It wasn’t for a lack of baserunners.
Bradford out-hit Punxsutawney in Monday’s District 9 League baseball matchup at Pitt-Bradford, but the Chucks enjoyed a comfortable victory.
The Owls left 13 runners on base, wasting a 12-8 hits advantage in an 8-2 Punxsy win. Josh Tyger limited the Owl damage, throwing a complete game for the Chucks at UPB for the second consecutive season.
“We just couldn’t string hits together at the proper times, but we did a good job of putting the ball in play,” Bradford coach Eric Haynoski said. “They made the plays when they had to.”
Tyger struck out seven and walked one, remaining mostly unscathed despite allowing a base runner in every inning. Early runs hurt Bradford once again, as the Owls allowed two in the 1st and three in the 3rd to fall into a deficit they couldn’t erase.
Punsxy jumped on Bradford starter Talan Reese early, starting the game with a pair of hits before Tyger brought home the game’s first run on a sacrifice fly. Reese allowed five hits and one walk in five innings pitched, pounding the strike zone while overcoming two errors by his defense.
“The early runs shouldn’t have been there, we just had a couple bad reads in the outfield,” Haynoski said. “(Reese) did a great job pitching to contact. He let them put the ball in play and let our fielders make plays. Just a couple wrong steps in the field, but other than that, it was a clean game.”
When the Chucks added three runs in the 3rd, the game appeared as thought it may get away from the Owls. Reese responded strongly in the 4th and 5th, however, surrendering just one base runner to an infield error.
By that point, Tyger had all of the offense he’d need, as he exhibited the curveball control that allowed him to claim a 5-1, complete-game decision over the Owls a season ago. Bradford left the bases loaded in the 1st inning and, after a pair of outs on the base paths got Tyger out of the 2nd and 3rd, the Owls stranded two runners in the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th.
“I liked how our kids were picking up the curveball,” Haynoski said. “(Tyger) had a nasty one, and we were able to sit back a few times and drive it the other way.”
Andrew Renwick started a Bradford rally in the 5th with a leadoff single. He was forced out on a fielder’s choice, but after a single by Nolan Roulo, Elijah Fitton scored on an RBI single from Ryan Ward for Bradford’s first run.
The Owls would add another in the 7th following a leadoff single by Cam Austin. Roulo reached on and error that sent Austin to 3rd, and Austin then dashed home on a sacrifice fly from Ward.
Jack Wells doubled down the left field line to keep the Bradford rally in tact, but like they had several times prior, the Owls fell short.
“I think we’re finally on the right track,” Haynoski said. “It took awhile — we’ve finally been outside enough to be able to pick up the spin on the ball and see it out of the pitcher’s hands. I can see them building confidence in their swings.”
Austin finished 3-for-4 at the plate, legging out three infield singles. Ward was 1-for-3 with two RBI, while Wells and Matt Miller each had two hits.
Tyger was 2-for-3 at the plate for Punxsy with an RBI. Jake Sikora added two hits and two RBI, while Carter Savage tacked on a hit and two RBI.
The loss dropped Bradford to 4-8 on the season, while Punxsy improved to 10-5. The Owls will return to action Wednesday when they host St. Marys at UPB.
R H E
Punxsy:
Bradford: Talan Reese (2 SO, 1 BB), Ashton Smith (6) (1 SO, 2 BB) and Elijah Fitton
