GRANTSVILLE — Landon Yoder homered and tripled and Hunter Beitzel delivered a gem to send Northern to a 14-2 win over Riverside Sports Wednesday at Grantsville Park to sweep its rec league semifinal series 2-0.
Northern (13-3) advances to play the winner of Mettiki Coal and Cumberland Optimist in the championship series next week.
Northern scored four runs in the first and five in the second and fourth innings to win in five frames. It out-hit Riverside, 12-4, and made one fewer error, 3-2.
Yoder went 3 for 4 with a solo home run and scored three times, Caden Frazee was 2 for 3 with three RBIs, Bailey Turner doubled and had three ribbies, Beitzel doubled, Beitzel and Elliott Myers-Shirer had multiple hits, and Gavin Must drove in a pair.
Beitzel allowed two unearned runs on four hits in five innings, striking out 10 and walking three.
Riverside’s Chase Deremer singled twice and Carson Durst drove in a pair. Daulton Harper took the loss.
Optimist 14 Mettiki 5
CUMBERLAND — Cumberland Optimist forced a decisive Game 3, fending off elimination with a playoff victory over Mettiki Coal on Wednesday at Washington Middle.
Mettiki took Game 1 of the series 5-3 on Monday. The winner-take-all contest is Friday at Southern High.
Optimist scored four runs in the first inning and led 5-3 entering the fifth when it scored six runs to pull away for good.
Gage Swain led Optimist going 3 for 4 with two doubles and four runs batted in. Layne Zacot doubled, and Kyran Freeman and Clay Bailey had two RBIs apiece.
Swain earned the win, allowing five runs on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out five and walking four. Braedon Laffey struck out two in relief.
Ryan Bird, Jacob Welch and Dane Van Slyke had two hits each. Welch was the losing pitcher.
Junior Division Outdoor Power 12 Northern 2
CUMBERLAND — Max Fradiska had three hits and three RBIs, and Outdoor Power routed Northern in five innings on Wednesday at Allegany High.
Outdoor Power (9-1) scored seven runs in the second inning, more than enough with Dylan Irons and Josiah Dudiak spinning a combined no-hitter.
Irons allowed two runs in three innings, as Northern took advantage of five walks. Dudiak tossed two scoreless, no-hit innings in relief, fanning three.
Fradiska and Tristyn Thompson doubled, Caden Hall was 3 for 4 with three runs scored, Irons went 2 for 4 with three ribbies, and Jeremiah Hampton singled twice and scored twice.
Caleb Yoder took the loss for Northern on the mound.