Local Sports

Sheetz glad to take City League opener from Lilly

Greater City League championship series

Conrad Chiropractic/Lilly American Legion has won seven straight Altoona Greater City Baseball League championships and 20 over the past 23 seasons.

That kind of dominance tends to leave a team with a target on its collective back.

An upstart Sheetz squad enjoyed some added motivation Tuesday night when the two teams met in Game 1 of the best-of-five league championship series at Vets Field.

Sheetz shook off a five-run Lilly first inning and overcame deficits of 5-3 and 6-4 to capture the series opener, 7-6.

Evan Sanders drove in a pair of runs with singles for Sheetz, including the game-tying run in the winning team's three-run fifth inning, and Evan Young, a 19-year-old right-hander who played for the Laurel Medical team in the George B. Kelley Federation this summer, turned in a stellar relief outing, working 4• scoreless innings for the win and allowing just two hits.

Game 2 is set for tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Vets Field.

"They've been the best team in this league for a long time, and to become the best, you've got to beat the best,'' Sheetz manager Kyle DeGennaro said of the Lilly squad. "Tonight, we took a step forward toward doing that.''

Sheetz jumped out ahead with a 3-run top of the first inning with three unearned runs. Parker Gregg led off with a single to left field, Aidan Steinbugl was hit by a pitch, advancing Gregg to second base, and both runners scored when Lucas Muffie laid down a splendid sacrifice bunt and catcher C.J. McCoy's throw to first base went into right field, allowing both Gregg and Steinbugl to race home. Muffie reached third on the play, and scored himself on Caleb Detrick's two-out single to center field.

True to its championship pedigree, however, Lilly responded with five runs in the bottom of the first inning, with Jake Hillard's bases-loaded, three-run double providing the biggest blow. Designated hitter Jim Dunlap's single produced another run, and the fifth run of the inning crossed on Tim Fabbri's sacrifice fly.

"We got up early, in the top of the first inning, they battled with five runs in the bottom of the inning, but we didn't quit,'' DeGennaro said.

That was the essence of the victory for Sheetz, which lost three of its four regular-season games to Lilly.

Singles by Steinbugl, Muffie and Sanders produced a run for Sheetz in the top of the third inning, cutting the Lilly lead to 5-4, but Lilly responded with a run in the bottom of that inning on Fabbri's RBI groundout that scored player-manager Luke McCoy, who had drawn a one-out walk, from third base.

Young came on in relief to get the final two outs of that inning and allowed only two singles the rest of the way.

"Evan Young came on in the third inning and shut the door for us,'' DeGennaro said. "It was the first time he's pitched for us this season, after he played with Laurel Medical during the Federation season. He did a great job tonight, and we're glad to have him on our side.''

Luke McCoy also acknowledged Young's outstanding effort.

"He pitched well tonight,'' Luke McCoy said of Young, who retired all six batters that he faced in consecutive order in the sixth and seventh innings. "He was able to keep us off-balance, and get a lot of swing and misses. We weren't able to put any pressure on him after the fifth inning, and that's on us.''

Sheetz took the lead for good with three runs in the top of the fifth inning against Lilly right-hander Derek Younker, who pitched a complete game.

Steinbugl led off that inning with a single, and scored on a double to left field by designated hitter Owen Kravetz. Sanders' single to center scored Kravetz, tying the game, 6-6. Evan Sanders moved to third on a single by Caleb Sanders and scored the go-ahead run on a single to left field by Joe Speece.

"We were behind early, but we didn't quit,'' Evan Sanders said. "We've got a good group here.''

And a motivated one against a perennial championship Lilly team.

"Everybody is sick of them winning it,'' Evan Sanders said. "Everybody wants to beat them.''

But both managers are making sure that their players aren't getting ahead of themselves after just one game.

"Fortunately, this is only Game 1,'' Luke McCoy said. "We've been in this spot before, and we'll be ready to go (Wednesday).''

DeGennaro knows that all too well.

"This was a great game for the finals and I'm proud of our guys for battling tonight,'' DeGennaro said. "Hopefully, we can carry this momentum into Game 2, but this (series) is far from over.''

SHEETZ (7): Gregg cf 411. Steinbugl ss 332, Muffie lf 211, Kravetz dh 411, E. Sanders rf 412, Detrick 2b 401, Cal. Sanders 3b 401, Speece 1b 302, Con. Sanders c 300. Totals -- 34-7-11.

CONRAD CHIROPRACTIC/LILLY AMERICAN LEGION (6): R. Ickes cf 400, Gallaher 1b 311, B. Ickes 3b-ss 411, C.J. McCoy c-3b 311, Hillard 2b 211, L. McCoy ss 020, Dunlap dh 303, Olsavsky pr-dh 100, Fabbri rf 200, Bracken lf 100. Totals -- 23-6-7.

SCORE BY INNINGS

Sheetz 301 030 0-7 11 0

Lilly 501 000 0--6 7 1

E--C.J. McCoy. 2B--Kravetz. RBI--E. Sanders 2, Kravetz, Detrick, Speece, Hillard 3, Fabbri 2, Dunlap. SAC--Muffie. SB--Detrick, L. McCoy. HBP--Steinbugl (by Younker).

PITCHING

Sheetz: Tromm 2 1/3IP, 5H, 6R, 5ER, 4BB, 0SO; Young (W) 4 1/3IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 2BB, 2SO.

Conrad Chiropractic Lilly American Legion: Younker (L) 7IP, 11H, 7R, 4ER, OBB, 2SO.

Umpires: Rich Ball (plate); Jonathan Smith (1b); Jerry Carnicella (3b).

Series: Sheetz leads the series, 1-0.