Hits and Runs Galore as Punxsutawney Downs Clearfield

HYDE — Fans that came to the Clearfield High School on Monday were just happy to be there after the heavy rain that came through in the morning. However, the field was not in that bad a shape, and was ready to be utilized. The Bison, coming off a shutout victory on Saturday, were ready to try to complete the remainder of the season. Coming in for some competition, the Punxsutawney Chucks were ready to deliver on their end.

Both teams ended up delivering in massive fashion. The Chucks and Bison put up statistics more akene to the gridiron than the diamond. In the end, nearly 50 runs were scored, 45 hits tallied, and 87 at-bats were on the stat line. After seven innings, the Chucks handed Clearfield a 27-16 loss that pushed both teams to their limits.

Clearfield got on the board first in the first inning on a two-RBI single from Morgen Billotte that plated Kyle Elensky and Nolan Barr. Billotte was tagged out heading to second, but the 2-0 lead fueled the Bison dugout. One batter later, Blake Prestash took a look down at a 1-0 pitch, and sent it soaring over the left field wall for a solo shot to add one more run to the books.

Even after Punxsutawney added a run in the second, the Bison answered back in the bottom half when Prestash followed up his solo shot with a two-RBI single into left field. At the end of two innings, Clearfield held a 5-1 advantage, and was feeling good about their positioning.

That feeling didn’t last when Punxsutawney made the game interesting, as after an error allowed Zeke Bennett to reach first, Isaac London singled to put a pair of runners in position. Peyton Hetrick grounded a ball up the third-base line to bring in an RBI-single, cutting the lead down, 5-2. Two batters later, Carter Savage decided to make an impact, as he stared down the first pitch he saw, swung the bat and sent the ball to the farthest part of the field, clearing the center field wall. The three-run bomb tied up the game, and at that point it was clear this game was going to be settled down the line, and who could still have the energy to make it the distance.

Punxsutawney got their first lead of the game in the fourth when starting pitcher Josh Tyger blasted a two-RBI single into center field to make it 7-5. A sacrifice fly from Ashton Stonbraker added one more run to the board before the Bison finally got out of the inning.

Clearfield would not quit, and wanted to get back in the game. In the bottom of the fourth, they did just that. Kyle Elensky got things started quickly as he soared a solo home run over the left field wall, slicing the lead to just two runs. After a ground out, Billotte reached on an error, then Prestash walked to put runners on first and second. Cole Bloom then brought Billotte home on a fielding error, and two batters later Ryan Gearhart added an RBI-single to tie the game at eight runs a piece.

But just tying the game wasn’t enough, because a bases-loaded walk and a fielder’s choice officially gave Clearfield a 10-8 lead heading to the fifth. The coaching staff for the Bison gave encouragement as they headed onto the field, knowing they fought hard to get the lead back, and wanted to keep it that way.

Unfortunately, the fifth inning would be the one that decided everything.

Consecutive RBI-singles by Peyton Hetrick and Tyger tied the game at 10 runs all. Two batters later, Hetrick crossed home on an error by Gearhart, one of three he committed on the day, then Jake Sikora plated two more on a grounder up the left field line, giving the Chucks a 13-10 lead that would ultimately be the final lead change of the afternoon.

Punxsutawney was not done at that point, plating four more runs on a pair of RBI-doubles, plus an RBI-single, to take a 17-10 lead into the bottom half of the fifth.

Clearfield went through a pair of pitchers in the fifth, with Hunter Rumsky getting tagged with the loss on the afternoon. Despite going just one and a third innings, he gave up eight hits, eight earned runs, and struck out two. Combined, all the pitchers in the game struck out seven batters, while giving up 45 total hits, with the Chucks holding a 26-19 advantage in that stat.

Still, the Bison were not giving up without a fight. Following a two-run sixth from the Chucks, making it 19-10, Clearfield began reeling in the visitors in the sixth inning.

An RBI-single by Barr started things off, followed by another courtesy of Billotte. A two-RBI double by Prestash, adding to his game-high six RBI performance, pulled Clearfield to within four. Bloom would ground out to short for the second out, but it was enough to bring home another run.

Heading into the seventh, the 19-16 score was the highest that either squad had seen this season. But, Punxsutawney would put things away in the final inning with an eight-run performance that even the scoreboard couldn’t hold.

A pair of two-RBI singles from Sikora and Stonbraker suddenly made it 23-16. Then, Zach Dinger decided to hit a “dinger” when he took a 1-0 pitch from Hayvin Bumbarger, the sixth different Bison pitcher, and sent it over the right field wall for a two-run bomb. The final pair of runs came literally as if it were the same song, but new verse, as Bennett stared down the first pitch he saw from Bumbarger, and sent it almost to the exact same spot over the right field wall for another two-run homer to set the final.

Punxsutawney’s Justin Miller would get the win on the afternoon with a three-inning performance, despite giving up 10 runs and just as many hits.

Clearfield (8-11) will close out the 2022 season on Wednesday as they play host to Curwensville, with first pitch at 4:30 p.m.

SCORE BY INNING

Punxsutawney 014 392 8 – 27 26 4
Clearfield 320 506 0 – 16 19 4

Punxsutawney – 27

Isaac London-DH 5420, Peyton Hetrick-2B/SS 7442, Josh Tyger-P/2B 5123, Carter Savage-1B 4343, Owen Wood-CR 0200, Jake Sikora-3B 6234, Ashton Stonbraker-C 4123, Zach Dinger-RF 5244, Jake Henretta-LF 2000, Alex Phillips-RF/LF 4234, Zeke Bennett-CF 4423, Easton Gula-CR 0200. TOTALS 46 27 26 26.

Clearfield – 16

Kyle Elensky-SS 4331, Nolan Barr-1B/2B/P 5311, Morgen Billotte-CF 5343, Blake Prestash-P/1B 4336, Cole Bloom-C 5021, Ty Troxell-RF 5110, Ryan Gearhart-2B/LF 4031, Mike Fester-3B 2001, Elijah Quick-CR/P 1210, Jesse Lumadue-PH 1000, Hunter Rumsky-P/2B 5111. TOTALS 41 16 19 15.

• LOB: 8/10
• E: Hetrick, Phillips, Martino, Savage/Bloom, Gearhart-3
• ROE: Bennett/Billotte, Bloom, Troxell
• 2B: Dinger-2, Bennett, Savage/Billotte, Elensky, Prestash
• HR: Dinger, Bennett, Savage/Elensky, Prestash
• SAC: Tyger
• SF: Stonbraker
• FC: Stonbraker/Barr, Elensky, Fester, Rumsky, Troxell
• HBP: Dinger/Elensky
• DP: Martino
• GIDP: Rumsky
• SB: Wood, Dinger, Phillips, Bennett-2, Savage/Gearhart

PITCHING

Punxsutawney: Tyger-3 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 0 SO, 1 BB; Miller-3 IP, 10 H, 10 R, 5 ER, 0 SO, 2 BB; Martino-1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 SO, 2 BB.

Clearfield: Prestash-3 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 1 SO, 2 BB; Rumsky-1.1 IP, 8 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 2 SO, 2 BB; Barr-0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 SO, 0 BB; Durandetta-1.1 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 SO, 2 BB; Quick-0.2 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 SO, 1 BB; Bumbarger-0.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 SO, 0 BB.

W-Miller
L-Rumsky