Tide falls to Donegal in baseball

In five of their previous six games, the Columbia baseball team had given up double figures in runs.


The lone game during that stretch was a 6-2 loss yesterday at the hands of Northern Lebanon.

The Tide was back on the home field today for a windy afternoon of baseball against Donegal.

And despite giving up three runs in the first inning, the Tide ‘9' battled the Indians tough before dropping a 6-3 decision.

Coach Bob Peterson’s team will be back in action Thursday afternoon with a non-league game at Reading Central Catholic, before returning home Friday for a Section 4 game with Pequea Valley at the Glat.

In that first inning, the Indians scored all three of their runs with two outs, on two singles, a double and a walk. After that, Tide starter Tyler Aruda settled down.

Columbia got its offense going in the second inning. With one out, Johnny Vasquez and Jimmy Lee ripped back-to-back doubles to make it a 3-1 game.

Donegal, who is famous for “small ball,” did just that in the third. Coach Chris Miller’s team used an infield hit, stolen base, infield out and a fly ball to score their fourth run and take a 4-1 lead.

Columbia tried to answer in their half of the third. With two outs, Seth Lefever singled and Michael Burke walked, but the Tide was kept off the board when Brandon Aukamp grounded out.

In the fifth, the Tide pulled within 4-2 on bases hits by Tyler Harrison and Lefever.

In the sixth, it got interesting.

Aukamp led the inning off with a single and Lee and Josh Elliot followed with walks. With one out, Seth Aruda, pinch-hitting, hit a sac fly to center and it was 4-3. But that would be as close as the Tide would get.

In the top of the seventh, Tyler Aruda was running out of gas on the mound and walked two hitters with one out. Donegal ended Aruda’s day on the mound with a screaming double down the left field line to plate the two runners who walked to get some insurance runs.

In their half of the seventh, Lefever reached third after Donegal’s right fielder dropped a fly ball and moved up on a stolen base and wild pitch but cold not dent the plate.