By HUNTER O. LYLE
DANSVILLE, NY – After weathering the storm and completing a two-run comeback, the Olean Oilers’ season came to an end in the first round of the New York Collegiate Baseball League playoffs after a walk-off mistake handed the Dansville Gliders a 7-6 victory at home.
The Gliders and Oilers have become more than familiar as of late. In the past week alone, the two have seen each other three times, including a make-up game on Thursday that gave Dansville a 4-3 lead in the season series as well as the No. 2 seed in the postseason.
“We’re going into today having confidence in our pitching and having confidence at the plate,” said Olean Oilers’ co-manager Jake Meeker before the game. “We play pretty well here. They beat us at home a couple of times so we’re not afraid to be on the road right now. We’re just looking forward to the playoffs.”
After a brief, one-inning grace period, the bats became electric for both teams. For the Oilers, Chase Fischer led things off in the second, cracking a line-drive double on the first pitch of the frame. He was quickly joined on base by Matthew Boffalo via walk before the pair was moved into scoring position from a Cross Yarborough sacrifice bunt. Another sacrifice, this time a fly out from Dustin Hendrix, would tally the first run of the day. Immediately after, Brodie Collins put the Oilers up 2-0 with a double to center field, scoring Boffalo.
The Gliders wouldn’t hesitate to respond. Mirroring Olean, their lead-off slugger also earned real estate on the baseline with a double, followed by a single and tandem steals that quickly put Dansville’s eyes on home plate. Both men would come around the bend sooner rather than later after the third consecutive hit scored the pair. The Oilers’ ace, Brendan Roche, was quick to tie on a tourniquet, tallying three quick strikeouts to escape the inning still afloat.
Moving into the third, it at first seemed as if Olean wouldn’t have a rebuttal. However, with two outs and Brian Fleming on first after being hit, Fischer came up clutch again with his second home run of the season.
“It was a great start. Chase hitting a tank, I think when a dugout sees a guy like that, who means a lot to our team, putting us up with a homer it gets the ball rolling,” said Olean Oilers’ co-manager Jackson DeJohn. “From the very jump, our hitters went up there with good plans and when you start a game off like that, it shows the rest of the lineup that we’re going to hit this guy. Guys go up with a lot of confidence.”
The momentum switch would only be on the surface, however, as Dansville would retaliate with a three-run scoring burst to take their first lead of the game. The scoring came by way of back-to-back RBIs doubles from Jeremy Aylward and Justin Colpack before an overthrow on a tag out attempt went high, allowing the Gliders to pull ahead 5-4.
From there, the Oilers’ offense began to stall out. Despite continuously finding contact at the plate, Olean would struggle to get past the fourth man on deck as Dansville suffocated the gaps and made quick, crisp passes to hold them at bay. The Oilers would ultimately make up for their lapses with the bats on defense. Through the next three frames, Olean forced the Gliders out in three on two occasions while also turning a double-play in the fifth to keep within reach of the lead.
“Half the outs that (Dansville) got, the baseball gods just weren’t on our side. We were crushing baseballs here and there and, you know, if they go two feet in another direction we’re looking at a very different ball game,” said DeJohn.
The embargo would only hold out for so long and in the bottom of the seven, Dansville struck again with a ground-roll double that put them up 6-4. Feeling the pressure grow, the Oilers snapped out of their slump. During their next at-bat, Fleming took first with a single before Fischer hit his second double of the game, putting two men in scoring position. The second-half of Fischer’s one-two combo, Boffalo, then took to the plate, cracking a hard-hit single to right field that gave his teammates ample time to streak down the third baseline.
“(Fischer and Boffalo) struggled a little bit in the beginning of the season but it didn’t really affect them. They came in today and said ‘we’re not losing’,” said Meeker. “Unbleiveable leadership from those two as well. They’re going to be great ball players this year for their schools.”
While Olean would hold Dansville off in the bottom of the eight, the Gliders new man on the mound, Brock Bullinger dashed any dreams of winning in regulation, dispatching the Oilers in three. They would eventually suffer the same fate, albeit going out in four, leaving the game to be decided in extra innings.
“We looked at our guys and they were all confident. Not one kid went up there and said ‘oh, I’m going to strikeout’ or ‘I’m going to end this game’,” said Meeker. “They went up there, they had a plan, they executed the plan. They weren’t panicking.”
Unfortunately for the Oilers, they failed to rise to the occasion. Starting with their No. 2 slugger, their first two batters would be caught at first before Bullinger tallied his third K two batters later. Once again, Olean was forced to rely on their defense, an effort that quickly fell flat.
Dansville’s first two men up both notched singles before a bunt loaded the bases. With only one out, Emmett McLean, the Gliders’ lead-off hitter, stepped to the plate. McLean rattled off a low grounder that was rounded up in the infield. A throw to home would have cut off a score, however, a bobbled reception by the Oilers’s catcher saw the ball hit the dirt just as Dansville’s man touched home. After completing a comeback, the Oilers’ effort went in vain, ending their season in the first round of the playoffs for the second year in a row.
Closing out his third year as an Oiler, Fischer ended with three hits in four trips to the plate, recording three runs scored and two more batted in. As his counterpart, Boffalo finished 1-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored while Fleming scored twice on a 1-for-4 day in the batters’ box.
After packing up the gear and a hearty round of good byes and thank yous, both coaches reflected on what the takeaway was from the season. The answer didn’t have to do with wins or a playoff berth, rather, they thought about the group of men they had been able to teach and know.
“I think from the very jump the goals I had for the summer was for each dude to leave feeling like he became a better baseball player then he was when he showed up. The whole goal for summer ball is development,” said DeJohn. “You play summer ball to get better so that when you get back you’re prepared and you’re in a better spot. I’d say, when I look back on it, I can confidently say that all these guys developed and got so much better. It was great to see it.”
AT DANSVILLE
Olean 022 000 020 0 R:6 H:9 E:2
Dansville 023 000 100 1 R:7 H:18 E:1
OL: Roche (4 SO, 1 BB), Smith (4) (4 SO, 0 BB), Arreola (9) (1 SO, 0 BB) and Collins
DN: Whitney (1 SO, 1 BB), Simoneoux (8) (1 SO, 0 BB), Bullinger (9) (3 SO, 1 BB) and Ruyle
