SHENANDOAH — It was almost one of the most amazing Little League comebacks in District 24 history.
But third baseman David Sanchez made the play Shenandoah needed.
Sanchez fielded a sharply-hit ball and tagged a runner heading toward third for the final out in Shenandoah’s 13-12 victory over Railway Park in a District 24 9-10-year-old game Monday.
Justice Murphy had three hits and Nicholas Mikita pitched 3.2 strong innings for Shenandoah, which improves to 3-0 in Pool 1 play. Shenandoah can clinch a spot in the semifinals with a win Sunday over Ashland.
Elijah Murphy and Nick Ryan each added two hits for Shenandoah, which batted first and took a 13-1 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning.
Railway Park, however, didn’t go down without a fight.
The Pottsville stars sent 16 batters to the plate in the frame, scoring 11 runs on six hits. Conlan Buletza had two singles in the uprising, Tejay Allen and Mikey Stank each scored two runs, while Justin Sickle had a two-run double and Brenan Adams had a two-run single.
Railway Park had the tying and winning runs on base with two outs before reliever Elijah Murphy got Kole Becker to ground toward third, where Sanchez fielded the ball and made the play for the final out.
Shen (3-0) 121 06 3 — 13 12 4
RP (1-2) 000 10(11) — 12 7 1
Mikita, Maksimik (4), E. Murphy (6) and Chowansky; Adams, Woollam (5) and Zelwalk. W — Mikita. L — Adams. Sv — E. Murphy.
HITS: Shenandoah — J. Murphy 3, Maksimik, Sanchez, Kenton, Najda, E. Murphy 2, Ryan 2, Mikita. Railway Park — Adams, Woollam, Buletza 2, Allen, Sickle 2.
2B — Mikita, E. Murphy, Ryan, Sickle 2.
Upper Dauphin 15
Orwigsburg 1
ELIZABETHVILLE — Landon Mace had four hits, drove in three runs and was the winning pitcher in UDC’s four-inning, Pool 4 rout of Orwigsburg.
Two of Mace’s RBIs came on a two-run double in the first inning as Upper Dauphin County got out to a 4-0 lead and never looked back. Mace pitched the first three innings to get the win, striking out five.
Isaac Hepler had three hits and three RBIs for Upper Dauphin, including an RBI double in the third and a two-run double in the fourth.
Nathan Cole also had two hits for Upper Dauphin, while Cruz Banda and Max Nestor doubled and Konner Walker and Brady Morgan tripled.
U. Dauphin (3-0) 422 7 — 15 16
Orwigsburg (0-3) 100 0 — 1 3
Mace, Hepler (4) and Walker; Patel, Woll (4) and MacDonald. W — Mace. L — Patel.
HITS: Upper Dauphin County — Walker, Morgan, Mace 4, Hite, Williard, Cole 2, Banda, Zerby, Nestor, Hepler 3. Orwigsburg — MacDonald, Walasavage, Keck.
2B — Mace, Banda, Nestor, Hepler 2, MacDonald. 3B — Walker, Morgan.
SPN 15
Mahanoy City 5
SAINT CLAIR — Kieran Houston’s two-run single triggered an eight-run, third-inning outburst that lifted Saint Clair/Port Carbon/New Philadelphia to a Pool 2 win over Mahanoy City in four innings.
Colin Hasara had a three-run double for Mahanoy City, which scored five runs in the top of the second inning to take a 5-3 lead.
SPN answered with eight runs in the third, then clinched the victory with four more in the fourth.
Houston finished with two hits and four RBIs, while winning pitcher Nick Chivinski collected two RBIs.
MC (0-3) 050 0 — 5 5 0
SPN (3-0) 308 4 — 15 8 0
Zilker, Manlay (3), Weikel (4) and Hasara; Chivinski, Fuss (4) and Murhon, Begansky (4). W — Chivinski. L — Zilker.
HITS: Mahanoy City — Hasara 2, Manlay, Kramer, Weikel. Saint Clair/Port Carbon/New Philadelphia — Bainbridge, Fuss, Chivinski, Houston 2, Begansky, Kerns, Matlock.
2B — Hasara.
10-11-year-olds
Ashland 11
Schuylkill Haven 1
ASHLAND — Jonas McGrath and Tanner Walacavage both homered for Ashland in a five-inning victory over Schuylkill Haven on Sunday.
Walacavage also earned the win on the hill, scattering six hits, striking out nine and walking none.
Gavin Whalen went 3-for-4 for Ashland (2-0), which collected 12 hits.
Cole Canfield and Jack Davis had two hits for Schuylkill Haven (0-2).
Canfield, Jenan and Pothering; Walacavage and O’Neill, Cooney (5). W — Walacavage. L — Canfield.
HITS: Schuylkill Haven — Canfield 2, Davis 2, Lesher, Sisko. Ashland — McGrath, Whalen 3, Walacavage 2, Ossman, Cooney, Zahodnick, Serrato, Allison, Sterner.
HR — McGrath, Walacavage.
Junior Legion
Southern Area 6
Hamburg 4
AUBURN — Jack McKivigan’s two-run, walk-off homer in the bottom of the eighth inning lifted the A’s to a victory over the Reds on Sunday at Auburn Memorial Park.
Dylan Biever had three hits for Southern Area, while Jakob Biever and Nick Yeastadt each added two.
Mac O’Donnell earned the pitching victory with 2.2 scoreless innings of relief in which he allowed just one hit.
Hamburg 011 011 00 — 4 7 1
Southern 110 110 02 — 6 11 2
Quigley, Naftzinger (8); Peters, O’Donnell (6). W — O’Donnell. L — Naftzinger.
HITS: Hamburg — B. Adams 2, Evangelista, Krick 2, Naftzinger, Greenawald. Southern Area — D. Biever 3, McKivigan, Schaeffer, Wesley, J. Biever 2, Yeastadt 2, Barr.
2B — Greenawald, Yeastadt, Schaeffer, Biever. HR — McKivigan.