By Rob Potter
LIVINGSTON MANOR — May 15, 2007 — The visiting Tri-Valley Bears grabbed a 4-0 lead in their first time up to bat in Friday afternoon’s non-league baseball game versus the Livingston Manor Wildcats.
T-V (9-4) never relinquished its advantage and went on to record a 20-8 victory.
Manor (1-10) responded with three runs of its own in the bottom of the first as two Wildcats scored on errors and Troy Edwards added an RBI single.
The Bears extended their lead to 6-3 in the top of the second. Brendan Walsh hit a stand-up double to deep left field, which allowed both Bo Murphy and William Elberth to cross home plate.
The Wildcats cut the T-V lead to two runs in the bottom of the third as Shane Lewis scored on a infield groundout.
But T-V scored four times in each of the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to extend its lead to 18-6.
The key hit in the fourth was Kyle Byrne’s two-run single.
In the fifth, Walsh ripped a two-run triple to center field and James Knapp added an RBI single.
Nick Cassidy and Byrne recorded RBI singles in the sixth.
In addition to picking up the win on the mound, Murphy went 3-for-6, scored five runs and had one RBI. Elberth and Walsh both went 4-for-5, as Elberth had two RBIs and Walsh had five RBIs. Fred Moore was 3-for-6 with two RBIs.
For Manor, Edwards had an RBI triple in the bottom of the fifth and Claude Davis recorded an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh.
Josh Gorr added two hits and an RBI for the Wildcats.
T-V Coach John Rusin noted that his team was finishing a busy week of four games in five days. He was happy with the way his offense played.
“We were able to get the bat on the ball very well today,” he said. “We put ourselves in a position to get some key hits.”
Rusin was quick to praise the Wildcats’ perseverance.
“Livingston Manor did a great job today,” he said.
Manor Co-Coach Jeff Loeffler, who guides the team with fellow Co-Coach Chris Cosmark, noted that the Wildcats are a young team and working to improve as the season winds down.
“We have no seniors on the roster,” Loeffler said. “We scored eight runs today, which is the most we have had in a game this season.”
Loeffler also praised the Bears for their performance.
“They are a great team,” he said. “They are good kids who are well-coached.”