Raiders rout Indians in D6 Championship, 10-0
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BELLEFONTE -- For the third straight year the Bellefonte baseball and Juniata teams met for a chance at winning the District 6 Class 4A Championship at Bellefonte's Governors Park.
In the previous two years, the Red Raiders brought home the trophy and moved on to the PIAA postseason.
On Tuesday it would be the Red Raiders (12-8) that were too much for the up-and-coming Indians, winning 10-0 in five innings, capturing their fourth consecutive District 6 Class 4A championship.
Bellefonte pitcher Zach Lehman was tough on the mound allowing only two Juniata hits while striking out eight as he went the entire five innings.
Bellefonte got multiple hits by Peyton Vancas (2-for-3, two runs, RBI), Zach Lehman (3-for-3, two RBIs) and Evan Mattern (3-for-3 with two RBIs).
Picking up hits for Juniata (9-9-1) were Cam Bargo and teammate Drew Geedey.
Lehman had a no-hitter going until the fourth. Geedey hit a looping hit over first base and into shallow right field.
Then in the fifth, Bargo blasted a shot into center field.
"We hit the ball. We didn't hit the ball hard enough in the spots that we needed to," said Juniata coach Ty Treaster. "Coming into the game we knew that we were going to need hard hits and not just relying on putting the ball in play."
In the first, the Raiders opened by plating five runs.
Leadoff hitter Peyton Vancas led off the bottom of the first with a single into left. Lehman followed with a single into left of his own. Lehman was replaced on the base paths by Cole Houser. Both Vancas and Houser moved to second and third via a wild pitch. Evan Mattern took a Daylyn Kennedy outside pitch and sent it into right field for a two-RBI, opposite-field hit.
Juniata's defense stood up and caught Mattern leaning the wrong way and caught him in a rundown.
"We battled and tried but Bellefonte is a good team," said Treaster. "Bellefonte battled the whole time."
With the bases empty, Parker Capperelle got ahold of a pitch and cleared the left-center field fence, upping the Red Raiders lead to 3-0.
Parker VonGunden hustled out an infield hit
With two out, Cam Lucas kept the inning going with a hit into right field.
Both scored on a double by Braeden Fortney, upping the first inning score to 5-0.
Both teams went scoreless at the plate in the second frame.
Lehman controlled the narrative at the plate, sending the Indians down with just a lone walk of Caleb Auker.
However, Auker was stranded on first going into the bottom of the second.
Juniata reliever Gage Harlon came in the game in the second and kept the Bellefonte bats quiet in the inning, going into the third, keeping the game still, posting a 5-0 Red Raiders lead.
The Red Raiders added to its lead, posting two insurance runs in the third.
With two outs, Fortney and Carsen Henry both walked. Vancas loaded the bases by reaching on a walk as well.
Lehman helped his own cause as he blasted a two-RBI double into right-center field.
With a scoreless fourth by both teams, the Raiders would put the game on ice as they rallied for three more runs in the fifth, securing the victory.
Bellefonte will play Obama Academy from Pittsburgh at a time and a place to be determined at a later date.
Bellefonte 10, Juniata 0 (5 innings)
JUN 000 00x x – 0 2 1
BEL 502 03x x – 10 14 0
WP: Zach Lehman
LP: Daylyn Kennedy
Multiple hits: JUN – None, BEL – Peyton Vancas 2-for-3,2runs, RBI, Zach Lehman 3-for-3,2 RBIs,Evan Mattern 3-for-3 2RBIs.
HR: JUN – None, BEL – Parker Capperelle.
3B: JUN – None, BEL – None.
2B: JUN – None, BEL – Zach Lehman, Braeden Fortney.