East Side broke open a tie game with three runs in the third, and poured it on from there to eliminate Hollidaysburg from the Major Baseball state tournament with a 9-3 victory on Saturday at Jenkins Township Little League.
East Side will advance to the elimination bracket final on Sunday at noon to face Newtown-Edgmont. The winner will have to beat Blue Mountain twice to win the state championship and advance to the Mid-Atlantic Region tournament.
Ryan Donnelly hit two home runs and tallied three RBI to lead the East Side offense, drilling a two-run shot in the third to help his team take control of the game and adding a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth.
Cole Warner also homered in the fifth inning for East Side, while also earning the win on the mound with an impressive effort against a Hollidaysburg lineup that scored 15 runs in a win over Back Mountain on Friday.
Warner threw a complete game, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out six batters.
Both teams scored a run in the first inning, and the score sat tied 1-1 before East Side came in to hit in the home half of the third.
East Side took a 2-1 lead on a throwing error, and then Donnelly’s two-run blast made it 4-1.
Hollidaysburg got a run back in the fourth, only for East Side to add three more runs.
Dillon DiGiulio had a double and two RBI for East Side. Colton DiGrazio added a home run for the Section 7 champs.
Ronan Diehl homered for Hollidaysburg. Blake Chamberlain doubled and scored a run, while CJ Burger and Aiden Anderson each drove in a run.
The two teams previously met on Monday in the opening round of the state tournament, with East Side winning that first encounter by a 2-1 score.
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