Garrett Co. starts 1-1 at Western Maryland Mountain Classic
Jun. 19—POTOMAC PARK, Md. — The defending Western Maryland Appalachian Mountain Classic champions started off the tournament 1-1 after Day 1.
In Game 1, Garrett County Post 71/208/214 overcame a 4-0 first-inning deficit to Calvert Post 85 with a four-run fifth inning to secure a come-from-behind 6-5 victory.
An error on a Kellen Hinebaugh bunt allowed the go-ahead run to cross. Hinebaugh capped a string of six consecutive batters to reach base in the fifth. Chance Ritchey had two RBIs and Tanner Haskiell had one earlier in the frame.
Jadon James started slow on the mound, allowing four runs to score on one hit, one error and two bases on balls in the first. However, the right-hander settled in and put up four consecutive zeroes to get the win.
Jared Haskiell was credited with the save.
"We were kind of sleepwalking in the first inning, but we bounced back," Garrett County head coach Phil Carr said. "James kept it at zeroes the rest of the way until the sixth. He kept our offense in the game, and we were able to come back."
Tanner Haskiell led the charge in Game 1 going 3 for 4 at the plate with a double and an RBI. Easton Rhoten tripled and scored twice, Zach Hallenbeck hit safely twice and scored once and Brayden Upole singled and drove a run in.
In Garrett's second contest of the day, Berkeley Post 14 jumped out to a 12-0 lead en route to a 13-4 victory.
Garrett used four pitchers in six innings, but it didn't matter who was on the bump — Post 14 tallied the game's first 10 base knocks. The top three of their order combined to go 7 for 8.
Chase Herndon (Spring Mills) finished 3 for 3 with a double, an RBI and a run; Cam Moore (Washington) was 2 for 2 with a double, an RBI, a stolen base and two runs; and Collin Reed (Washington) batted 2 for 3 with three ribbies and a run.
"We tried to change a bunch of different pitchers, and whatever we threw they found holes and hit it," Carr said. "We didn't play terrible defense, they hit the ball. ... Our first three pitchers were ninth graders, but they were going to have to pitch at some point."
Garrett County erased the shutout in the third when Haskiell drew a two-out bases-loaded walk. However, Herndon limited the damage by jamming Hinebaugh, who grounded out to first.
Post 71/208/214 did more damage in the fourth with two outs. Jamison Warnick placed a two-strike pitch on the right-field line for an RBI triple; Rhoten smoked a single to score another and Hallenbeck ripped an RBI double down the left-field line to make it 12-4.
Once again, Herndon found a way to prevent a huge inning, getting Haskiell to ground out to third.
"We had a couple innings there where we swung it well and scored some runs," Carr said. "If we could've got a couple more hits in those innings we could've squeezed the gap a little more."
Trevor Boor, a left-handed pitcher, came on in relief of Herndon and tossed two scoreless, one-hit innings to push Berkeley to 2-0 on the tournament. Herndon got the victory, allowing four runs on six hits with five walks and four Ks in four innings pitched.
Warnick, Rhoten and Hallenbeck tallied two hits apiece for Garrett, which was out-hit, 13-7. Berkeley committed one error and Garrett made two.
At 1-1, Garrett County still has a chance to advance to the semifinals with a win against Winchester Post 21 tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. and some help.
Tournament Results
Note: First place in each group advances to the semifinals. The fourth spot is an at-large selection. The semifinals are at 2 p.m. on Sunday and the championship is at 4:30 p.m.
Group 1
Woodsboro 7, Somerset 1
Somerset 7, Laurel 5
St. Mary's 7, Laurel 2
St. Mary's 11, Woodsboro 6
Standings
St. Marys 2-0, Woodsboro 1-1, Somerset 1-1, Laurel 0-2
Sunday's Games
Laurel at Woodsboro, 9 a.m., Holler Field
Somerset at St. Mary's, 11:30 a.m., Holler Field
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Group 2
Garrett County 6, Calvert 5
Berkeley 13, Garrett County 4
Berkeley 12, Winchester 3
Winchester 9, Calvert 6
Standings
Berkeley 2-0, Garrett County 1-1, Winchester 1-1, Calvert 0-2
Sunday's Games
Calvert at Berkeley, 9 a.m., Hamilton Field
Garrett County at Winchester, 11:30 a.m., Hamilton Field
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Group 3
Bedford 4, Sykesville 3
Sykesville 8, Bedford 1
Standings
Bedford 1-1, Sykesville 1-1
Sundays Games
Bedford at Sykesville, 9 a.m., Memorial Field
Alex Rychwalski is a sports reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. Follow him on Twitter @arychwal.
