CHESTER — Widener waited for its moment.
When it came, the Pride didn’t miss.
A three-run sixth inning flipped the game, and just enough pitching down the stretch carried Widener to a 4-3 win over Hood on Friday, giving the Pride a 1-0 lead in a MAC Commonwealth semi-final series.
For much of the afternoon, it was a pitcher’s game.
Trae Sanders set the tone early, working efficiently through the first two innings before Hood broke through with a two-run home run in the third. It was the only real mistake in an otherwise steady outing.
From there, Sanders settled in.
The right-hander gave Widener exactly what it needed — six innings, four hits, two runs, and six strikeouts — keeping the deficit manageable until the offense could respond.
It finally did in the sixth.
Braedyn Clinton sparked the inning after being hit by a pitch, and Ryan Bauerle followed with a single to put traffic on the bases. Sean Burke delivered the first swing that mattered, lining a single to right to bring home a run and cut the deficit.
Kevin Bukowski tied it with a sacrifice fly.
Then came the turning point.
Brandon Yoder drove a ball into the gap in right-center, a clutch double that gave Widener its first lead of the day at 3-2.
They added just enough insurance an inning later.
Clinton reached again, and Bauerle — who finished 3-for-4 — delivered once more, driving him in with a double to push the lead to 4-2.
It proved to be critical.
Hood made one last push in the ninth, scoring a run and loading the bases with two outs. The tying and winning runs were on, the pressure fully shifted.
Ethan Lytle didn’t blink.
He worked out of the jam to close it, securing the win and preserving Widener’s late-inning surge.
John Najdek bridged the middle innings out of the bullpen with two scoreless frames, allowing just one hit to keep the game under control after Sanders exited.
Bukowski added a triple and drove in a run, while Bauerle’s three-hit performance set the tone at the top of the lineup.
Now, Widener is one win away.
Game 2 looms Saturday, with the Pride carrying both the momentum — and the margin — into a chance to advance.
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