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An upstart Sheetz team has pushed perennial Altoona Greater City Baseball League champion Conrad Chiropractic/Lilly American Legion into largely uncharted waters.
Instead of preparing to celebrate its eighth straight league championship and 21st in 24 seasons tonight, Lilly finds itself on the cusp of elimination in the best-of-five championship series after Sheetz took a commanding 2-0 games lead with a 6-5 victory in Game 2 Wednesday night at Vets Field.
Weather permitting, Sheetz can clinch the title with a win in Game 3 of the series, which begins tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Vets.
"We've dug ourselves a hole, and we're now down 2-0 in the series,'' Lilly player-manager Luke McCoy said. "But (tonight's Game 3) starts with a 0-0 score and we have to try to get after it again.''
Sheetz got after it right away Wednesday with a big three-run bottom of the first inning. Lucas Muffie was hit by a P.J. Holberg pitch with two outs, and stole second. Evan Sanders walked, and Sheetz strung together three consecutive RBI singles by Owen Kravetz, Caleb Detrick and Caleb Sanders to get out of the gates with a 3-0 lead.
"P.J. Holberg always gives us a chance to win, and he pitched his (back side) off tonight,'' McCoy said. "But they got up by three runs again in the first inning for the second straight game, and in a one-run game, that's important.''
Sheetz manager Ryan DeGennaro thought so as well.
"They're a great team, and it was definitely nice to shut them down in the top of the inning and to be able to get a couple across in the bottom of that inning,'' DeGennaro said. "That gave us momentum.''
For the second straight game, however, the momentum went back and forth. Lilly sco red twice in the top of the third inning, when a two-run double to left field by Brandon Ickes plated Pat Gully and Cody Gallaher, who had both singled.
Sheetz promptly answered with two runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 5-2 lead, as Joe Speece's single knocked home Kravetz, who had singled, and Caleb Sanders, who had reached on a forceout.
Back came Lilly, however, with three runs in the top of the fifth inning to tie the game, 5-5, on RBI singles by Brandon Ickes, Jake Hillard, and Jim Dunlap.
Sheetz answered back with what proved to be the game-winning run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Evan Sanders doubled and scored on Detrick's single to center field, giving Sheetz a 6-5 lead and its final margin of victory.
Evan Sanders pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of starting pitcher Eli Moser to get credit for the pitching victory. Evan Sanders allowed just one hit, didn't walk a batter, and struck out four.
While the general consensus is that Lilly is a favorite to win the GCBL championship every season, DeGennaro feels that he has a special group with this year's Sheetz team.
"We have a really good team this year,'' DeGennaro said. "We thought that we would have a chance to get here, and to win it all, and we've played really hard these last two games. It's been a great team effort to put us ahead 2-0 in the series but we know that the job isn't finished. We know that the last one will be the toughest, and we just have to keep grinding it out.''
CONRAD CHIROPRACTIC/LILLY AMERICAN LEGION (5): R. Ickes c 421, Gallaher 1b 401, B. Ickes ss 312, McCoy c 211, Hillard 2b 401, Dunlap dh 402, Sinclair 3b 300, Fabbri ph 100, Brackeb lf 400, Gully rf 311. Totals -- 32-5-9.
SHEETZ (6): Gregg cf 301, Steinbugl ss 401, Muffie lf-3b 210, Morgan lf 000, E. Sanders rf-p 221, Kravetz dh 322, Detrick 2b-rf 403, Schmoke 2b 000, Caleb Sanders 3b 211, Speece 1b 301, Connor Sanders c 300. Totals -- 26-6-10.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Lilly 002 030 0--5-9-0
Sheetz 302 010 X--6-10-3
E--Steinbugl, E. Sanders, C. Sanders. 2B--B. Ickes, E. Sanders. RBI--B. Ickes 3, Hillard, Dunlap, Detrick 2, Speece 2, Kravetz, Caleb Sanders. SB--Muffie. CS--Detrick (Holberg to Sinclair); SAC--C.J. McCoy, Morgan. HBP--L. Muffie (by Holberg); Gregg (by Holberg); B. Ickes (by E. Sanders); C.J. McCoy (by E. Sanders). LOB--Lilly 9, Sheetz 5.
PITCHING
Lilly: Holberg (L) 6IP, 9H, 6R, 6ER, 1BB, 2SO.
Sheetz: Moser 4 1/3IP, 8H, 5R, 5ER, 1BB, 1SO; E. Sanders (W) 2 2/3IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 4SO.
Umpires: Matt Cursio (plate); Sam Kline (1b); Sam Brunatti (3b).