BASEBALL: Chambersburg pitching duo no-hits Waynesboro in 8-0 victory
SCOTLAND >> If you wanted to play a baseball game to prepare yourself for the District 3 Tournament, this was how you do it.
Tristan Daywalt and Drew Betz combined for a no-hitter, Hunter Brindle belted the first home run at Greene Township Park since early in the 2011 season and Chambersburg took an 8-0 non-league win over rival Waynesboro on Tuesday afternoon.
And, to top it off, the win came on the birthday of veteran coach Bob Thomas, who declined to reveal his age, but did say he's 10 years younger than Yogi Berra (or was that Yogi Bear?).
The Trojans (12-8) expect to land the No. 10 or No. 9 seed in the playoffs, which begin Monday, so they could be on the road against either Lower Dauphin or Cedar Cliff. The deadline for games is Wednesday, so their fate should be known that night.
Daywalt pitched the first five innings, striking out three, but walking five. He threw 87 pitches. Betz came in for the final two innings and retired all six batters, three on strikeouts.
It was the first Chambersburg no-hitter since Calvin Mentzer and Chris Thomas pulled it off in 2009, and the eighth all-time.
Thomas said, "We had talked before the game about wanting to get both of those guys in the game, and Tristan had thrown more than 80 pitches. There were too many times he had 0-2 or 1-2 counts on guys and ended up throwing a bunch of pitches. I think three of his walks came after he had counts like that."
"I had a tough time hitting my spots," Daywalt said. "I was trying to throw strikes and let my defense do the work. I felt good ... it was just one of those days."
Waynesboro (10-10) got Cody Cline to third base in the first inning with two outs, but Daywalt got a strikeout. In the top of the fourth, Daywalt walked three batters sandwiched between two outs, then got a grounder to shortstop to end the threat.
Indian coach Greg Chandler said, "We had a chance to punch a few runs in there. We had him in trouble, but he pitched out of it. It seemed like when he'd get two balls, he was able to make the pitch he needed. I thought we did do a good job of working the count on him."
Betz then came in and kept the no-hitter intact.
"I don't think I've ever been in that situation before," Betz said, "but it definitely added to the pressure. It was nice to have an eight-run lead, though."
Waynesboro starter Clayton Wolfe held the Trojans in check through three innings, with the only run scoring in the first inning on two errors and a sacrifice fly by Betz.
But in the fourth, Daywalt lined a single to center and was replaced by courtesy runner Johnnie Myers. Wolfe threw over to first base three times before making a pitch to Brindle. But he quickly regretted the pitch he made.
"He threw a curve and it hung right here," said Brindle, holding his hand just below shoulder height, "so I was not going to let that one go. This is a tough ballpark to go deep, but I thought it had a chance."
Thomas said, "When he hit it, I thought the wind might blow it foul, but it didn't move much."
Chambersburg piled it on in the fifth, scoring five times on four hits and three walks. Betz and Daywalt drew bases-loaded walks, Brindle ripped a two-run single and Trent Ebersole had an RBI base hit.
Chandler said, "Clay did well the first time through the lineup, but not the second time."
Despite the defeat, Chandler was pleased his team was able to get back to .500 for the season by winning four straight before Tuesday.
"We were 6-9 two weeks ago, so .500 is pretty good for this group," Chandler said.
Thomas and the Trojans will try to carry the momentum into next week's playoffs, where they are certain to face a high-caliber pitcher.
"I've been saying all year, if we hit, with our pitching we should be all right," Thomas said. "We could have been a No. 1 or 2 seed instead of a 10."
Brindle said, "We've picked up the offense at the end of the season, and we're hitting pretty good going into the playoffs."
Chambersburg 8 Waynesboro 0
WaynesboroChambersburgabrhbabrhbCline 3b1000Christn ss3110Hanshw 2b1000Myers ph0100Duffey ss3000Stonsifr2100Emmrt 1b3000Bitner ph1000Dunlap 1b0000Betz 2b1102Stultz dh1000Flinn ph1010Gsell rf1000Daywalt p2011Maya cf2000Kissel 2b1000Riddell c2000Brindle 1b3224Neterer c1000Fiegl 3b3000Hoffmn lf2000Suders dh2000Wolfe p2000Ebersole c1011Wade p0000Brokns lf3110Haden p0000Carbgh rf2110Plank ph1000Totals21000Totals26888
Waynesboro0000000—0Chambersburg100250x—8
E: Way 2; LOB: Way 4, Chbg 5; 2B: Christian; HR: Brindle (1); SB: Hanshew, Stultz, Brookens; CS: Cline; SAC: Hanshew; SF: Betz.
Waynesboro
Wolfe (L,3-4)4.157630Wade.221100Haden1100 1 1
Chambersburg
Daywalt (W,5-0) 5 00053Betz2000 0 3
T: 2:11.
JV score: Chambersburg 12, Waynesboro 0. Kaden Hoover hit a grand slam and threw a two-hitter for the Trojans, who end the season with a 7-9 record. Bailey Leed and Garrett Mickey both had two hits, and Brenton Byers was 3-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs.