Logan Seeger
HOLLIDAYSBURG 6, TYRONE 3
The Tyrone Golden Eagles faced a tough challenge Friday night at PNG Field, falling 6-3 to the Hollidaysburg Golden Tigers in the Curve Classic quarterfinals. Despite flashes of strong play, Tyrone couldn’t overcome costly mistakes and the solid performance of Hollidaysburg’s pitcher Vince Boland.
Boland, who played a pivotal role in Hollidaysburg’s historic run to last year’s PIAA Class 5A championship game, struck out eight batters over 5 2/3 innings. His efforts were supported by catcher Cayden Gibbons, who hit a solo home run in the seventh inning to seal the victory for the Tigers.
Tyrone started strong, with Ashton Walk scoring on Landon Hamer’s double off the wall in the first inning. The Golden Eagles tied the game 2-2 in the third on Conner McClure’s RBI single.
However, defensive errors in the fourth inning allowed Hollidaysburg to regain control. A misplay on a sacrifice bunt led to two runs, putting Tyrone behind for good.
Although some errors were evident, second-baseman Brandon McClure made a diving catch which led to a double play, helping Tyrone get out of a jam.
Coach Kevin Soellner acknowledged his team’s struggles, saying, “We just keep shooting ourselves in the foot. Errors and missed opportunities are killing us.”
The Golden Eagles had a chance to rally in the seventh inning but hopes were eventually crushed due to aggressive base running that resulted in Walk being thrown out at home.
Despite the loss, Tyrone showed promise at the plate, with multi-hit games from Hamer, Owen Oakes, and Lincoln Shirey.
Coach Soellner remains optimistic about his team’s potential. “We’ve got what it takes,” he said. “If we hustle harder and clean up our mistakes, we’ll be back on track.”
BOX SCORE:
HOLLIDAYSBURG (6): Banks 2b 412, Steiner ss-p 400, Albarano 3b 300, Gibbons c 422, Boland p 000, Mierley ss 000, Ulery dh 200, Mullin lf 301, Hartman 1b 412, Bell rf 120, Szynal cf 202. Totals — 22-6-9.
TYRONE (3): Walk ss 311, Parsons cf 310, Hamer c 312, Frye cr 000, Ewing p 000, Stroup p 000, Seeger p 000, Oakes dh 402, C. McClure 1b 301, Zupon 3b 301, B. McClure 2b 200, Jones ph 101, Shirey lf 302, Miller rf 300. Totals — 28-3-10.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Hollidaysburg 200 201 1– 6 9 0
Tyrone 101 000 1– 3 10 2
E–Miller, Ewing. 2B–Szynal, Hamer. 3B–Banks. HR–Gibbons. RBI–Albarano, Gibbons, Mullin, Oakes, C. McClure. WP–Boland. LP–Ewing. SO–Boland 8, Ewing 7. BB–Boland 2, Steiner 1, Ewing 4, Seeger 2, Stroup 1.
Records: Tyrone (5-4); Hollidaysburg (5-1).
____________________________________________________________
TYRONE 6, PORTAGE 1
After the hard loss against Hollidaysburg, the Golden Eagles were looking to regroup Saturday morning as they aimed to snap their four-game losing streak and build momentum for the rest of the season in the Curve Classic consolation game against Portage.
However, Tyrone was missing their senior leader and power hitter, catcher Landon Hamer, due to his orientation to Slippery Rock.
This caused Coach Solener to move some positions around and rework the lineup to account for his absence.
Junior Brayden Parsons, stepped up and took over Hamers duties behind the plate, and junior Owen Oakes was assigned to right field to fill the missing outfield spot.
Tyrone got the 6-1 win over Portage, thanks to Connor McClure pitching a strong six innings and large offensive contributions from many of the Eagles.
The Eagles didn’t start the game out how they planned, after a walked batter from Portage got driven in by a Teagan Kick triple.
The Eagles turned around in the bottom of the inning and matched the run tying the game until the bottom of the fifth inning which was a turning point for the Eagles.
The Eagles were able to add a run to take the lead in the fifth inning with an RBI single from Gayge Miller.
Although the Eagles were only able to add one run in the fifth, they came out to the field eager to shut down Portage and put them away for good.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, the Golden Eagles’ bats started to heat up, nearly batting through the entire order and scoring four runs to extend their lead to 6-1.
With the large lead pitcher Connor McClure was able to get relieved by Logan Seeger who shut down the Colts and sealed the win for Tyrone.
Senior Gayge Miller had himself one of his best outings of the year hitting 2 for 3 with an RBI, and two runs scored.
BOX SCORE:
PORTAGE (1): Slanoc cf 400, Kargo ss 401, McCoy 3b 300, Irvin p 301, Strittmatter p 000, Klein 1b 211, Lawrence lf 100, Kick 2b 301, Ciokota c 200, Shaffer ph 100, Koban ph 000, Gathers rf 100, Zock ph 000. Totals — 24-1-4.
TYRONE (6): A. Walk ss 402, Shirey lf 400, Oakes rf 301, C. McClure p 300, Stroup 2b 311, Jones dh 302, B. McClure 3b 010, Ewing 1b 200, B. Walk 1b 010, Seeger p 000, Miller cf 322, Parsons c 100, Frye 000, Bokulich 010. Totals — 26-6-8.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Portage 010 000 0–1 4 4
Tyrone 001 014 X–6 8 2
2B–Jones. 3B–Kick. RBI–Kick, Miller 2, Stroup, Parsons. WP–C. McClure. LP–Irvin. SO–Irvin 3, Strittmatter 1, C. McClure 5, Seeger 1. BB–Irvin 1, Strittmatter 1, C. McClure 3.
Records: Tyrone (6-4).