Tyrone’s Brayden Parsons gets a high-five after scoring a run. Mirror photo by Michael Boytim

TYRONE — Tyrone took care of business in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A baseball tournament on Monday at the Harry K. Sickler Sports Complex with a 5-3 win over WPIAL third-place finisher Avonworth.

That’s been a theme for the Golden Eagles in every tournament game they have played this season.

Tyrone went 3-0 in the Curve Classic, beating Bishop Guilfoyle Academy, Hollidaysburg and Altoona to win that championship before going 3-0 in the District 6 tournament with wins over Huntingdon, Bald Eagle Area and Philipsburg-Osceola.

The Eagles will need to go 4-0 in their current tournament to become state champions — but don’t count them out.

“Going back to the Curve Classic and going back to District 6, it’s just a win-or-go-home mentality,” Tyrone senior Brayden Parsons said. “I think we play best then. Everyone is on their ‘A’ game. Nobody wants to lose the last game of their season.”

Parsons led off the bottom of the first inning with a clean single to left and scored on Connor Zupon’s sacrifice fly. Jon Stroup, who singled in front of Wyatt Kustenbauder’s single that loaded the bases, came home to score on an Owen Oakes single that made it 2-0 Tyrone.

“We have been looking really good in the first inning about every game,” Parsons said. “We just have to keep that momentum throughout the rest of the game. I think every playoff game other than Huntingdon, we have scored at least one run in the first inning of every game. Getting ahead helps the guys see even though we’re playing a WPIAL school, they are still human. They are just kids. They are playing baseball just like us.”

The Golden Eagles left the bases loaded, and Avonworth scored a run in the top of the third inning after Cooper Scharding doubled and came home on Case Latore’s RBI single.

But the Antelopes helped Tyrone in the bottom of the inning when Scharding hit Kustenbauder with a pitch and an error put two runners on for Conner McClure, who singled in a run. Oakes followed with a sacrifice fly.

Brandon McClure doubled to begin the bottom of the fourth inning and scored on a passed ball that made it 5-1.

Tyrone starting pitcher Carter Price began to fade in the top of the sixth inning.

An error on a hard-hit ball, a double and a walk loaded the bases with no outs. Brandon McClure came on in relief and got a pop out before Nathan Slater’s two-run single made it 5-3 and brought the go-ahead run to the plate.

But McClure struck out Will Fowler and got Scharding to pop out to end the threat.

“We had bases loaded, nobody out to start,” Avonworth coach Jeff Bywalski said. “We had a freshman pinch hit and come through for us with a single, but after that the two at bats after that were not good enough.”

Soellner was impressed with McClure for getting out of the jam, but credited Price for his performance and making it through five innings.

“The pitching was excellent,” Soellner said. “He only walked two and not until the very end. With Carter, that’s our only worry. He attacked the batters and did what he was supposed to do. I asked him for three or four innings and said Brandon would finish it out, but what he did helps us out a lot for the next game.”

Tyrone freshman Braylon Plummer made a diving catch in the outfield to rob Nick Blackson of a hit to begin the top of the seventh inning, and McClure retired the next two batters to close out the victory.

“When someone makes a diving play or something like that, it takes momentum back the other way and gave them more confidence,” Bywalski said. “Getting the first out in the last inning when you’re up is a huge thing. It’s big. We just didn’t do enough.”

Tyrone will take on WPIAL runner-up South Park in the PIAA quarterfinals Thursday at a time and place to be determined. South Park defeated District 5 champion Bedford, 6-3, on Monday.

“I told them before, I believe they can do it (win a championship),” Tyrone coach Kevin Soellner said. “But sometimes, this year it has been frustrating where they have let up a little bit. I think with the magnitude of the games now, their focus is going to be good enough where I believe we’ll be OK and they’ll give it everything they have got.”

AVONWORTH (3): Scharding p-rf 311, Blackson 2b 400, Latore ss 401, Dolan 3b 411, Franc 1b 212, Coffey pr 000, Krul rf-p 000, Hustwit dh 200, Rykowski lf 300, Warman cf 200, Slater cr-ph 101, Fowler c 300. Totals — 28-3-6.

TYRONE (5): Parsons c 311, Bokulich cr 000, Stroup ss 311, Kustenbauder cf 211, Zupon 2b 210, Oakes rf 201, Plummer lf 300, Frye dh-3b 300, B. McClure 3b-p 311. Totals — 25-5-6.

SCORE BY INNINGS

Avonworth 001 002 0–3 6 1

Tyrone 202 100 X–5 6 2

E–Price, Zupon, Dolan. 2B–Franc 2, Latore, Scharding, B. McClure. RBI–Oakes 2, C. McClure, Zupon, Latore, Slater 2.

PITCHING

Avonworth: Scharding (L) — 3IP, 6H, 3K, 0BB, 2HBP, 5R, 3ER, 55 pitches; Krul — 0IP, 0H, 0K, 1BB, 0R, 0ER, 7 pitches; Franc — 3IP, 0H, 3K, 0BB, 0R, 0ER, 35 pitches.

Tyrone: Price (W) — 5IP, 5H, 3K, 2BB, 1HBP, 3R, 2ER, 82 pitches; B. McClure — 2IP, 1H 1K, 0BB, 0R, 0ER, 18 pitches.

Records: Avonworth (18-7); Tyrone (15-9).