ELYRIA — Schlather’s Insurance, representing Elyria Little League North, seemed to have no problems at the plate, and looked pretty good on the pitching mound, too, as it downed Powerhouse Gym of Elyria Little League East 12-5 Saturday night to claim the Minor A (9-11) city championship.
The game was played at North Park but East won the coin toss and was designated the home team.
North wasted little time getting on the board in the top of the first, scoring twice on three straight singles by Barikk Smalley, Austin O’Quinn and Josh Spartharos.
O’Quinn and Spartharos were the North’s hitting stars, with three hits each and five RBIs between them. O’Quinn had two doubles and was also the winning pitcher, giving up just four hits while North banged out 11.
“I saw the ball really well at the plate,” O’Quinn said, who batted .718 with two homers in the regular season.
Asked what his best pitch was on the mound, he said, “My last pitch for the third out in the fourth.”
O’Quinn pitched the first four innings and left the mound before the fifth because he had exceeded the pitch count allowed for Minor A pitchers. He struck out nine and walked only four.
Spatharos, who batted .736 with three homers in the regular season, was philosophical after the game.
“It is really fun to be part of a winning team and contributing to the win,” he said.
East took a brief lead in the bottom of the first with three runs — on two walks, a single and a booming triple to deep left by Kyle Klotz. But the East managed only two runs in the final four innings.
North put the game away with five runs in the fourth, sparked by Jack Decker’s triple and O’Quinn’s double.
“I worked with the kids before the tournament started with a pitching machine and they really responded well,” North manager Doug Barley said.
“We really don’t have a weak spot in the lineup. And the kids helped each other in the dugout by encouragement after East took the early lead.”
“We didn’t hit the ball today,” East manager Paul Pronty said. “Schlather’s also had better pitching than us. We did have some good hits, though.”
Contact Jerry Rombach at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.
Recent Comments