Split Second
Phoenixville, Spring City split doubleheader
ROYERSFORD » Thursday night’s action between Spring City and Phoenixville at Spring-Ford’s Ram Stadium went anything but to script.
Spring City picked up a 7-4 win in the opener, rallying from a four-run deficit in the first inning. The Phantoms then handed the Red Sox their first loss of the summer, crossing four runs on four bases-loaded walks in the fifth inning before hanging on to claim a 4-3 win in the nightcap.
On the night, Spring City dropped to 5-1 overall while Phoenixville moved to 4-4.
In the opener, Spring City’s offense racked up 10 hits offensively to rally back from an early 4-0 deficit.
Designated hitter and leadoff man Sam Barletta ripped a twoout, bases-clearing triple during the bottom of the fourth inning to tie it up at 4-4.
“I finally geared up a fastball,” said Barletta of his hit. “Got a good swing on it and it just kept carrying out there (to left field). It was a big moment. We needed it.”
The towering shot seemed to hang in the air forever, however it found the gap in left-center field.
“They were talking on the bench saying that one got caught up in the jet stream,” said Spring City skipper Mike Gancasz with a laugh. “That was huge for us — to come back from 4-0 and tie it up. That was huge to get us back in the ball game, rather than having to chip away at the lead.”
The Red Sox then picked up
their first lead with a threerun rally in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Catcher Ryan Harvey opened up the rally with a leadoff single, then advanced to the uncovered bag at third on a heads up play on Nick Price’s sacrifice bunt. Brad Clemens knocked him in on a single to right before he and Barletta scored on Quinn McKenna’s two-run single to make it 7-4.
“That was a great play by Harvey on the bunt,” said Gancasz. “He saw it all the way. He’s been with me for a couple of years and he’s a smart player.
“That was a big time play for him — he’s not the fastest guy on the team, but he put us into scoring position with one out. That could have been a much different inning had he not taken third.”
Spring City starter Cam Michaud was solid after running into trouble during the first inning. The right-hander pitched five complete, allowing just four hits and four walks before giving way to Cole Webb in relief.
Webb was phenomenal out of the bullpen, striking out two while keeping the basepaths empty over the final two frames.
Head coach Neil Herman was quick to point out that Phoenixville let too many early chances fall through the cracks.
The Phantoms stranded runners on second and third with the score tied 4-4 in the top of the fifth inning; that after Cole Eggleston was tagged out at the plate trying to score on a grounder to short with one out in the top of the fourth.
“We’ve got a team of young guys,” Herman said, “and we really haven’t fully figured out how to keep the pedal to the medal and pile it on a team. When you know you’ve got a shot to beat a team — especially one like Spring City — you’ve got to jump on every chance.”
Matt Osisek-Byrne was solid on the mound for the Phantoms aside from two rough innings. He pitched six complete, giving way to seven runs on 10 hits and three walks. He also struck out six.
The second game did anything but match the opener, as Spring City’s Thomas Hughes and Phoenixville’s Quinn Danna found themselves in a lowscoring pitchers duel early on.
The Phantoms did their damage in the bottom of the fifth inning, working four consecutive basesloaded walks to score all four of their runs.
Phoenixville racked up three hits in the game — one in the fifth inning — as Danna struck out seven and held the Red Sox to just three hits pitching into the seventh inning.
McKenna and the Red Sox didn’t go down quietly, though.
The center fielder mashed a three-run shot over the wall in left field to score Barletta and McHugh in the top of the sixth. Spring City then loaded up the bases before Danna forced a fly out to Justin Blakey in center field to end the threat.
Colin Bowdish came on for the final three outs, letting two men on before catching the final man looking to end it.