MORGANTOWN — The temperature was hot and the bats were even hotter as Post 2 (2-3) fell 12-8 to visiting Garrett County Legion from Maryland in a high-scoring game on Wednesday night at Dale Miller Field at Mylan Park.
Garrett County opened the game in the top of the first with some early situational hitting. A lead-off single, two bunts, and one sacrifice fly gave a 1-0 lead to the visitors before Morgantown had a chance to hit. Aiden Frombach would work out of the jam for Post 2, however, keeping the lead to just one run.
E. Sebold had the start on the mound for Garrett County and he used the early run support from his offense to support his effort on the hill. Despite hitting two Post 2 batters in the inning, Sebold induced a double play to end the first. He then struck out the side in the bottom of the second to keep Morgantown scoreless.
Frombach seemed to have decent control of the strike zone and hit the spots that his catcher, Park Croyle, set up for him, but the Garrett County offense was one step ahead of the MHS man.
Following the strong half inning by Sebold was a three-run offensive spark that opened a 4-0 lead for the visiting Maryland team. An error by Jett Walters at second base and another sacrifice bunt eventually loaded the bases with just one out registered. Two base hits, one a two-run shot to center, and the other a single to left that scored the fourth run, were the cause of the deficit for Morgantown, and despite having a few base runners, Post 2 was yet to register a hit through four innings, and committed three errors on defense.
Frombach’s night would come to an end after another run allowed, making the lead 5-0 for Garrett County, on a single to left field. He would make way for his MHS teammate Caleb Cottle, who would face a bases-loaded, one-out jam to start.
The Garrett County offense refused to take its foot off of the gas, though, scoring another run on a wild pitch that was then followed by a hard-hit single down the left-field line that scored another pair of runs. An additional run would see Post 2 trailing 9-0 after giving up five runs in the top of the fourth, needing to see some kind of hitting success at the plate before it became too late.
A spark would finally come from UHS graduate Aaron Forbes, who singled to lead off the bottom of the fourth in just his second at-bat. His UHS teammate, Cody Thomas, then sent Forbes home with a hard-hit double to give Morgantown its first run of the game. The second run then came on a sacrifice fly by Walters that made the game 9-2. Two more runs would cut the lead to five at 9-4, with three innings to play.
Post 2 would find some defense behind Cottle to hold Garrett County scoreless through the next two innings, opening the door for its offense to continue to try and complete the comeback, after being down 9-0 after three innings.
Down 9-4 in the bottom of the sixth inning, Morgantown loaded the bases as Zach Brennan stepped up to the plate. He turned on the very first pitch he saw and sent it over the left-field fence with no doubt to cut the lead to just one run at 9-8 with one swing.
The comeback would be denied, however, as three runs in the top of the seventh by Garrett County extended the lead to 12-8, one that would deem too much to overcome for Post 2, as they would fall to the visitors by the same score.
Post 2 will travel to Pittsburgh for a double-header on Friday and another game Saturday.
Morgantown (2-3)
Dorkins 3 1 1 1 Brennan 3 1 1 4 Forbes 3 1 1 0 Montague 3 1 2 0 Thomas 4 1 2 1 McNew 4 0 0 0 Walters 3 1 2 1 Croyle 1 1 0 0 Nealy 4 1 1 1
Garrett County MD
Warnick 4 2 3 2 Rhoten 5 2 2 0 Hallenbeck 2 1 0 0 Ritchey 3 1 2 5 Hinebaugh 3 1 2 2 Upole 4 1 1 0 Yoder 4 1 1 0 Sebold 2 1 0 0 Uphold 4 2 1 2
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