Derek Alumbaugh bested Lake Roosevelt in the first game of a double-header.
The Liberty Bell High School baseball team overwhelmed Manson, 12-0, before splitting a hard-fought double-header with Lake Roosevelt in home games last week.
The Mountain Lions jumped to an 11-0 lead in the first two inning against Manson on April 21, which allowed coach Don Calvert to get some playing time for younger players.
Pitcher Derek Alumbaugh got the win with three innings of no-hit, seven-strikeout pitching. Finlay Holston closed with two innings of one-hit shutout pitching, striking out three.
Six of Liberty Bell’s 11 hits went for extra bases. Triples by Gavin Wengerd, Jacob McMillan and Isaac Cordes, and doubles by Chip Jones, Alumbaugh and Reed Stanbery, accounted for 10 runs batted in.
Alumbaugh was two-for-two and McMillan was also two-for-two with three RBIs. Riley Calvert had an RBI single, and Cole Darwood had a single and scored in the leadoff spot.
In what Calvert called a “toe-to-toe, mano-a-mano” afternoon, Liberty Bell took the first game against Lake Roosevelt, 3-2, before falling 3-1 in the second game.
“It has always been that way with them [Lake Roosevelt],” Calvert said.
The Mountain Lions scored all their runs in the first inning of game one, on RBI hits by Calvert, Wengerd and Dwight Treise that were set up by hits by Darwood and Alumbaugh, Calvert said.
The rest of the game was a classic pitchers’ duel as Alumbaugh matched efforts with Lake Roosevelt’s Devon Black. Alumbaugh gave up one earned run on three hits while striking out 12 of the 29 hitters he faced, pitching himself out of jams in the sixth and seventh innings to get the win. He also finished the day three-for-three at the plate.
Chip Jones pitched the nightcap, giving up only one earned run on 9 hits and four strikeouts.
On offense, “We just couldn’t get balls to drop,” Calvert said. “We put 14 balls in play and nine were hit hard right at people.” Alumbaugh had the Mountain Lions’ only hit.
“The silver lining was our defense,” Calvert said. “We pulled off three double plays on outstanding plays by McMillan, Alumbaugh, Calvert and Wengerd. That was the best defensive game I have been involved in as a high school coach.”
Liberty Bell is at home for two games this week: Thursday (April 30) at 4:30 p.m. against Pateros, and Friday (May 1) at 4:30 p.m. against Brewster.
