Wheeling Post 1 Mounts Comeback For Beast Of The East Win
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WHEELING - Chris Upton scored four times, Andrew Murdock drove in four runs and picked up the mound win in relief Thursday afternoon as Wheeling Post 1 posted a 7-5 comeback victory over Moundsville Post 3 to open the 38th annual Edgar Martin Beast of the East 19U Baseball Tournament on sun-drenched Patriot Field on the campus of Wheeling Park High School.
Upton, Wheeling's leadoff hitter and a senior-to-be at Linsly, walked, legged out an infield single, bunted for a base hit and reached via an error.
The game was halted after six innings due to the two-hour time limit.
Wheeling manager Scott Castilow said winning the first game was paramount after a runnerup finish last season.
"It was important to win this game. Obviously, the Beast is the Beast," Castilow said. "It's a long tournament, so we're trying to space some things out."
Murdock, a Brooke graduate who will continue his baseball career at West Liberty University, drove in two runs with groundouts, singled in a third and lifted a sacrifice fly to chase in an all-important insurance marker in the sixth.
"Andrew had a huge game for us today," Castilow offered. "He ate up some innings for us last weekend in Morgantown. I thought he threw well, we just didn’t get the result we were looking for."
The lefty, who took over for Aleks Zanieski with runners on second and third with two outs in the third. He needed just two pitches to escape unharmed as catcher Nolan Yanchak picked a Post 3 runner off of third to end the inning.
"That was big," Castilow said. "Nolan made a perfect throw."
Castilow also raved about Upton, Post 1’s prototypical leadoff hitter.
"He is THE leadoff hitter," Castilow praised. "You look up the leadoff hitter in the dictionary and his name is right there next to it. He makes a lot of contact and has great speed. He can hit for power, as well."
Trailing 4-3 after four innings, Wheeling tallied three times in the fifth and once in the sixth to collect the victory.
Upton ignited the three-run fifth with a bunt single leading off. After stealing second, he sprinted to third when the throw went into center. Jake Brown was walked and Upton sprinted home on a Murdock grounder to first. Brady Ernest followed with an RBI single and he scored, what turned out to be the game-winner, on a Brody Groome groundout.
Murdock retired the final eight batters he faced after surrendering a two-run single to Hayden Hughes in the fourth. Jones, who had two singles, and Aiden Clegg had RBI singles.
Dom Fato led Post 1's 8-hit attack with a single and double. Upton and Ernest combined for four singles.
Wheeling plays at 3:30 p.m. and 6 today on Patriot Field.
WHEELING POST 1 12, WEIRTON YELLOWJACKETS 6
WHEELING -- Post 1 fell behind 6-0 in the first inning, but rallied for 11 runs between the fourth and fifth frames to defeat Weirton in the Beast of the East 18U tournament.
Three Wheeling players had multi-hit days-- Chris Upton and Jake Brown, Post 1's leadoff and two-hole combination, and Brady Ernest. Andrew Murdock tallied two RBI, while Ernest and Aleks Zanieski each doubled. Tucker Doty pitched the whole game for Post 1, striking out seven and allowing seven hits while issuing two walks. Only two of Weirton's six runs were scored as earned.
For Weirton, Sal Barcalow had two hits, a double and a single, while Matt Gear also doubled.