BELLEFONTE — In the top of the fifth inning of Bald Eagle Area’s baseball game at Bellefonte on April 18, Eagle third baseman Hunter Eminhizen sent a hard ground ball up the middle against Red Raider pitcher Dominic Masullo.
Bellefonte second baseman Garrett Reiter caught up with the ball — on his knees — but he was unable to field it cleanly. Even if he had, he would not have been able to throw out Eminhizen, so the play was ruled a hit. It was Bald Eagle’s first hit of the game.
It was also Bald Eagle’s only hit of the game.
After Eminhizer reached, Masullo went on to complete a one-hit, 1-0 shutout of the Eagles that gave the Red Raiders their third win of the season against seven losses.
Masullo was in command the entire afternoon. He struck out 12, walked four and didn’t allow a base runner to advance past second base. He was only threatened once, when BEA put two runners on base with one out in the sixth, but he bore down and struck out four of the final five batters he faced to lock up the win.
And Bellefonte needed every ounce of Masullo’s effort. BEA starting pitcher A.J. Onder and reliever Brandon Barnyak were equally effective, giving up just two hits and a fifth-inning run that accounted for all the scoring in the game.
“I was feeling good,” Masullo said. “I was a little under the weather, but my arm felt good.
“I always have a plan going into the game, and my plan pretty much was to throw strikes and let my defense work. I try to make it as easy as I can for them, but they’re solid behind me so I wasn’t too worried about that.”
The game began as a classic pitcher’s duel. In the first three innings, only two batters reached base — both on walks — and neither team got a hit until the fifth inning.
Eminhizer’s hit was immediately erased when Masullo struck out Barnyak to end that inning with the game still scoreless.
Bellefonte then broke through for the only run of the game in its half of the fifth. Storm Smith led off with a single, but he was forced at second when Mark Armstrong hit a fielder’s choice ground ball.
Armstrong, however, reached second base on a passed ball, and then with two outs, Greg Watson hit a seeing-eye fly ball to center field that dropped for a hit and scored Armstrong.
“We need our leaders to step up and do what they can until our offense can start to generate some runs,” Bellefonte head coach Dan Fravel said. “Really, our defense has played solid the last four, five ball games and the pitchers have been holding up their end of the bargain by not giving up free bases. Now the offense just has to work and work and work until we can generate some runs.”
That would not happen in this game, and Masullo was left to protect that slim, 1-0 lead for the final two innings.
BEA had its best chance in the top of the sixth. After leadoff hitter Ryan Guenot grounded out, Masullo walked Trey Butterworth and Noah Chambers to put runners in first and second with one out.
Fravel called time out and went to the mound.
“I told him (Masullo) to keep his composure,” he said. “The strike zone is a little tight today so forget about the umpire and just keep throwing strikes in there.
“We aligned the defense to knock the ball down and make them earn two hits, and kind of slow the pace of everything down. And we came up with a big play there again.
“You know, when the offense is struggling, the defense can’t give up anything and that’s what they did today.”
The big play that Fravel referred to was fittingly turned in by Reiter. Masullo struck out Andrew Swabick for the second out, but then Caleb Bell sent another hard ground ball up the middle. This time, however, Reiter was able to make the throw and he just beat Bell for the third out of the inning.
“Honestly, I was just trying to move on,” Masullo said. “I walked guys before so I was used to it by now, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. I was just trying to throw strikes, almost let them hit it and get some outs.”
Bellefonte went 1-2-3 in its half of the sixth so Masullo went into the final inning still nursing that one-run lead. But it didn’t matter as he struck out the side to end the game.
“I am real happy,” Masullo said. “The one-hitter, or whatever it is, I’m not too concerned. I’m really concerned about the win. Right now we are a team fighting, and we really had to grind it out for this one. But we’ll be all right. I think we are going to hit a streak here where we’ll do really well.”
