The Plum Youth Legion baseball team is one win away from the state tournament.

The Post 980 Junior Mustangs rallied from an early five-run deficit Monday evening to defeat Indiana County’s Kovacik Insurance 10-6 in an elimination game at the PA Youth Legion Baseball Western Regional in Homer City.

The game originally was scheduled for 1 p.m. but was delayed nearly eight hours because of rain and field conditions.

The regional tournament is down to five teams. The final three advance to states, set for Saturday through July 31 in Homer City.

Plum, now 20-4-1, will play Tuesday at 4 or 7 p.m. It’s opponent will be determined by the outcome of a pair of games played Tuesday morning and early afternoon.

Down 5-0 after two innings Monday, Plum scored a pair of runs in both the third and fourth innings and took the lead for good with five runs in the fifth.

The Junior Mustangs added a run in the sixth for good measure before Kovacik tallied a run in the bottom of the seventh to set the final.

Plum overcame five errors and took advantage of five Kovacik miscues.

Six junior Mustangs – Nick Chirumbolo, Jimmy Rumcik, Frankie Macioce, Alex Miller, Christian Brown and Hayden Shelatz – recorded hits.

Brown tallied three runs batted in, and Miller produced pair of RBIs.

Shelatz earned the victory in relief. He scattered three hits, struck out three and surrendered no earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.

PA Youth Legion Baseball Western Regional

Loser’s Bracket

Homer City

Plum 10, Kovacik Insurance 6

Plum 002-251-0 – 10-6-5

Kovacik 320-000-1 – 6-6-5

WP: PL: Hayden Shelatz 5.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO

LP: K: A. Baker 4.2 IP, 4 H, 9 R, 7 ER, 7 BB, 5 SO

2B: K: B. Mickinac

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)