PHOTOS: Riverside Mounts Another Comeback, Downs Tyrone 3-2 In PIAA Opening Round

No stranger to one run deficits, the Riverside Panthers mounted yet another late inning comeback Monday in earning a PIAA opening round victory over visiting Tyrone.

One week after overcoming a one run deficit in its WPIAL Championship contest, the Panthers were faced yet again with a one run obstacle on its home turf against the Golden Eagles and found a somewhat unusual way of overcoming the deficit.

Trailing 2-1 entering the home half of the sixth inning, the Panthers scratched out the tying run courtesy of a Darren McDade RBI single scoring Hunter Garvin and used a balk to score the game’s go-ahead and deciding run, Drake Fox who had doubled in the inning, home from third.

Garvin had singled to start the frame and Fox doubled to put two men on with no outs.

The lead stuck as Garvin, who came in relief of Panther starter Ronnie Harper, finished his three shutout innings of relief pitching and the Panthers advanced.

Harper started the game for Riverside and lasted four innings, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out three and walking zero. In relief, Garvin struck out five and walked only one in three innings. The Riverside pitching duo allowed just four hits to Tyrone.

McDade led Riverside with two hits in three at bats. Bo Fornataro tripled as part of the six hit Panther offensive output.

Riverside got on the board in the first inning when Ashton Schlosser singled on a 1-2 count, scoring one run. Tyrone countered with their lone runs in the third frame before the Panthers could rally.

The last outs were on a double play as Tyrone’s Ryan Light hit a ball into right field and Austin Schlosser made a great catch and was able to double off the runner to close out the ball game.

Riverside (22-0 Overall) will next match up against D-10 Fairview (18-2 Overall) on Thursday at noon at Jack Critchfield Park on the campus of Slippery Rock University. The District 10 Champion knocked off East Allegheny 3-1 on Monday. Two other WPIAL opponents met their fate on Monday as Neshannock fell to Punxsutawney 9-1 and Avonworth was defeated 4-3 in 8 innings by Philipsburg-Osceola.