CUMBERLAND — Myles Bascelli jump-started the Allegany offense with a bang, and he pitched the Campers over the finish line.
Bascelli belted a lead-off home run in the first, and he broke a 4-4 tie with a two-out double in the fourth. The latter knock helped his own cause, as the right-hander pitched the final 4 1/3 innings to guide Allegany to victory.
Landyn Ansel also left the yard with a two-run blast, Kohen Madden hit safely three times and third-ranked Allegany ended top-ranked Petersburg’s unbeaten run with an 11-6 victory on Monday.
“We have been trying to feel some things out the last couple weeks to figure out who we’re going to be, and where to put people come playoff time,” Allegany manager Jon Irons said. “I feel like we figured some things out today.”
Allegany upped its winning streak to five games to improve to 8-3. The Campers have defeated the area’s No. 1 squad in back-to-back weeks after shutting out then-No. 1 Frankfort, 4-0, last Monday.
Petersburg saw it’s 10-game winning streak to begin the season come to an end.
The game was level at four runs apiece after three innings before the Campers put up four runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth to pull away.
“Sometimes a good loss now is just as good as a big win down the road,” Petersburg manager Mike Landis said. “We played a good game Friday (a 2-0 win against Southern), but our hitting has cooled off a bit. We came back around today. We left some guys on base. They played well. I thought their pitching was good.”
Both teams brought their bats. Allegany had 12 hits, six of which went for extra bases, and three of Petersburg’s eight knocks were extra-base hits.
Bascelli was 2 for 4 with a home run, a double, three RBIs and two runs; Ansel went 2 for 3 with a homer, a two-bagger, two ribbies and scored twice; Madden finished 3 for 4 with a double; Kane Williams tripled; Cole Ricker had two runs batted in; and Jackson Resh scored twice.
Petersburg struck first Monday on an RBI single by Peyton Tingler in the first, but the Campers responded with a four-spot in the bottom half, which included home runs by Bascelli and Ansel and Williams’ three-bagger.
“It’s important to get out to a good start like that against a team like Petersburg,” Irons said. “They’re ranked No. 1. We felt like if we could go out and battle early, that would play into our favor, and it did.”
The Vikings leveled the tally with three runs in the third — Tingler pushed two across with a double and later scored on a steal of home on a first-and-third play.
But Petersburg never played with a lead, as the Campers rode Bascelli over the final four-plus innings — in which he allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits with seven strikeouts and one walk to earn the win.
Ansel got the start on the mound and had good life to his fastball, though he allowed four runs on four hits in 2 2/3 frames. The right-hander struck out six and walked two.
“They’re tough through the top of their order,” Irons said. “They get the barrel to the baseball well. … They’re a difficult lineup to deal with. That’s why I think we pitched pretty well. We were able to limit the damage.”
Tingler led the Vikings’ offense going 2 for 3 with a double, three RBIs and two runs, Clay Arbaugh was 2 for 4 with a double and scored twice, Kaleb Kuhn singled and doubled, and Payton Metheny scored twice.
Arbaugh was the losing pitcher for Petersburg, allowing 11 hits over 3 2/3 innings.
“Clay didn’t have his best game on the mound, but you learn from these games,” Landis said.
Allegany resumes Western Maryland Athletic Conference play Wednesday at Southern (5-5) at 4:30 p.m. The Campers sit at 2-3 in the WestMAC, a half-game behind the 3-3 Rams.
Petersburg heads to Tygarts Valley Tuesday and hosts Philip Barbour on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
“I want to see us get the energy back,” Landis said of the rest of the Vikings’ slate this week. “They’re out of school today, they get on the bus early, they’re a little flat. We’ve got three regional games this week. Those are important to us because those kind of dictate our regional seeding.”