Box Score WYE MILLS, Md. – The No. 1 Harford baseball team defeated No. 3 Potomac State, 5-2 to advance to the championship game of the Region XX Championships.
Harford (48-9) used a four-run third inning and a stellar start from Mike Adams on the mound to beat their rival for the third time this season. Adams (10-0) allowed two runs over eight innings despite not having his best stuff. He allowed seven hits and four walks while striking out three.
Potomac State (30-21) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first. Jarin Jenkins laced a single to center with runners on second and third to get the Catamounts on the board.
Ty Williams helped minimize the damage when he fielded the base hit and threw the runner from second out at the plate.
The Fighting Owls came back in the third inning with four runs on three hits. Williams led the inning off with single on a slow roller to second base and
Dominic DiSabatino followed with a walk.
Chase DeMars and
Daulton Weeks hit back to back doubles to tie the game and give Harford the lead. DeMars hit a ground ball over the third base bag and down the line to tie the game. Weeks followed with a nearly identical ball down the line to plate two and give Harford a 3-1 lead. Weeks moved to third on a deep fly ball by
Jack Hamner and came home on a
Luke Johnson sacrifice fly to put Harford up 4-1.
The Catamounts answered with a run in the fourth, a small victory for Adams who was forced to throw 34 pitches in the inning. Potomac State hitters drew three walks but only managed one hit as Adams refused to give in. He made good pitches and escaped the big inning to keep Harford ahead on the scoreboard.
Harford played small ball in the sixth inning to add an insurance run.
JP Vail led the inning off with a single and moved to third on back to back sacrifice bunts by
Toby Sponseller and Williams. Vail came in to score thanks to an error giving Harford a 5-2 lead.
From there, Adams, for the most part, held the Catamount hitters in check. He pitched his way through the eighth and
TJ Pagan slammed the door shut in the ninth for his eighth save of the season. Pagan set the side down in order, sandwiching a pair of strikeouts around a groundout to first.
With the win, Harford advances to the championship round of the tournament. They will face Potomac State again who defeated No. 4 Hagerstown in the loser's bracket. Harford will have two chances to win one game to take the title. Game one will begin at 11 a.m. Game two will take place shortly after should Harford lose game one.
