SENECA, Pa. – Behind a monster game by Dawson Smail, Clarion claimed the Section 1 Minor League (9-and-10-years old) Little League title with a 10-0, four-inning win over DuBois Thursday at the Cranberry Little League Field.
(Photo of Brayden Murray batting Tuesday. Murray was the winning pitcher Thursday. Submitted photo)
With the victory, Clarion earns a spot in the state tournament being held July 26 to Aug. 1 in Bradford.
“This has been a goal of these kids for a couple of years now,” Clarion manager Bill Smith said. “They have all worked their butts off to get to this point. It’s going to be an awesome experience for the kids. I believe like we have a chance to make a run at this – we have great pitching, power hitting and can play incredible defense. We’re going to make sure the boys go and have the time of their lives and represent the Clarion Little League and their community to the best of their abilities.”
The power, strong defense and great pitching were all evident in the title victory Thursday.
Dawson Smail and Derek Smail provided the power.
Dawson hit two home runs, including a three-run homer in the third, and drove in four runs, while Derek Smail broke the game open in the second inning with a three-run home run that gave Clarion a 4-0 lead after Dawson’s solo shot broke the ice.
When Dawson Smail hit his second home run, the three-run bomb in the third, it made it 7-0 Clarion, and the victors added three more runs in the fourth on an error and a two-run single by Gabe Simko to put the Mercy Rule into action.
The 10 runs were more than enough for Brayden Murray, one of the heroes of Clarion’s 8-7 win over DuBois Tuesday with a pair of home runs. Murray allowed very little action on the bases giving up just three hits while walking one batter in picking up the four-inning, complete-game shutout. He struck out five.
After the first four Clarion batters of the game went down quietly, Dawson Smail put Clarion on the board with his solo home run.
Jace Ferguson followed with a double, and Simko singled moving Ferguson to third. That’s when Derek Smail dropped his home run to make it 4-0.
Tommy Smith then got things started in the third with a leadoff walk before Murray singled and Dawson Smail hit his three-run homer to make it 7-0.
The fourth inning featured two-out lighting from Clarion.
Smith doubled after two outs and moved to third on a wild pitch. Murray then walked, and Dawson Smail was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Ferguson, who reached on an error allowing Smith to score. Simko then delivered the two-run single to make it 10-0.
The defensive was on display in the second when Kaden Clark singled to center leading off but was thrown out at second by center fielder Bryce Brinkley.
That proved to be a big play when Brayden Fox followed with another single. But Murray struck out the next to batters to end the threat.
In the third, DuBois got a leadoff single by Andrew Green followed by a wild pitch and a walk to Billy Gray that brought up the top of the order with no outs. But Murray got a pair of strikeouts before getting Cam Thompson to ground a ball to shortstop Devin Lauer, who flipped to third baseman Derek Smail to erase Green at third on the force out.
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