The Tyrone Golden Eagles fell to Bald Eagle Area on the road Monday afternoon, dropping an 11-8 decision after an early offensive hole proved too deep to climb out of. Despite a gutsy second-half rally, the Golden Eagles couldn’t quite complete the comeback.
Tyrone found itself in trouble almost immediately. Bald Eagle burst out of the gate with six runs in the bottom of the first inning and tacked on four more in the second, building a 10-0 advantage before Tyrone’s offense had gotten untracked.
Starter Jon Stroup was pulled early in the second inning after a rough outing, and the Golden Eagles spent the rest of the afternoon trying to claw their way back.
To their credit, they made a serious run at it.
Tyrone began chipping away inning by inning, scoring once in the first from a Stroup solo shot, once in the fourth, and then putting together a five-run fifth that made things interesting.
By the time the dust settled on that fifth-inning outburst, the deficit was down to four, and the crowd could feel the momentum shifting. The Golden Eagles added another run in the sixth before ultimately falling short.
Stroup was one of the bright spots at the plate despite his rough time on the mound, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run and three runs scored. Wyatt Kustenbauder was equally impressive, going 3-for-3 with a walk, a double, and two RBIs. Conner Zupon added two hits and two RBIs in the middle of the order, while Brandon McClure chipped in a double.
As a team, Tyrone finished with 11 hits, actually outhitting Bald Eagle Area by two, a silver lining that speaks to the offense’s potential. Owen Oakes and Braylon Plummer each swiped a base, adding some speed on the basepaths in the late innings.
The Golden Eagles fall to 9-8 on the season with the loss. The schedule doesn’t get easier right away. Tyrone returns home on Thursday to host Bellefonte.
The Red Raiders come in hot at 13-3 after a 3-2 league win over Clearfield, making it one of the toughest tests remaining on the schedule. A bounce-back performance at home would go a long way toward keeping Tyrone’s playoff hopes on track.
