By SPENCER BATES
HORSEHEADS — The Salamanca Lizards had got their sophomore season as an NYCBL franchise underway with back-to-back wins over the Dansville Gliders and Horseheads Hitmen. In their next two games — rematches against both teams — their opposition got the better of them, with a 4-2 loss to the Hitmen on the road bringing the Lizards’ record back to .500.
And for the second time in as many games, an inconsistent offensive output was the biggest detriment to Salamanca.
In their first two games of the campaign, the Lizards’ offense was churning like a well-oiled machine, operating with consistency and keeping themselves ahead of their opponents. However, in their last two affairs those bats have gone cold.
But from the start against Horseheads, things were looking up for Salamanca. A day after falling to the Gliders in a game in which they tallied just three hits, there were positive signs that those struggles were just a blip.
The first two batters of the game for the Lizards, Frank Kula (1-for-4, run) and Harley Hoag (2-for-4, run), managed to get on base with Hoag’s double putting them both in scoring position. And with sacrifice fly-outs coming from Connor Smith and Hunter White, both Kula and Hoag crossed home plate to give Salamanca an early advantage.
The Lizards remained in control of the lead until the fifth frame, but unfortunately were unable to build upon their tally as the bats went cold following their hot start.
After the first frame, the Lizards connected for just three hits, none bringing across any batters. In the still-very-early goings of the season, Weitzel has emphasized the need for his team to execute, but understands that sometimes a lack of execution does not necessarily mean there was a lack of effort.
“Baseball is the most messed up game ever,” Weitzel said. “When we’re on offense, it’s one against nine. You could hit a ball hard on the screws and it just happens to go right at somebody. You hear it all the time, ‘you fail seven out of 10 times, you’re a hall-of-famer. … The later the game goes, the more that pressure mounts, which makes it harder to hit, and that’s when guys really want to cash in. But the more they can step back and just take the game by at-bat, the better off they’ll be. But that’s easier said than done.”
While the Lizards had kept the Hitmen without a hit until the fourth inning, it was far from a sturdy performance on the mound by the visitors. Salamanca’s starting pitcher Sawyer Prince walked two batters and hit two others before getting pulled after four full innings due to being on a predetermined pitch count. Prince recorded six strikeouts early on, but flirted with danger, loading the bases with walks in the third inning and conceding Horseheads’ first hit in the fourth.
Unfortunately for the Lizards, Gabe Roth, their replacement for Prince, did not change their fortunes on the bump. Roth, who had gotten the start at third base in the team’s first three games of the season, gave up a game-tying home run and the go-ahead run in the fifth frame. He was replaced by Bryce Jackson in the seventh inning, who also conceded a home run to the hosts.
But, as Weitzel noted, the trio of pitchers that he sent out on the day had not seen the mound in the capacity that they did against Horseheads in a while, and getting them out there was about preparing them to be pivotal pieces of the rotation as the season continues.
“Sawyer is a relief pitcher at (Penn State-Behrend), Gabe threw maybe 12 innings for us in the spring and Bryce was hurt and didn’t pitch (in the spring),” Weitzel said. “We know they’re going to be part of what we do, so it’s about getting them back out there, getting them the feel of things and getting them in their rhythm as the summer goes.”
And with the Lizards’ offense continuing to struggle — stranding a possible game-tying run in the top of the seventh and a go-ahead run in the ninth — the momentum remained in the hands of the Hitmen through the game’s finish.
Following the loss, Salamanca is heading into its third game in as many days on June 15, a home affair against the Hornell Steamers. But despite dropping its last two games, the message from Weitzel is not one of change. Instead, it is one of trust.
“I think we’re doing a good job and I don’t know that a bunch of stuff needs to change as much as just trusting what we’re doing,” Weitzel said. “Things are going to go your way, sometimes things aren’t going to go away. … You hope that if you do things the right way for long enough that over a full season, you win six out of 10, that’s a really good ball club.”
The Salamanca Lizards’ game on June 15 will be a charity game with all proceeds made going to the 44 & Me Foundation, which was started by Melanie Ross, wife of former Salamanca High School athlete and graduate Darren Ross, who passed away from Glioblastoma. The game against the Hornell Steamers will begin at 4:44 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park as a part of the tribute to Ross.
AT SALAMANCA
Salamanca 200 000 000 R:2 H:5 E:1
Horseheads 000 030 01X R:4 H:6 E:2
Sala: Prince (6 SO, 2 BB), Roth (1 SO, 2 BB), Jackson (4 SO, 0 BB) and Cardona
Hors: Tizzano (5 SO, 2 BB), Vogel (3 SO, 1 BB) and Morrell
