The victory was the second in two days for Clymer/Sherman/Panama (2-2, 2-1), which started the season 0-2 while being outscored 17-0 and totaling just four hits against Salamanca and Frewsburg.

“I knew once we got into baseball shape, we’d be OK,” said first-year Wolfpack head coach Matt Hair. “Coming out with two great problems like Frewsburg and Salamanca out of the gate … I knew we’d find our rhythm and come around this week.”

Chautauqua Lake fell to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in the league, but was just a play or two away from being more competitive in the game.

“I thought we played pretty solid defense for the majority of the game,” Chautauqua Lake head coach Matt Cummings said. “We had a couple of bad hiccups that unfortunately were in pretty big moments with runners in scoring position that came back to bite us.”

Wolfpack shortstop Gavin Burchanowski fields a groundball. P-J photo by Matt Spielman

The Wolfpack jumped on Eagles starter Devin Hewes with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Burchanowski was hit by a pitch and stole second before a Hinsdale sacrifice bunt sent Burchanowski to third with one out. Tate Catanese followed with an RBI single, went to second on a wild pitch and stole third before Spiesman made it 2-0 with an RBI groundout.

The Eagles made it 2-1 in the top of the second inning as a Connor Nowicki RBI single plated Nate Henry with the game’s first run.

Hewes walked the Nos. 8 and 9 batters with one out in the second inning, but nearly got out of the inning with a pickoff at second base. He then walked Burchanowski and a double steal put runners at second and third ahead of Hinsdale’s two-run single to left field. Another walk and an intentional walk loaded the bases before Hewes got out of the inning with a strikeout.

“There’s no defense for a walked batter, especially when you have a solid top half of the order like C/S/P does,” Cummings said. “You definitely don’t want to have those good hitters with anybody on base. We have to clean that up a little bit.”

Chautauqua Lake got a run back in the top of the third inning. Michael Jauss singled with one out and Clayton Smith followed with a single before an error left the runners at second and third base. Hewes then hit a grounder to first base and Jauss was thrown out at the plate before Henry hit an RBI single.

Chautauqua Lake’s Devin Hewes safely steals second base under Clymer/Sherman/Panama’s Johnny Abers during Thursday’s CCAA Division 2 game. P-J photo by Matt Spielman

The Eagles defense let Henry down in the bottom of the inning. Clymer/Sherman/Panama’s Isaiah Burholder opened the frame with a single and Brady Phelps walked as Hewes reached his pitch limit in order to be available Saturday. Henry relieved and loaded the bases with a walk to Burchanowski.

“He’s a great baseball player. He’s got great baseball sense and comes from a great baseball family,” Hair said of Burchanowski. “Whenever we are in a situation where I need something, I know I can go to him.”

Hinsdale then hit a grounder to second base and Chautauqua Lake looked like it would get out of the inning, but the Eagles couldn’t complete the play and two runs scored.

“That seems to be our achilles heel. When we bring someone in and press the right buttons, that’s when those hiccups and lapses happen,” Cummings said. “Unfortunately it cost us tonight.”

A stolen base and a walk put runners at first and third. Catanese stole second and when the throw from the catcher went into center field, Burchanowski scored from third. Spiesman followed with a two-run single to make it 9-2.

“He’s answering the bell right now. We know it’s there,” Hair said of Spiesman. “When he finds his rhythm, he’s a good hitter and he’s realizing it.”

Hinsdale did the rest on the mound. The left-hander retired the Eagles in order in the fourth inning and worked around an error in the fifth. In the sixth, Chautauqua Lake loaded the bases with one out, but Hinsdale got out of the inning with a strikeout and a grounder.

“Bryce threw our opening game, which was about three weeks ago,” Hair said. “Facing live batters for the first time in a couple of weeks, he got the job done today.”

The Eagles accumulated seven hits on the day, but Hinsdale struck out eight and did not walk a batter.

“We just didn’t cash in that big at-bat we needed, although we had our most hits of the season,” Cummings said. “Credit to Bryce Hinsdale for the way that he pounded the zone and commanded the strike zone. He kept our hitters off balance so we couldn’t really time him up too well.”

NOTES: Burchanowski walked twice, was hit by a pitch and scored three runs; Catanese singled, walked twice and scored two runs; and Spiesman had three hits, including a double, and drove in three runs for Clymer/Sherman/Panama, which visits Pine Valley on Saturday. … Henry had two hits while Jauss, Smith, Cayden Blackman, Nowicki and Ragen Crandall each added a single for Chautauqua Lake, which hosts Brocton on Saturday.