Coop baseball
improves to 7-0
with abridged win over SV
By Greg Klein • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com
COOPERSTOWN – Kendall Haney struck out five of the seven batters he faced and had a two RBI triple as the Hawkeyes stayed undefeated in baseball with a 6-3 win over visiting Sauquoit Valley in a Center State Conference game Monday, May 17.
The game ended abruptly when Sauquoit Valley Coach Kory Lewandrowski got ejected following a disputed call at first base in the bottom of the fourth inning. Cooperstown’s leadoff hitter, Alex Poulson, had been called out on a hit to third. However, the home-plate umpire ruled that SV first baseman Nicholas Miller came off the bag and overruled the first-base umpire.
Lewandrowski argued the call then threw his helmet at the dugout, leading to his ejection. SV did not have another coach with them and the game ended in a forfeit.
“It is an official game,” Cooperstown Coach Frank Miosek said. “Their coach got thrown out of the game and they did not have another coach available.
“It’s sad, because it took us out of a game,” Miosek said.
Cooperstown hit SV pitcher Ben LoGalbo well from the start.
With one out in the first inning, Haney a single, advanced after a throwing error by Miller on a pickoff and scored on Chris Ubner’s single to right center field. Ubner stole second and scored on Alex Hascup’s double to right center field. Hascup advanced on a wild pitch and scored on Treston Emerick’s RBI single in the hole between third and short.
In the bottom of the second inning, Ethan Kukenberger led the inning off with a walk and Poulson got hit by a pitch. Haney then tripled to the right field wall to score both runners, making it 5-0.
Emerick relieved Haney, who was on a pitch count, and gave up three runs in the top of the third inning, following a hit batter, a walk and RBI singles by Seamus Crowe and Anthony Nasser. However, Emerick got a strike out to end the inning.
Cooperstown got a run back in the bottom of the third inning when Alex Hage walked, stole two bases and scored on a wild pitch for a 6-3 lead.
Emerick settled down in the top of the fourth and got three straight outs after hitting Miller in the lead-off spot.
Poulson led off the bottom of the fourth, leading to the game-ending contested call.
Haney was awarded the win and LoGalbo took the loss.
Cooperstown (7-0, 2-0) visits West Canada Valley in a Center State Conference game on Wednesday, May 17.