FITCH GRABS SHARE OF AAC IN EXTRAS

HOWLAND, OH- In a nail-biter that came down to the wire, the Austintown-Fitch Falcons clinched a tight 4-3 win over the Howland Tigers, thanks to a clutch hit in the ninth inning, and in doing so, also grabbed a piece of the AAC Baseball Crown. The game was deadlocked at three when Trevor Porter stepped up and delivered a single that drove in the go-ahead run.

The scoring kicked off earlier in the third when Jackson Cheeks of the Falcons singled to bring in the first run of the game. Howland wasn’t far behind, tying things up that same inning thanks to a walk by Dominic Santee.

Howland then nudged ahead in the fourth, taking a 2-1 lead with Anthony Marimpietri’s RBI single. But the Falcons weren’t down for long; they bounced back in the fifth with Cheeks and Drew Kaschak each knocking in a run to regain the lead.

The Tigers fought back to tie the game at three all in the seventh, courtesy of a walk by Aiden Anders, setting the stage for Porter’s late-game heroics.

On the mound, Carter Owens was the winning pitcher for Austintown-Fitch, holding Howland to just one run over three innings, while Steven Bubon took the loss after giving up the decisive run in his four innings of relief.

The Falcons showed off their batting skills throughout, racking up 12 hits. Cheeks was particularly effective, driving in two crucial runs. Carson Fuller had a standout performance too, leading the team with three hits.

Defensively, the Falcons were sharp, turning a critical double play to keep the Tigers at bay. Meanwhile, Howland also had some bright spots with Bode Biggin and Richie Ansel each snagging a pair of hits.

Next up, the Falcons hit the road to face the Lakeside Dragons on Wednesday, hoping to carry over their momentum from this thrilling win.