HEGINS — For Valley View, it was a win well worth the 24-hour wait.
The West Enders’ Ben Rautzahn doubled twice in a nine-run first inning, Andrew Belding pitched five shutout innings with an error-free defense behind him and Valley View breezed by Wyomissing 10-0 in five innings Friday in the second round of the Schuylkill-Berks Legion League Tournament.
The game was originally scheduled for Thursday before a torrential downpour transformed Tri-Valley High School’s baseball field into a lake minutes before first pitch, moving the contest to Friday.
Valley View (7-11) advances to a third-round elimination game in Kutztown today against Pine Grove at 4 p.m. The Grovers lost to Hamburg 6-5. All remaining games in the tournament will be played at Kutztown.
The Angels (8-12) were eliminated from the tournament after the West Enders’ flawless victory, their first in seven games.
“I think this is our first game with no errors,” Valley View manager Ben Lucas said. “Now that we don’t have errors, they see that we can win baseball games.”
The West Enders hadn’t won a game since they beat Schuylkill Valley 6-2 on June 25. The six losses that ensued featured costly errors that dropped the North Division champs to the losers’ bracket Friday.
But Friday’s win wasn’t only about clean defense. Valley View’s first batter grounded out in the bottom of the first, but the rest of the game hardly followed suit.
Kenny Ross walked and stole second base before run-scoring hits by Jordan Marlow, Ben Rautzahn, Hunter Herb and Hunter Bordner made it 4-0.
Rautzahn’s first hit was a double down the left-field line that chased Wyomissing starting pitcher Patrick Curran after only 14 pitches. Herb greeted reliever Ledwin Nunez with his RBI double to the center-field fence.
Five more runs came in on walks to Chase Schaeffer and Jordan Marlow, Ross’s hit-by-pitch and Rautzahn’s two-run double hit virtually to the same location as his first earlier in the inning.
“We’ve been losing every game by one,” Rautzahn said. “It feels pretty good to get over the hump and finally enjoy one.”
Valley View brought 14 batters to the plate in the first inning, registering its nine runs on five hits and five walks.
Derrick Eberhart got the final out of the first inning and pitched the rest of the way, allowing three hits.
Ross scored the 10th run in the third by singling up the middle, stealing second and advancing to third on a wild throw before crossing the plate on Marlow’s RBI groundout.
Belding cruised through the first inning, retiring the side in order on nine pitches — all strikes. He surrendered singles to Sam DeBelle and Eberhart and walked Nunez to load the bases to start the top of the second, but got three strikeouts — one a two-strike foul bunt — to get out of the jam.
“I lost my control. I wasn’t feeling right,” Belding said. “Then I found it after that, so I was good.”
Belding finished with eight strikeouts and two walks and scattered four hits. A 5-4-3 double play in the top of the fifth to end the game via the 10-run rule put an exclamation point on the Valley View victory.
“It was a game where the kids showed their strengths,” Ben Lucas said. “Our strength in batting has increased every game from the beginning. Our first game, we might have had one hit. Throughout the season, the kids really got strong. Their momentum in this game showed what kind of team we are.’’
Oley/Topton 11
Tamaqua 5
OLEY — Dan Kristan went 3-for-4 with a home run and five RBIs to lead the Patriots to a victory over the Blue Sox in a Schuylkill-Berks Legion League Tournament losers’ bracket game.
The contest was suspended in the fourth inning by rain Thursday and picked back up Friday. The defeat eliminates Tamaqua from the tournament. Oley/Topton plays Southern Area at 1 p.m. today in Kutztown in an elimination game.
Pete Baddick and Matt Roberts each finished 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs for Tamaqua.
Pete Vaccaro and Tyler Wentzel added three hits apiece for the Patriots, combining to score five of their team’s runs.
Tam. (8-12) 002 020 1 — 5 7 2
O/T (14-6) 106 400 x — 11 13 2
Baddick, Lehman (3), Moll (6); Kunkel, Williamson (5), Christman (7). W — Kunkel. L — Baddick.
HITS: Tamaqua — Baddick 2, MacDonald, Roberts 2, A. Bates, Hartung. Oley/Topton — Williamson, Fisher, Vaccaro 3, Wentzel 3, Kristan 3, Lesher, Tiongson.
2B — Roberts, Fisher, Wentzel, Lesher, Tiongson. HR — Baddick, Roberts, Kristan.
Muhlenberg 3
Southern Area 0
LAURELDALE — Muhlenberg scored all three of its runs in the sixth inning and shut down Southern Area in the seventh to advance to today’s winners’ bracket final of the Schuylkill-Berks Legion League tournament.
Muhlenberg plays Hamburg today at 7 p.m. in Kutztown. Southern Area will play Oley/Topton in an elimination game at 1 p.m.
Dean Stramara struck out seven and allowed only three hits in the loss.
S. Area (15-5) 000 000 0 — 0 4 4
Muhl. (15-3) 000 003 x — 3 3 1
Stramara and Kyslinger; Klick and Kuczawa. W — Klick. L — Stramara.
HITS: Southern Area — Stramara 2, Kyslinger, Barton. Muhlenberg — Kline, Wanner, Sheipe.
Hamburg 6
Pine Grove 5
HAMBURG — The Reds beat the Grovers in a winners’ bracket game of the Schuylkill-Berks Legion League Tournament.
Pine Grove plays Valley View today at 4 p.m. at Kutztown in an elimination game. Hamburg plays Muhlenberg in the winners’ bracket final.
The game ended too late to publish additional details.
Game Summary
WYOMISSING (0) — Paolini cf 3 0 1 0, Rosario 2b 2 0 0 0, Smith c 2 0 1 0, DeBelle 3b 2 0 1 0, Eberhart lf-p 2 0 1 0, Nunez 1b-p-1b 1 0 0 0, Ramos ss 2 0 0 0, Curran p-rf 0 0 0 0, Rodriguez dh 2 0 0 0, Salas-Lopez rf-1b-lf 2 0 0 0. Totals 18 0 4 0.
VALLEY VIEW (10) — C. Schaeffer cf 3 1 0 1, Ross 3b 1 3 1 1, Marlow rf 2 1 1 3, Rautzahn c 3 1 2 3, Herb 1b 3 1 1 1, Bordner 2b 3 0 2 1, I. Lucas pr 0 1 0 0, Belding p 1 1 0 0, C. Opozda lf 3 0 0 0, T. Lucas ss 1 1 0 0. Totals 20 10 7 10.
Wyomissing (8-12) 000 00 — 0
Valley View (7-11) 901 0x — 10
E — Wyomissing 2, Valley View 0. DP — Valley View 1. LOB — Wyomissing 5, Valley View 6. 2B — Rautzahn 2, Herb. SB — Ross 2, Marlow.
Wyomissing IP H R ER BB K
Curran L 0.1 2 3 3 1 0
Nunez 0.1 2 6 6 3 0
Eberhart 3.1 3 1 1 3 3
Valley View IP H R ER BB K
Belding W 5 4 0 0 2 8
HBP — by Nunez (Ross). PB — Smith 2. T — 1:32.