Portage South Finishes Third in Tournament

The Black Squirrels would face the Ohio Gamecocks for the chance to get to the Championship and a rematch with Nordonia for the League title.  The Gamecocks would score a run in the first inning and that would be all the scoring in the game as both pitchers shut down the offenses.  PS would have a few chances to score, but were unable to get a run across and lost 1-0.  Mike Darrah threw 6 innings, striking out five and allowing just the one run in the loss.  Joe Watts was 2-3 with a 2B to lead the Portage South offense.  Jimmy Jamieson also had 2 hits for PS. 

Tough Loss for Portage South in League Tournament

Portage South would play Nordonia Renegades for a spot in the League Championship game.  Nordonia got out to a 1-0 lead in the first.  PS would tie the game in the top of the third when Mike Darrah reached on a error.  Ron Spears would follow with a walk and Phil Smith would single to score Darrah.  The Renegades took the lead back in the bottom half of the inning with a run, making it 2-1.  Nordonia would add 3 more runs in the fifth and lead 5-1.  Portage South would threaten, but not score again and lost.  Smith led the offense with a hit and RBI.

Black Squirrels Advance to Winner's Bracket Finals

The Portage South Black Squirrels would face the South Akron Kraken in the second round of the tournament Monday night.  PS got on the board early with 3 runs in the top of the first inning.  Mike Darrah walked to lead off the game and moved to third on a single by Ron Spears.  Darrah would score on Phil Smith's fielder's choice.  Jimmy Jamieson singled home Smith.  Mike Haney followed with a double to score Jamieson.  The Kraken got a run back in the bottom half of the inning to make it 3-1.  In the second inning, Portage South would get 3 more runs to push the lead out to five.  Kevin Yelinek would walk to leadoff the inning.  Darrah would reach on an error then Smith would single home both Yelinek and Darrah.  Smith would steal second and score on a single by Haney.  Darrah would homer in the sixth to make it a 7-1 ballgame.  South Akron would get 2 runs in the bottom of the sixth to cut the lead to 7-3.  PS would add 2 insurance runs in the seventh.  Jesse Michel would double and move to third on a Jason Preising single.  Danny Campfield's sac fly would plate Michel.  Joe Watts would walk, followed by a single by Darrah to load the bases.  Spears would receive a bases loaded walk to bring home the final run for Portage South.  The Kraken added 2 more runs in the seventh, but PS held on to win 9-5 and advance to the winner's bracket final on Thursday. Kevin Haley went 6 2/3 innings on the mound for the win, striking out 9 batters.  Darrah went 3-4 with 3 runs, a 2B and a HR to lead the Black Squirrel offense.  Haney, Michel and Preising also had 2 hits each.

Portage South Wins Tournament Opener

Portage South Black Squirrels faced the tournament's #1 seed in their first playoff game.  The Ohio Gamecocks got on the board first with a run in the bottom of the first inning.  PS would come back with a 6-run second inning to grab the lead.  Jimmy Jamieson would single to start the inning.  He was followed by a walk to Danny Campfield and a single by Jesse Michel to load the bases.  Joe Watts would single home Jamieson to tie the game.  Justin Nelson's bases loaded walk would give Portage South the lead.  The big blow in the inning came off the bat of Phil Smith, who hit a grand slam to make it 6-1.  PS would add another run in the fourth inning.  Brady Haba would reach on an error, steal second and eventually score on sacrifice fly by Ron Spears.  The Black Squirrels scored a run in the seventh on a homerun by Mike Darrah and win the game 8-1.  Nic Carucci went all 7 innings on the mound for the win, allowing just 1 run and 4 hits while striking out nine.  Smith led the offense, going 2-4 with a homerun and 4 RBI.  Jamieson also had 2 hits for PS.

Portage South Preparing for League Tournament After Tough Regular Season

After dropping the season opener to the Ohio Gamecocks, Portage South won 3 straight.  They had wins over the Ohio Gamecocks, Bomb Squad and South Akron Kraken.  Then PS had a stretch of 3 straight losses before going 3-1 in their next four games.  The Black Squirrels were able to get another win against the South Akron Kraken, split a doubleheader with the West Akron Blaze and beat the Akron Alpacas.  Portage South went 4-4 in July and finished the regular season with a 10-13 record.  In July, PS would sweep the West Akron Blaze in a doubleheader and pick up wins over the South Akron Kraken and the Ohio Gamecocks.  The Black Squirrels look to make a run in League Tournament and finish the season strong once again.