One out.
That's all that stood between Schuylkill South and an opening-round win Friday in the VFW State Teener 13-14-year-old Tournament at Steidle Field.
The Area 2 champions never got it.
Elliot Napp's two-run single capped a five-run outburst in the bottom of the seventh inning that lifted Lebanon Valley to a come-from-behind, 6-5 victory over Schuylkill South.
The victory advances Area 3 champion Lebanon Valley to a winners' bracket game at 10 a.m. today against Area 5 champion Bald Eagle Area (10-1), a 16-6 winner in five innings over Philipsburg-Osceola.
Schuylkill South (5-2) drops to the losers' bracket and will face Philipsburg-Osceola (1-3) in an elimination game at 10 a.m. today at Middleport.
"Sometimes you have to be lucky and sometimes you have to be good," Lebanon Valley head coach Darren Luciotti said. "We were both in the last inning."
Schuylkill South headed into the bottom of the seventh inning with a 5-1 lead. The defense recorded two quick outs, leaving Schuylkill South one out away from a first-round win.
Lebanon Valley had other plans.
"I told them to dig deep," Luciotti said. "I told them not to give up.
"We were still in striking distance. My goal was to get runners on base."
The Area 3 champions scrapped for seven baserunners with two outs to pull out the win.
Max Broderick kept Lebanon Valley alive with a single off Austin Ney, who had come on to pitch the seventh. Schuylkill South head coach Mike Curran pulled Ney, bringing in Joey Carretta.
Carretta faced three batters and didn't record an out, as two walks and an error sliced the lead to 5-2.
Curran then brought in Eric Thompson, who also faced three batters and didn't record an out. After a hit batsman and a walk, Napp hit his two-run single just over the second baseman's head to end it.
"We never should have lost," Curran said. "It just goes to show that you have to play every out."
"We let it slip away. That's the bottom line."
Lebanon Valley's seventh inning ended a game that Schuylkill South had controlled until that point.
Schuylkill South starter Riley White allowed just two hits and an unearned run through five strong innings, striking out six.
Schuylkill South gave him some cushion, scoring a run in the first inning and three more in the fifth.
Vinny Bobbin opened the game by reaching on a walk, moving up on a wild pitch and scoring on a fielder's choice.
After Lebanon Valley knotted the game in the fourth on Nick Felty's RBI single, Schuylkill South tallied three in the fifth.
Tanner Levan and Ney highlighted the inning with doubles, while David Kane and Stephen Elberfeld added singles.
Schuylkill South added an insurance run in the top of the seventh when Bobbin singled, advanced two bases on an error and scored on a sacrifice fly by Elberfeld.
Schuylkill South outhit Leabnon Valley 9-4 but stranded seven runners on base.
"We had chances," Curran said. "I felt like we should have tacked on a few more runs."
Schuylkill South committed five errors throughout the contest, including an error in the final inning that could have ended the game.
Schuylkill South will look to correct those mistakes in the elimination game today.
"It's going to be tough to bounce back," Curran said. "We'll see how they handle it."