By HUNTER O. LYLE
SALAMANCA, NY – Playing through a roller coaster of ups and downs, the Olean Oilers managed to stave off a comeback with clutch performances on both sides of the plate, defeating the Salamanca Lizards 6-5 in their final matchup of the season.
Through seven meetings, the Lizards have seemed to be a thorn in Olean’s side. Despite a wide mismatch on paper – the Oilers have largely clung around the second and third seed in the Western Conference while the Lizards have been stuck at the bottom – Salamanca has tested the Oilers at every turn, producing a 3-3-1 season series advantage ahead of their Tuesday meeting.
“Everytime we play them, they’re not booting the ball around, they’re pitchers are throwing strikes, they’re not walking the park,” said Olean Oilers co-manager Jackson DeJohn. “Every single game we’ve played hasn’t been a super high scoring game. They’ve all been good baseball games.”
The initial feeling out process lasted three innings, with each team trading short-lived at bats as they probed gaps and studied the opposing man on the mound. Both squads gained access to the baseline with scattered hits and a handful of walks, but neither could mount a significant push around the diamond. As the game continued and the respective sticks began to warm, it seemed to be only a matter of time until someone finally broke through.
Ultimately, it would be Olean.
Going three-and-out in the third, the Oilers took to the mound void of momentum in the fourth. However, that didn’t stop them from building a lead from scratch. Chase Fischer and Cross Yarborough kicked things off with two singles in Olean’s first three batters, eventually both moving into scoring position off tandem steals. Unable to tally a hit in his lone appearance thus far, Owen Smith brought in the duo with a line drive shot to left field as he set up shop on second.
Keeping the good times rolling, Aiden Cowburn then cracked a bouncing ball that split the Lizards’ second basemen and shortstop, allowing Smith to round home himself. Shutting out Salamanca in four, Olean added another score to their lead in the fifth when Yarborough drove in Brian Fleming with an RBI-single.
“We’ve been losing numbers throughout the summer, so it’s been the same group of core guys every single game. They’re very close and everybody’s got each others’ back,” said DeJohn. “When nine guys are consistently hitting every day, they start to learn exactly how they’re playing together. It fires them up.”
Although temporarily stunted immediately after, it wouldn’t take long for the Lizards to retaliate. Retiring the Oilers in three once again in the top of the sixth, Salamanca then erupted. A walk, a single and a wild pitch quickly put them in scoring position before another passed ball let in the first Lizard run of the day. Then the floodgates opened.
With two outs and two men on first and third, Frank Kula cracked an RBI-single to narrow the deficit to two before Chase Haglund rocketed a line drive to the right field corner, earning him a spot on third and bringing the game back to even with two runs scored.
From there, the game stalled into a tooth-and-nail battle for inches on the baseline. Despite each team putting men on base, they were all left stranded as timely outs quickly killed any building momentum. However, in the bottom of the eighth, the Oilers found a spark by defending a stacked diamond.
Getting back to the top of the order in the ninth, Olean’s bats returned. Wilson and Fleming both notched singles, setting the stage for Dustin Hendrix who methodically battled in the box before coming away with a two-run RBI-double. One batter later, Boffalo solidified Olean’s lead with another single that brought Hendrix.
Leaving the top of the ninth up 6-4, all the Oilers had to find was quick three outs. After getting the first via a play at first, Lucas Marsh would shake things up with a deep flying triple to the centerfield wall. Although he was brought in on a sac-fly from Timothy Johnson immediately after, Olean cut off the bleeding with a fly out one batter later, earning their 21st win.
Wilson (2-for-5), Yarborough (2-for-4) and Smith (2-for-4) lead the Oilers with multiple hits, combining for three runs scored and another three batted in. Fleming scored twice during a 1-for-4 night at the plate.
The Oilers have just two games left on the schedule as they look to solidify the second seed in the Western Conference. Currently, they are locked behind No. 1 Genesee Rapids, who they play on Wednesday, and are fighting off the Dansville Gliders, who sit just a single point behind Olean in the West. No matter what happens in the final few days of the regular season, DeJohn is more than confident that his team is ready for the task ahead.
“We have such a tight-knit team. Each dude is getting in that box in big moments and doing it for their guys. (The past two weeks) is the best baseball we’ve played all summer,” said DeJohn. “These guys, the way they talk to each other at batting practice, everybody is in a great mood. Everybody’s helping each other out, so they’re going to bring competitiveness and energy (to the playoffs) all on their own.”
AT SALAMANCA
Olean 000 310 002 R:6 H:11 E:1
Salamanca 000 004 001 R:5 H:12 E:1
OL: Manendo (5 SO, 5 BB), Cowburn (6) (2 SO, 1 BB) and Ambrosio
SA: Stranko (1 SO, 1 BB), Gruber (4) (3 SO, 1 BB), Rumfola (5) (3 SO, 0 BB) and Lasko
