By HUNTER O. LYLE
lyleoleanstar@gmail.com
OLEAN, NY – Following a disappointing Fourth of July loss where defense seemed to be the weakest link, the Olean Oilers snapped back with nine frames of home-field protection as they took down the Horseheads Hitmen 6-2.
Coming into Saturday’s match up, the tale between the Oilers and Hitmen have been one of varying results. Meeting twice, the two teams have split the series. Olean pulled out a 6-3 on DATE, however, in the second showing, they fell 15-2 as a result of a nagging void on the mound.
“(The difference) was what we had that day. In that big loss we had a good amount of position player pitching going on. Literally, just trying to get through those nine innings, trying to get outs,” said Olean Oilers’ co-manager Jackson DeJohn. “Having pitching to go at, not only (Horseheads), but every team, is the one thing that we need to have to be able to have a shot to go win that ball game.”
After a night where shakey defense gave up early damage, the Oilers entered their contest against the Hitmen ready to right the ship. Showcasing their efficient infield, Olean turned three quick plays to send Horseheads back to their dugout. In the second frame, the Oilers again dispatched their opponents sooner rather than later, albeit, after giving up a lone single and a bunt.
In the meantime, Olean wouldn’t hesitate to put men on the baseline. Two batters in, Olean had already put a man in scoring position thanks to a lead-off line-drive double from Thomas Bates and a sacrifice-grounder from Josh Wilson. A single from Bryce Neely and a full-count walk from Brian Fleming loaded the bases before Matthew Boffalo drove in the first run of the day with a sac-grounder.
Although Horseheads would retaliate soon after, tying the game with a sac-fly in the third, Olean would stunt them from then on. After going scoreless in the bottom of the same frame, the Oilers watched as the Hitmen loaded the bases, teetering on the edge of a big scoring run. However, they would leave all three stranded as Olean escaped the inning with a snapshot to first by Wilson.
Josh Wilson rifles a pass to first during the
“Josh Wilson made a sweet play at shortstop. Bryce Neely does an excellent job of cutting off balls in the outfield, making sure guys aren’t taking extra bags,” said co-manager Jake Meeker. “Today our defense was able to make the plays.”
In the fourth, Olean was led by a new face: Cross Yarborough, who suited up as an Oiler for the first time against the Hitmen. Despite striking out on his first appearance at the plate, his second trip to the batter’s box would prove fruitful, with Yarbough crushing a deep triple to center field.
“I see a young kid with a powerful swing,” said DeJohn. “The first impression is just a big swing with a lot of juice. He’s a guy that you hope to get in the middle of the order to get a few extra bases and score guys from first base.”
He would cross home plate just one batter later with an RBI-single from Dustin Hendrix and although that would be the extent of their action in the fourth, in the fifth, the Oilers surged.
Bates would take the march to first after being hit before making it to third on a Wilson single. Neely then singled to fill the diamond, followed by a two-run double from Flemming. Now up three with no outs, the next two batters, Boffalo and Owen Smith, drove in two more runs to extend Olean’s lead to five.
“They did a good job of flushing yesterday. We didn’t stick it particularly well but today they came out and sort of said, ‘screw it, we’re still going to go out and swing the baseball bat,’ and they did,” said Meeker. “We had timely hitting today, which we haven’t really seen all summer. It was awesome to see them put it together.”
While Horseheads would round home once more, scoring off a wild pitch in the sixth, Olean’s staunch defense carried them to the finish line. They again stumped a bases-loaded seventh with a Brendan Roche K and a quick play at second before forcing back-to-back three-and-outs in the eighth and ninth, earning their eleventh win of the season as they pulled ahead 2-1 in the season series against the Hitmen.
Seven Oilers ended with at least one hit, with Neely once again leading the pack with two. Neely (2-for-3) finished as one of five to score, while Bates (1-for-4) rounded home twice. Fleming (1-for-3) scored once and batted another run in. Boffalo (1-for-4) brought in two runs as well.
Over the next week, Olean will take to the road for four games in hostile territory. The journey begins on Sunday, when they face the Sherill Silversmiths in a double-header, having one day’s rest before they play Hornell and Dansville, both away. However, they leave Bradner Stadium with a head full of steam as they look to regain the second seed in the Western Conference.
“(The win) makes the (three-plus-hour) drive tomorrow a lot easier when you’re getting on that bus and you don’t hate it nearly as much,” said DeJohn. “And then it pumps you up, coming in off a win. We have two-seven inning games and we are a little low on arms but going in with a win like today makes you excited to go play that next game.”
AT OLEAN
Horseheads 001 001 000 R:2 H:6 E:3
Olean 100 140 00X R:6 H:8 E:1
HH: Lewis (4 SO, 2 BB), Vogel (6) (2 SO, 2 BB) and Underhill
OL: Smith (1 SO, 4 BB), Roche (5) (7 SO, 3 BB) and Ambrosio
