PBR Spotlight Game: No. 2 Tinora vs. Continental Sectional Championship at Napoleon

By Dylan Hefflinger

NAPOLEON- A no-hitter will have to do for Tyler McKenney.

The unsigned senior just missed a perfect game, walking the nine-hole hitter in the third inning, but still managed a no-hitter in pitching Tinora, No. 2 in Division IV, to a 7-0 win over Continental in the sectional finals at Napoleon on Tuesday.

"This was the start of a tourney run and I wanted to get off on a good note," McKenney said. "This (a no-hitter) was not on the top of my priority list."

The right-hander, who threw the fastball consistently in the 83-85 mph range, mixed in an impressive change-up and a curve to stymie a Continental team that came in at 11-11 after winning just four games last season.

Gabe Williams, the Continental 9-hole hitter, walked with two outs in the third after falling behind in the count 0-2. No other Pirate reached against McKenney, who struck out 10 while improving to 8-0 this year. The Tinora senior now has a 0.61 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 46 innings of work.

Senior Nate Beck gave McKenney all the runs he would need leading off the second with a triple and scoring on a one-out infield single by senior Chris Wityk.

Sophomores Derek Drewes and Clay Pittman reached in the Tinora third after two were gone and Drewes, who singled, scored from second on a slow roller to short that Beck beat out.

The Rams scored two unearned runs in the fourth when senior Lincoln Cereghin and sophomore Reid Renollet walked and came home on a Continental error.

Wityk added an RBI single in the fifth and Tinora's final two runs scored in the sixth on a run-scoring triple by Pittman followed by a Beck single.

Tinora (20-3), which has already clinched the Green Meadows Conference title, looks to complete a perfect league slate on Friday at home with Holgate. The Rams return to tournament action on May 16 at 4:15 p.m. at Bryan against the winner of Wednesday's game between No. 24 Edon and Montpelier.