The Penn Township Junior Legion baseball team had its eye on another Westmoreland County Youth Legion title July 10.

Murrysville, especially Owen Sinclair, spoiled that celebration.

Sinclair hit three home runs and drove in six runs to lead Murrysville to a 7-2 victory in the championship game at the Penn Township Municipal Complex.

The Franklin Regional junior hit a three-run blast in the first inning and added a two-run shot in the second inning to help Murrysville build an early 6-0 lead.

“He had a great game,” Penn Township coach Steve Freas said. “He hit some good pitches. I’m eager to see how we respond to that loss.”

Both teams advance to the Junior Legion Regional tournament at Homer City beginning on July 22.

Penn Township is the returning regional and state champion, and with eight players back from that championship team, it has the nucleus to repeat.

Returning players include Carmen Metcalfe, Drew Sherwin, Ethan Septak, Jonathan Lovre, Brandon Rohrer, Brandon Long, Hunter Brown and Evan Gross. Sherwin was named top pitcher in the state tournament.

“We know what it takes to win the title,” Freas said. “We have a resilient group. We just didn’t hit the ball well in the championship game.”

Freas offered no excuses for the subpar performance even though a lot of the players from the Junior Legion and American Legion teams were shuffling back and forth from Columbus, Ohio for a travel tournament.

“I believe we have what it takes to win it again,” Freas said. “We hadn’t faced a lot of adversity this season. I’m giving the team a few days off and then we’ll ramp it up and prepare for the regional tournament.”

There is a chance that Penn Township and Murrysville could meet again. Last year, Penn Township defeated league rival Connellsville in the league championship, regional championship and state championship games.

Freas said he expects pitchers Lovre, Sherwin, Roher, Brown, Gross, Zach Feldman and Braden Kane to be strong on the mound in the upcoming tournaments. Lovre has struck out 36 in 27 innings.

The top offensive players include Metcalfe (.364 and two triples), Septak (.407 and three doubles), Lovre (.378 and three doubles), Bryce Ruby (.421 and eight RBIs) and Feldman (.440 and eight RBIs).

Metcalfe is the lead-off hitter with an on-base percentage of .512.

Freas said he expects the team to bounce back, especially at the plate.

Against Murrysville, the Penn Township batters let too many good pitches get by them.

“We’re a different team this season,” Freas said. “We have a strong 14-year old group and are learning how to mesh as a team. We have a good mix.”

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