BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
NAUGATUCK, W.Va. — The Tug Valley Panthers baseball team opened up tournament play May 6 in the Class A, Region 4, Section 1 opener at Don Spence Field in Naugatuck. The Panthers advanced with a 14-4 mercy rule win in five innings over Van.
Tug Valley improved to 13-15 and moved to the winner’s bracket.
The Panthers came in as the No. 2 seed in the section.
The No. 7-seeded Van (5-21) fell into the loser’s bracket.
Tug Valley senior Julian Vance went 2 for 2 with two RBIs. Senior Conner Lackey was 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI, while Elijah Fluty knocked in three runs.
Junior Austin Smith was the starting and winning pitcher as he tossed three scoreless and hitless innings while striking out six batters.
Tug Valley took an early lead after Dakota Ooten was hit by a pitch, Fluty and Chandler Copley both walked, and Ashton Smith was also hit by a pitch. Julian Vance drew another walk and that brought in another run.
In the bottom of the second inning Gage Whitt walked and eventually scored on a groundout by Copley.
A five-run rally in the third added to the lead for TVHS. Singles by Lackey, Fluty and Gavin Fitzpatrick helped increase the home team’s lead.
Buffalo 3, Tug Valley 0
Tug Valley lost a close game in sectional tournament action to Buffalo of Putnam 3-0 on May 7 in Naugatuck.
Elijah Fluty led the Panthers with a pair of hits.
The game was low on offense with both pitching staffs hurling good games. The Bison staff struck out 11 Tug Valley batters, while Panthers pitchers sat down nine for Buffalo.
Cole Richardson earned the win on the mound for the Bison, while Zack Hall took the loss on the hill for Tug. Dakota Ooten pitched 5 and 2/3 innings in relief for the Panthers giving up one run and striking out eight batters.
The Panthers left 11 runners stranded on the base paths.
Buffalo scored one run in the top of the first and another in the top of the second inning.
Tug Valley was slated to play Huntington St. Joe in the loser’s bracket of the double-elimination event. The rainy weather has played havoc on the schedule.
St. Joe 9, Tug Valley 3
Tug Valley saw its baseball season come to an end May 8 as the Panthers lost to visiting Huntington St. Joe 9-3 in the Class A sectional tournament.
The Panthers took the lead in the second frame as a Chandler Copley ground out brought in the first run. The St. Joe Irish tied the game at 1-1 in the third, scoring a run on a fielder’s choice.
In the bottom of the third inning Tug Valley regained the lead on a single by Julian Vance that brought home a run. A sacrifice fly by Conner Lackey gave the Panthers a 3-1 lead.
St. Joe had a three-run rally in the fourth inning and scored four more runs in the fifth to build the lead. They tacked on an insurance run in the final inning to pull away with the sectional tournament win.
Gage Whitt took the loss on the mound for TVHS.
Brody Runyon got the win on the hill for the Irish.
Austin Smith had two base hits to lead Tug. Smith, Vance and Dakota Ooten each scored a run for the Panthers.
Tucker Watts and Wyatt Spence both had a pair of hits to lead St. Joe. Watts had three RBIs to help the Irish with the win.