1977 District Tournament

"The whole team contributed to the win. We stress that it takes the whole team to win a ballgame, that's the way we teach kids to play here in Bellefonte and to get along with themselves." - Bellefonte Manager Andy Thal - Boyle, D. (1977, July, 23). Bellefonte Little Leaguers Defeat Lewistown. Centre Daily Times, p11.  

Flickinger, M. (1977, July, 21). Bellefonte Blanks Sporadic Suburban; Gap Eliminated. Centre Daily Times, p27. 

Bellefonte Blanks Sporadic Suburban; Gap Eliminated

By MICHAEL FLICKINGER Times Sports Writer

Little League teams are know for their sporadic playing abilities. One moment a team may look unbeatable, and the next it is hard to believe that the members have ever played baseball before.

One of the sporadic low points happened to the Suburban Little League All-Stars last night when Bellefonte All-Stars tallied seven runs on three hits to win the opening round in the District Five Little League playoffs, 7-0, in Bellefonte last night.

In other local action, Pleasant Gap lost to Lewistown, 6-1.

Winning manager Andy Thal admitted that Little League teams are sporadic. “Kids will make mistakes,”Thal said. “That is why they they call it Little League. We just didn’t make hardly any mistakes tonight.”

“We left nine men on base with no key hits and we had a few errors but that is Little League,” Fry said after the game. “I was happy and satisfied with the way the kids played. Without that second inning the game was a dead heat.”

In the big second inning, Bellefonte’s Jim Wilson led off with a walk and moved to second when Scott Sharp reached base on an error. Winning pitcher Dave Rockey loaded the bases with a bunt single. Leftfielder Jerry Bernhard drove home the first run with a rightfield single. Following an out, Mike Hillard rapped a leftfield single to score Sharp.

Bill Davis followed by reaching base on a fielder’s choice, and Rockey tallied when the ball was dropped at home plate. The fourth run scored when Bill Gray drew a walk to score Bernhard.

The fifth run scored when Beth Devlin hit a long fly ball to right field that was dropped and Hillard scored. With the bases still loaded and two outs, Sharp was hit by a pitch to score Davis, and Rockey drew a walk that scored Gray for the final runs of the inning.

After the big inning, Suburban pitcher Dave Gambocurta settled down to allow only one baserunner in the final three innings. Gambocurta fanned seven batters and allowed five walks.

The Bellefonte pitcher allowed only two hits and fanned six batters. Rockey also had a single and an RBI.

“Rockey pitched a good game ,” Thal said. “They were hitting his curve ball, but he had a good fast ball. I have to say that all of our kids are good, and all I have to say is that we are going to take it to every team we play.

“I told the kids tonight that if they gave 100 per cent that was all I could ask for. The kids did all right and we are now ready for out next opponent.”

Bellefonte won’t have to wait long as tomorrow night they will entertain Lewistown in a game beginning at 6 p.m…

PUTOUTS: Bellefonte won the state title in 1958…the collection at the game was $114.91, which will be divided between the two leagues…Suburban and Pleasant Gap will play in the upcoming Little League tournament at Hess Field…Suburban’s Nance Sichler and Bellefonte’s Beth Devlin are the first girls to ever compete in a District Five all-star game.

The box score:

Boyle, D. (1977, July, 23). Bellefonte Little Leaguers Defeat Lewistown. Centre Daily Times, p11. 

Bellefonte Little Leaguers Defeat Lewistown

By DOUG BOYLE Times Sports Writer

Bellefonte grabbed an early lead and never faltered to set Lewistown, 7-1, In District 5 Little League playoff action last night at Webster Field.

Bellefonte held a 5-0 lead in the Southern Tier championship contest after the first two innings. Bill Davis started the Bellefonte rally in the first, drawing a base on ball. Bill Gray followed with a single, with Davis stopping at second. Beth Devlin, who led all hitter with a 4-for4 performance, sent the first two runs across the plate with a single. Following a walk to Jim Wilson, Devlin scored when Dave Rockey hit into an error.

Davis got things going again in the second for Bellefonte with another walk. Gray smacked his second single to send home Davis. Devlin then made the score 5-0, driving in Gray with a single.

“I’m very pleased with the way we played tonight,” said Bellefonte manager Andy Thal. “Everybody did a good job. The whole team contributed to the win”

“We stress that it takes the whole team to win a ballgame,” said Thal. “That’s the way we teach kids to play here in Bellefonte and to get along with themselves.”

Lewistown scored its only run in the third on a close play at home plate. Vince Soccio reached first on a fielder’s choice and moved to second on a sacrifice by Mark Searer. Mike Nowark single up the middle and Soccio raced the outfielder’s throw home, sliding by the catchers tag to score.

Bellefonte tallied once more in the fifth and sixth innings to bring the score to 7-1. Rockey slammed the first pitch of the fifth to deep left-center field. The ball hit the top of the fence, but bounced over for a home run.

In the seventh, Gray scored his third run of the night. After drawing a walk, he advanced on a single by Devlin and a walk to Greg White. Pat Kucas banged a single off the mound to drive in the final tally for Bellefonte.

Mike Hillard allowed only three hits in going the distance for Bellefonte. His winning effort included eight strikeouts. He walked only two Lewistown batters. Nowark pitched all six innings for Lewistown, striking out 10 batters in the loss.

Bellefonte will face the Northern Tier winners in the District Five Championship at Clearfield on Monday at 6 p.m… The Box score:

Bracken, R. (1977, July, 27). Four-Leaf Eliminates Bellefonte, 5-4. Centre Daily Times, p27. 

Four-Leaf Eliminates Bellefonte, 5-4

The setting was frustratingly familiar for Any Thal.

Several years ago he had taken a Bellefonte All-Star team to Clearfield , met DuBois, grabbed an early lead and would up losing, 11-8.

In a repeat of that script last night, Bellefonte jumped out front of Four-Leaf Clover 4-0 in the first inning only to wind up losing the District 5 title, 5-4.

“I’m beginning to think we can’t win on this field.” Thal said after it was all over. “We still talk about that game with DuBois. That’s the year we had Randy McMullen, Pat Massullo and those kids. We got out in front, 7-0, or something like that and lost it. In fact, I think we even sat in the dugout tonight that we did then.”

The seating arrangement was not near the factor the collapse of Bellefonte’s usually reliable defense, a two-run Four-Leaf Rally in the third inning and three in the decisive three-run outburst in the top of the sixth.

“All along we had felt that defense was one of our strong points.” Thal said. “But I’m not disappointed in any of these kids. We had our chance to put it away in both the first and fourth innings and we just couldn’t deliver the knockout punch.”

Bellefonte almost put the game out of reach in the first inning. After starting pitcher Jim Lonjin got leadoff hitter Mike Hillard on a called third strike he lost his touch. Bill Davis, Bill Gray and Beth Devlin roughed him up with singles which loaded the bases. Bellefonte starter Dave Rockey then made it four straight singles and 1-0. Lonjin hit Pete Greene to force in Gray and Scott Sharp hit into a fielder’s choice which was booted, allowing Devlin to score and leaving the bases loaded. A walk to Greg White forced in Rockey with the fourth run and brought about a change of pitchers for Four-Leaf.

Jim Moslak came on to relieve Lonjin and got out of the jam with one pitch when he induced Sam Confer to hit into a home-to-first double play.

Bellefonte’s margin was cut in half in the third inning. Kevin Thompson opened the inning with a single and went to second when Fred Vroman’s grounder was booted. Rockey fanned Roger Martell and Bob Rusnak hit into a fielders choice that forced Thompson to third. But Moslak’s grounder was booted, loading the bases and a wild pitch scored Vroman. Another error allowed Rusnak to score. But, with Jamie Johnson at the plate and runners at the corners with two down, Moslak was caught napping off third and put out in the ensuring rundown.

Bellefonte mounted a mild threat in the fourth, loading the bases with two out before Devlin bounced out to short.

Rockey, meanwhile retired Four-Leaf in the fourth and fifth innings.

But trouble came quickly in the sixth. Rusnak led off with a single and after Moslak struck out , Doug Saltsman drew a walk. Johnson then singled Rusnak home with Saltsman moving to third. He scored from there on a passed ball to knot the score. Johnson, who had waltzed down to second while Saltsman had waited at third, watching for the throw down to get Johnson, then took third on the passed ball and scored on Lonjin’s single. The Bellefonte defense fell apart again, but recovered in time to nail Lonjin trying to score an insurance run and then retired Vroman for the third out.

Confer singled to open the bottom of the sixth and pinch-runner Tom Alterio went to second on a passed ball. He remained there as Moslak fanned Hillard and Davis, hit Gray to put runners at first and second, then got Devlin on a fly to right to earn his team a trim to Williamsport Saturday for a meeting with the District 12 winner.

Rockey gave up only four hits, struck out nine and walked only two. – by Ron Bracken

The box score: