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Baseball: Union City and Quincy split Big 8 rivalry battle

troy tennyson, coldwater daily reporter
·5 min read
Union City's Phoenix Elkins awaits the pitch while Quincy catcher Grant Holroyd looks on Tuesday night.
Union City's Phoenix Elkins awaits the pitch while Quincy catcher Grant Holroyd looks on Tuesday night.

UNION CITY, MI. - The Quincy Orioles and the Union City Chargers split a key Big 8 conference rivalry baseball battle Tuesday night, with Quincy taking game one 7-1 while Union City came back to take game two 6-0.

Game one of the back-and-forth battle saw the two teams embark on a scoreless defensive battle for much of the game.

Union City finally broke the scoreless tie with a single run in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to a Ryan Zweng RBI single, allowing Owen Jackson to score on the play, giving the Chargers a 1-0 lead after five full innings.

Quincy came roaring back in the top of the sixth, blowing the game wide open with a huge seven spot in the inning. The wheels fell off the Charger bus quickly with one out as the Orioles managed to plate seven runs, a run that started with a one out outfield error by Union City right fielder Luke Watson on a ball hit by Grant Holroyd, allowing Hunter Tinervia to score, tying the game at 1-1.

Quincy then managed to load the bases with two outs before a Charger pitching change, as Union City was forced to go to the bullpen, moving on from ace Ryan Zweng to the talented and effective righty Eli Payne. One pitch into the next at-bat a wild pitch allowed Alex Barry to score, giving the Orioles the 2-1 lead. Three pitches later it was Jimmy Maynard hitting a two run double, allowing Dreyden Feltner and Brennan Allman to score, giving the Orioles a 4-1 lead.

Quincy's Mickey Connin looks to throw out a Union City runner on a slow roller Tuesday
Quincy's Mickey Connin looks to throw out a Union City runner on a slow roller Tuesday

Quincy went on to plate three more runs in the inning thanks to an RBI single from Riley Miner, scoring Maynard; an RBI single from Ryan Kempter, scoring Miner; followed by an error by the right fielder Watson off the bat of Brady Mescher, allowing Kempter to score, giving the Orioles a 7-1 lead after their half of the sixth inning.

Union City looked to be in business offensively to start the bottom of the sixth inning, putting the first two runners on via hard singles. That is when disaster struck for the Chargers as Luke Watson hit a hot shot to Quincy third baseman Mickey Connin. Connin caught the ball on the fly, which in turn caught both Charger runners off guard. Connin flipped the ball to second who then flipped to first, securing the two additional outs on the play, meaning the Orioles had officially turned an inning ending triple play.

Union City would get no closer as it was Quincy going on to take the 7-1 win.

Brady Mescher threw a gem in the win for Quincy, throwing all seven innings while allowing 11 hits and one run with three walks and eight strikeouts.

Ryan Zweng took the loss on the mound for Union City after throwing five and two-thirds of an inning, allowing one hit and four runs, none earned, with five walks and nine strikeouts.

Eli Payne pitched in relief for the Chargers, throwing one inning and a third, allowing five hits and three runs, two earned, with two strikeouts.

Union City pitcher Luke Watson flips to first on a sac bunt attempt by Quincy Tuesday night
Union City pitcher Luke Watson flips to first on a sac bunt attempt by Quincy Tuesday night

Jimmy Maynard led the Quincy offense, notching the only multi-hit game, going 2 for 4 with a single and a double with two RBis and a run scored.

Also adding singles for the Quincy effort were Riley Miner, Ryan Kempter, Grant Holroyd, and Brennen Allman, with Kempter and Miner adding RBis.

Ryan Zweng led the Union City offense, going 3 for 3 with three singles and an RBI while Owen Jackson added a single and a double with a run scored. Aidan Decker also notched a pair of hits, two singles, while Jakob Fosmore, Phoenix Elkins, Eli Payne, and Rick Austin all added singles.

Game two of the twin bill saw Union City battle back to get the win as two pitchers combined to shut out the Orioles enroute to the 6-0 Charger win.

Union City scored three runs in the third inning, two in the sixth and one in the seventh as the Chargers out hit Quincy by the slimmest of margins 6-5.

Quincy second baseman Brennan Allman throws a Charger runner out at first Tuesday night
Quincy second baseman Brennan Allman throws a Charger runner out at first Tuesday night

Luke Watson secured the win on the mound for Union City in game two, throwing five innings and a third, allowing five hits and five walks with five strikeouts.

Rick Austin finished the game on the mound for Union City, throwing an inning and two-thirds, allowing no hits with two strikeouts.

Aidan Decker led the Charger offense in game two, finishing 2 for 4 with a single and a double with two RBis and a run scored while Owen Jackson added a double, two walks and two RBIs. Ryan Zweng also smashed a double while Phoenix Elkins and Luke Watkins added singles.

Quincy was led in game two by Hunter Tinervia with a pair of singles while Brady Mescher and Mickey Connin added doubles. Riley Miner chipped in with a single in the loss.

With a 1-1 finish on the day the Union City Chargers now stand at 23-8 overall on the season. The Chargers will finish off their 2023 regular season schedule with a home double header versus Clinton on Friday.

With the 1-1 night the Quincy Orioles now sit at 16-8 overall on the year. Quincy will next see action Thursday when they face off with Barry County Christian in a non-conference district primer.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Baseball: Union City and Quincy split Big 8 rivalry battle