Abington ran into a difficult draw in the bracket in the Pennsylvania Major Little League Baseball tournament July 21-27.
The District 17 and Section 5 champions still managed to make it to the winners’ bracket final before settling for third place by losing its final two games.
Abington played its entire tournament against other teams that wound up in the top half of the field in the eight-team event. Their opponents were a combined 12-3 in other games.
Glenmoore, which went unbeaten in the tournament on the way to the title, handed Abington its first loss. Abington split with eventual second-place finisher Hollidaysburg and defeated Pennridge, the fourth-place team, in the winners’ bracket semifinal.
The third-place finish was the best by the group of players, who made it to state tournaments at three different age groups on the way through Little League. After not winning a state game in the Minor (8-10-year-old) Tournament in 2023, the Abington players were fourth in the state on the 9-11-year-old level a year ago.
Hollidaysburg 5, Abington 4
Micah Layton struck out five in three hitless, scoreless innings of relief to close out the July 25 elimination bracket final and send Hollidaysburg to the championship game.
Abington scored three runs in the bottom of the third to force a 4-4 tie before Layton led off the fourth inning with a single and eventually scored the winning run on a close play at the plate off a sacrifice fly.
Max Vazquez singled to center field in the third inning to score one run and another came in on an error on the play. Vazquez went to third on the error and scored on a sacrifice fly by Penn Eckenrode.
Lucas Deschaine led off the bottom of the first with a single and scored on a bases-loaded walk to Justin Johnson. Hollidaysburg got out of the bases-loaded situation to preserve its 2-1 lead.
Jaxon Hizny struck out four while allowing just one earned run over the final four innings.
Glenmoore 7, Abington 2
Aiden Mercer struck out nine while getting all but one out of a combined two-hitter by Glenmoore pitchers against Abington in the July 24 winners’ bracket final.
Julian McDonough doubled and drove in a run for Abington. Oliver Giroux had the other hit and Ben Hillebrand scored both runs.
Abington 9, Pennridge 6
Vazquez was the winning pitcher and provided the winning hit in the July 24 winners’ bracket semifinal.
Pennridge led 6-4 after 4½ innings, but Vazquez came up with the bases loaded and cleared them with a double to put Abington ahead to stay.
Vazquez got the final four outs. After giving up a leadoff single in the sixth, he struck out the final three batters of the game.
Deschaine went 2-for-2 with a run and RBI. McDonough scored twice and had a hit.
Abington 2, Hollidaysburg 1
Hizny struck out five in four innings of relief to get the win in the July 21 tournament opener.
Eckenrode got the last out, getting a game-ending strikeout after giving up a hit to the first batter he faced.
Dylan Lyle started and held Hollidaysburg scoreless for 1 2/3 innings. He gave up two hits and two walks while striking out two.
Hizny allowed one run on a home run, the only hit he allowed, and did not walk a batter.
Eckenrode doubled for Abington’s only extra-base hit.
Abington scored twice in the second inning of a game that featured four hits by each team.
Hizny singled through the right side with two outs for what proved to be the winning run.
