In a must-win game, the North didn't waste any time building a lead.
Tevin Murray made sure the advantage was never lost.
Chris Burke and Major Jordan combined for five hits and six runs batted in, while Murray mowed through the East's lineup in the North's 9-2 victory Saturday in the final pool game of the Area 2 Teener 15-16-year-old All-Star Tournament at Steidle Field.
Burke was 3-for-4 with two doubles and a key, two-run single in the second inning that gave the North (5-1) a 4-0 advantage. Jordan was 2-for-4 and drove in four runs, including a lead-off, solo homer in the third and two-run double in the fourth.
Murray pitched six innings, allowing four hits, striking out 11 and walking two. Both the runs for the East (2-4) came in the fourth when Jake Parobek singled home Aiden Liptok and J.J. Spehrley scored on an error.
With the win, the North finished tied with the South for first place in the standings. Since the teams split their head-to-head meetings during the tour-
nament - the North won 9-6 last Monday and the South 7-3 on Thursday - there will a be a winner-take-all game for the Area 2 championship this evening at 7 at Steidle Field.
That winner will represent Area 2 in the VFW State Teener Tournament on Aug. 2-5 in Bellefonte.
"We are going to be in the championship game," Burke said. "It feels great to be here and I am happy to be out here everyday playing."
The North went right to work at the plate, scoring two runs in each of the first four innings and adding a single run in the fifth.
Burke provided a key early hit in the top of the second.
After the North scored twice in the top of the first without a hit, East starter Nate McDonald got the first two outs of second. But Angelo Maskornick reached on an error, one of the three the East had over the first three innings.
On a perfectly executed hit-and-run, Jordan Marlow singled to right - the North's first hit of the game - through the gap vacated by the second baseman, moving Maskornick to third. Marlow then stole second.
On an 0-2 pitch, Burke lined an opposite-field single to right, knocking in Maskornick and Marlow to make it 4-0.
"I was thinking curveball, but he gave me a fastball right down the middle," Burke said. "I reacted to it and took it opposite field.
"It felt really good because we were up. Once we are up we usually keep that momentum going the whole game. Our energy was up the whole game. It was a team effort this whole game."
That was more than enough offense for Murray, who threw 96 pitches in his six innings, with 58 going for strikes.
The lefty's curveball wasn't working as he hoped so he relied on his fastball. Murray figured he got three-fourths of his strikeouts on fastballs.
"My curveball was a little off," Murray said. "I was keeping it low, but my fastball was on.
"I was grooving it, location and speed. The speed was really good on it and I was grooving it in there really fast. I was hitting the corners with my spots."
Murray struck out at least two hitters in the each of his first five innings, including the side in the third. After the first three East batters reached in a 29-pitch bottom of the fourth, Murray got the first two outs on strikeouts and ended the inning on a groundout.
"This was a must-win game coming in," Murray said. "We needed to win this to get to tomorrow. We just have to get it done tomorrow." Game Summary