The Solanco baseball team saw its season end Saturday with a 1-0 loss to Section Four champion Annville-Cleona in the opening round of the Lancaster League Tournament. "Their pitcher was able to keep us off-balance," Mules coach Tom Fish said. Solanco starter Zack Leonard allowed a first inning run and shut A-C down the rest of the way. "That was all they needed," said Fish.
Something Fish admires about his team led to their undoing. "We had some opportunities but we just kept pressing," he said. "Everybody wanted to be the one who got it done and we didn't end up with good at bats." The Mules (11-10) finished 19th in the district standings with the top 16 teams qualifying for postseason play. "Last year with essentially the same group we won a lot of our close games," said Fish. "This year we didn't do some of the little things, get a bunt down, execute a hit-and-run or suicide squeeze. I think this was a better team but our record doesn't reflect that." Solanco was 13-9 last season. "Things didn't turn out the way we had hoped," Fish said. "I think the guys will learn some lessons from this." The Mules were selected for a Sportsmanship Award, which was voted on by the umpires. "That's something we're proud of," said Fish. "It says a lot about our players and our seniors." Solanco enjoyed an outstanding week prior to the league tournament. The Mules needed to win their final two league games and get some help from Ephrata to finish second in the section. That's exactly what happened. Solanco downed Cocalico and Elizabethtown and Ephrata defeated Conestoga Valley. Leonard tossed a complete game as the Mules nipped Cocalico 4-3. Leonard made eight starts on the season and completed each one. He also made three relief appearances. James Rohrer had a one-out infield single in the seventh, went to second on the only error of the game, and scored on a Leonard hit to right-center. "It was a cool Senior Day," said Fish. "It was a fun moment and the win gave us a chance to play for a playoff berth." With a postseason berth at stake, the Mules played possibly their best game of the season in a 7-1 triumph over Elizabethtown. Darren Rutledge hurled a complete game to get the win. Caleb Groff had two hits including a triple with his team down 1-0 that turned the tide. Bailey Keys had an RBI triple and Brady Thomas added an RBI double. Leonard and Eric Lefevre each had a two-out RBI single. With the L-L tourney spot locked up, Solanco finished the regular season with a 5-2 triumph over Dallastown last Thursday. "It didn't really mean anything except for guaranteeing us a winning record," Fish said. The coach said the hostile environment at Dallastown gave his team all the incentive they needed. Junior Kenny Walton made his first varsity start. He allowed two first-inning runs before blanking Dallastown over the next four frames. Brady Thomas tossed the final two innings to get the save. Lefevre, Keys, and Damon Kreider each had an RBI hit. Leonard had two hits and scored twice. Comments are closed.
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