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Through six innings, neither Loyalsock or Montoursville could separate itself from one another in each team's regular-season finale at Brandon Park on Thursday.
The teams were locked up 1-1 in a game that the Lancers needed to win to qualify for the District 4 Class AAA playoffs which are set to start on Saturday.
But, in the top of the seventh inning, the crosstown rival Warriors shattered Loyalsock's dreams of a Cinderella playoff run. Montoursville used a bit of small ball to manufacture four runs in the top of the seventh and Jimmy Mussina closed out the game with two scoreless innings as Montoursville ended Loyalsock's season, 5-1.
"We've always prided ourselves on pitching and defense. If you can pitch and play defense most of the time, you're only going to have to find a way to manufacture a few runs, and you can win by doing that," Montoursville coach Jeremy Eck said. "And tonight, obviously, it's a 1-1 ball game late. And then we went to the small ball game, and it worked for us."
The pitching was indeed fantastic.
Logan Kirby started and pitched five innings of three-hit, one-run ball, adeptly using his changeup and curveball to put hitters away to the tune of nine strikeouts. Mussina entered in relief and threw two perfect innings, including one when the game was 1-1 with the Lancers looking to take the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Loyalsock had a few chances to take an important early lead. The Lancers had runners in scoring position in each of the first three innings, only for Kirby to work out of jams. And against a team like Montoursville, one of the district's premier teams, those were opportunities that they simply couldn't waste.
"You tip your cap to (Logan Kirby). He's the best arm in the district. It hurts. That's kind of been the story of us the last couple of weeks," Loyalsock coach Jimmy Webb said. "We've hit the ball really well, we get guys on base, and we've been leaving the on, so that's going to be a point of emphasis in the offseason."
Kirby's counterpart, Lancer lefty Nolan Kall, was terrific on the mound as well. The Warriors did get to him in the fourth inning and opened the scoring on back-to-back two out hits. Mussina hit a ball into center field that he turned into a hustle double, and Zack O'Neill hit a liner back up the middle to bring Mussina home.
Loyalsock answered back in the fifth with some clutch two-out hitting of its own. After Dolan Harmon was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, Kirby retired the next two on strikeouts. But John Kiehl came through with an RBI hit up the middle of his own to plate a run and tie the game through five innings.
After a scoreless sixth, Montoursville finally broke through in a big way against Kall. Jonah Heddings drew a leadoff walk, and Brayden McCourt faked a bunt and smacked one to left-center field that Lancer centerfielder Chase Wright nearly made a sensational diving catch on to put runner at first and second. After an intentional walk to Michael Reeder, Riley Bowes hit a bloop single up the middle to score one, with a second run coming home on an awry throw home.
Then Kane Moore reached base himself on a perfectly executed safety squeeze to score Reeder. Montoursville scored another run when Loyalsock tried to pick off Moore on a back-pick as Bowes came in to score. The Lancers got out of the jam on a 6-4-3 double play, but, with the score at 5-1, the damage was done.
"We were going to bunt originally, and then we saw how tight they were, so we decided to slash. And it worked out. That's something that we work on all the time. We work bunting all the time (as well)," Eck said. "We understand that small ball plays, especially with some guys that run the way that they do, I it makes defenses be clean and you've got to have your rotations right if you're going to play against us. And obviously that worked for us tonight."
Loyalsock needed a rally to save their season, but it wasn't meant to be. Mussina retired the Lancers in order on just seven pitches as Montoursville won their 15th ball game of the regular season, 5-1.
Montoursville is set to play Athens in the lone semifinal of a three-team District 4 Class AAAA tournament. The winner of that semifinal will take on Danville, who receives a bye to the final at Bowman Field.
Meanwhile, for the second-straight year, Loyalsock falls just one win short of a playoff berth.
"That's two years in a row we've been one game away. So lesson for the kids is when we have these games early we can't give them away," Webb said. "But I love this group. I'm proud of them. They battled back. To start the season 0-3, and to get us into position, that says a lot about our character."
Montousrville 5, Loyalsock 1
Montoursville 000 100 4 -- 5 8 1
Loyalsock 000 010 0 -- 1 3 3
Kirby, Mussina (6) and Noah Kirby. Kall and Jadyn Wagner. W: Mussina. L: Kall.
Top Montoursville hitters: Riley Bowes 2-4, RBI. Top Loyalsock hitters: John Kiehl 1-2, RBI, BB.