OLEAN- Franklinville gained a lead and fought to stay ahead to defeat rival Ellicottville 4-2 Thursday to move on to the Section 6 Class D Championship game.
Matthew Spittler had a great performance to lead the win, going 2-3 with a home run, double and two RBIs.
The Panther pitching came through when scoring didn’t come easily. Starter Bretton Blecha went five innings with one earned run.
Spittler came in to pitch in the sixth and only let one run score from a bases loaded jam to keep a 3-2 lead. He finished the game with 1.2 scoreless innings and four strikeouts.
“Pitching was excellent,” Franklinville coach Reed Mitrowski said. “Spittler came in and shut them down, I have no complaints.”
The previous two games between the two teams were lopsided, Franklinville won by mercy rule each time, 14-4 and 12-0. Ellicottville starter Rylan Benjamin did a great job limiting the Panther offense this time, pitching the full game with only six hits and three walks allowed on four earned runs.
“I’m just super proud of the way we came out and fought today,” Ellicottville coach Dave McCann said. “Especially Rylan Benjamin on short rest. I’m just super proud of him and the team as a whole.”
Benjamin’s three walks all came in the first inning while a Spittler RBI-double made it 1-0. Benjamin did get out of a bases loaded jam with a strikeout and a Carson Mendell leaping line drive catch to limit the damage.
“We are going to have to hit with guys in scoring position,” Mitrowski said. “We put ourselves in good spots, and hit the ball hard at times. When we have guys in scoring position with less than two outs we have to cash them in.”
Still 1-0 in the fourth, Benjamin gave up two two-out singles that gave Franklinville a chance to add to their advantage. A fly ball to right field dropped in and a run scored.
Ellicottville started to put pressure on the Panthers in the fifth, the first two Eagle batters got on base with a single and a walk. An infield single two batters later made it bases loaded with one out.
An attempted squeeze play should have failed when the bunt wasn’t laid down, but it was a passed ball which allowed the runner to score. Another squeeze was attempted, but this time the tag was applied after another failed bunt to get a key out.
The Panthers came out of the inning still ahead 2-1, and they went back to work on offense when Spittler launched a solo home run to center field to lead off the sixth, getting the two run lead back.
“We made a game out of it, and a play here or there you know it could have went the other way,” McCann said. “Credit to them they got a great team and I wish them the best.”
Ty Farrington came in to pitch the sixth for Franklinville, after getting one out he allowed a single and hit two batters to load the bases. Spittler was called on to save the situation and he only let one run score off of a AJ Myers RBI-single.
The bases were still loaded but he struck out the next two batters to stay ahead 3-2. “Spittler is one of the best pitchers in the area,” McCann said.
Franklinville added to their lead in the bottom half, a leadoff single and hit by pitch put two on base with nobody out. The next two batters hit into outs, but an error on a routine ground ball allowed a run to score.
Ellicottville needed two runs to tie the game to keep their season alive down 4-2 in the seventh, and it started out well with a leadoff single from Mendell.
No. 9 hitter Dominic Tirado was ahead 3-1 in the count on Spittler, but Spittler came back and got a key strikeout. Another runner got on with a walk, but Spittler still saved the game to finish a tough playoff victory.
Mendell finished 2-3, getting half of the Eagles four hits. Ellicottville finishes their year 7-13.
No. 1 Franklinville (13-6) will start preparing for their Class D sectional title game against No. 2 Brocton (11-9) at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Jamestown at Russell Diethrick Park.
