Watkins, Wildcats Win 3-1 Pitchers’ Duel over Shamokin

cm-baseballMILL HALL — Tuesday saw two of the top pitchers in the Heartland Conference stage an old-fashioned pitchers dual, Central Mountain’s Ethan Watkins and his Wildcat teammates besting Shamokin’s Jake Wolfe by a 3-1 score at windy Mill Hall Community Park.

Watkins improved to 3-1 on the year, Wolfe falling to 3-2 in defeat. Both were strong throughout, Watkins hurling 6 1/3 innings of two-hit baseball, giving up one unearned run after he left the game in the final inning. The Wildcat senior had great defensive support, inducing 11 infield groundouts to go along with four strikeouts. Wolfe meanwhile pitched a six inning 5-hit complete game. Tanner Spangler got the final two outs for CM, picking up the save.

Whereas Watkins did not walk a batter, Wolfe surrendered two, each time Trevor Hanna, and both times the Wildcat second baseman would come around to score. CM put up its first two runs in the bottom of the first. Brandon Miller led off with a single, stole second and stole third. Hanna followed with a walk and Miller came home when Asher Corl hit the first of his three singles. Hanna would score a moment later on a double-steal and the Wildcats led 2-0.

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Central Mountain added an insurance run in the fifth as Hanna drew a one-out walk, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on a Corl line drive hit to centerfield. The game stayed 3-0 into the top of the seventh. The Indians would get their only run off a hit batter, a walk and an infield error.

Corl finished 3-for-3 with two RBIs, Miller added his single and Troy Gardner also had a single on a tough day for the hitters. Shamokin’s Collin Hoover had both of his team’s hits, a single and a double. Hoover was erased after his single attempting to steal, catcher Corl firing a strike to second baseman Hanna for the tag-out.

The win put the Wildcats at 7-5 overall, 5-2 in the Heartland. Shamokin fell to 2-6 in conference play, 7-7 for the season. Central Mountain travels to Midd-West (1-5; 1-9) Wednesday before returning to Mill Hall for a non-league Thursday game with Altoona (6-7).

May 2, 2017 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
SHAMOKIN 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 1
CENTRAL MOUNTAIN 2 0 0 0 1 0 X 3 5 1
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