYNEDD » It was a rather eventful 24 hours for Hatfield-Towamencin and Harleysville.
After starting their BuxMont Connie Mack tournament elimination game Thursday night only for it to be rained out three innings in, the squads returned to Hostelley Field on Friday. While they just had to play four innings to finish what they started, the Titans an Hornets crammed a full game’s worth into those innings.
Thanks to a nine-run rally in the fifth, No. 2 Hatfield-Towamencin knocked off No. 8 Harleysville 11-8 to live and play another day.
“After the home run (Harleysville) hit, the team morale was a little low but our team the whole season, we try to stay in the game,” Hatfield-Towamencin catcher Nick DiPippo said. “We’re going to give it our all until the fat lady sings, as the old saying goes.”
In Thursday’s action, Harleysville took the early lead on a solo home run to left field by Justin DiCesare in the top of the first. The Titans took the lead back in the bottom of the second, with DiPippo forcing a balk that scored him from third and Charlie Wetzel hitting an RBI single.
At that point, the already dark skies started to open up and by the time the fourth in
ning began, the rain had become a factor. Play was suspended with two out in the top of the fourth, although Harleysville also had runners on the corners.
Any chance of resuming was almost immediately washed away by a deluge of wind accompanied by a few strong bursts of wind, leaving the teams to try and pick things up on Friday.
“We came out a little flat in the first inning starting back, but we really picked it up,” Titans infielder Jack Picozzi said. “It was a great job by everybody getting the energy level back up and being ready to get back out there.”
The resumption of the fourth didn’t start well for H-T, with Michael Salter scoring on a wild pitch to tie it, Aidan Sweeney scoring off a single following Garrett Moyer’s single and Andrew Schatz singling in a run to put the Hornets up 4-2.
An inning later, the Hornets only built on their momentum. Dante Bruno and DiCesare both worked walks off Titans pitcher Zach Riddle, bringing up catcher Jude Kane. Kane, who really picked up his offense in the second half of the season, cashed in with a shot over the left field fence for a three-run bomb and a 7-2 edge.
“The end of the season, we really played well,” Kane said. “We started, I think, 1-6 and didn’t even expect to make the playoffs, then we lose our first playoff game, bounce back with a win and everything was looking good here. It was a close game, we come out and go on top but that’s the way baseball works, when you think you have everything going for you, it all falls down.”
Picozzi credited the Titans coaches for getting the team calmed down after falling behind by five runs with limited time to rally back. Usually, teams preach not trying to get it all back at once, but giving the already odd nature of the game, it made sense that the Titans ignored that.
Hatfield-Towamencin only recorded three hits in the bottom of the fifth, but its ability to take advantage of Harleysville’s mistakes led to nine runs going on the board.
“It’s tough coming back from like a monsoon last night and going down five runs right away,” DiPippo said. “After that three-run home run, it was tough but we stuck it out to the end and kept on playing.”
Quinn Marrett led off with a walk, a misplay in the outfield, an RBI groundout, another walk and a hit batter brought in a run and loaded the bases for the Titans. Greg DiPippo delivered a tworun single that cut the lead to one but Hatfield Towamencin was only getting started.
Riddle walked to re-load the bases before Nick DiPippo chopped one into the infield, leading to a chaotic play at the plate that resulted in two runs. A high throw to home led to Kane jumping to make the catch and coming down on the runner sliding into home, leaving him unable to make a tag on a second runner who ran in.
“It’s one of those things, it’s happened to us in a lot of our games where one thing goes wrong and it compounds and compounds and you can’t stop it,” Kane said. “You always want to try to think you can come back, but a ninerun inning with five walks and a handful of errors, it takes a lot out of you.”
Kane shook off the collision and stayed behind the dish, but his long inning wasn’t done. After Peter Saldutti brought in the sixth run of the inning on a single, the lineup turned over and the Titans scored three times off errant pitches despite Kane doing all he could to minimize the damage.
“It’s tough, but I know I’m doing everything I can and I know these guys are all giving it everything they can,” Kane said. “I just have to control what I can control and block as many as I can.
“The last couple games, we did everything we could and I’m proud of the team.”
Having gone from behind to ahead in a halfinning, Riddle pitched a scoreless sixth aided by Nick DiPippo throwing out a runner and gave up a run in the seventh before ending the game with a strikeout. Picozzi said once the Titans got the lead back, they felt like the momentum had broken back in their favor.
“This tells us when everybody’s on their game, we’re a tough team to beat,” Picozzi said. “We have to do what we can, play our game and if we stay inside ourselves and play as a team, we’re going to make some noise.”
The Titans will play another win-or-go-home game on Wednesday as they try to advance in the tournament.
“The last few innings, it was a good thing to build off and we keep going like that, it’s going to be fun to play next week,” DiPippo said. “We’ll have our pitching staff back, so we’re hungry and ready to go.”