Pitching and hitting come together for Railroaders

‘‘We threw a shutout against Musselman and the pitching carried over to today,” Dawson said. ‘‘We were a little stagnant with the bats against Musselman, but today came out looking like a different team, manufactured some runs and also belted the ball around. I’m really tickled to death with my team today.”

During preseason practices, Dawson said the depth of his pitching staff would determine his team’s fortunes. So far so good. In two games Brunswick (2-0) trotted out four hurlers who allowed a combined five hits and one earned run.

Jeremy Roderick and Joey Fisher combined to toss a one-hitter against Musselman Saturday. On Monday, junior lefthander Ryan Derr tossed 6 1⁄3 stellar innings, relinquishing just one earned run on just two hits while striking out six. Paul Walters closed out the tournament, fanning a pair of Titans in an inning and two-thirds of work.

‘‘We pitched well the whole weekend,” Derr said. ‘‘It’s been a good year so far. Our staff looks pretty strong. We hope to keep it rolling. We’re throwing strikes and throwing hard.”

Six of the Railroaders’ eight runs Monday were tallied with two outs. Ethan Tome and Ethan Baker ripped RBI singles with two down in the top of the first. Shortstop Seth Keyser brought home Mike Minch with a two-out single up the middle in the second. Keyser struck again in the fourth bringing home a pair with a two-out double to right-center.

‘‘We always preach to the kids that the good hitters come through when you need them,” Dawson said. ‘‘With two outs that shouldn’t be a factor. You have to deliver.”

Third baseman Houston Darling went 2 for 4 with a double against Tuscarora. First baseman Cassidy O’Bryan also recorded a double.

Tuscarora wraps up the tournament with one win and a bushel of questions.

The Titans (1-1) edged out Middletown on Saturday via Tommy Edwards’ single in the bottom of the eighth. Monday brought no such luck.

‘‘It’s a new team,” Titans head coach Jason Smith said. ‘‘We’re really trying to figure out our rotation and that’s why it’s nice to play a tournament right off the bat. We still have to put together a lineup. This is a totally different team than I’ve ever had. We’ll work at it, work hard and come back on Wednesday.”

Brunswick wanted this one. The Railroaders have never captured their own tournament. Winning it is nice, but it’s just a start.

‘‘It’s just one of our goals,” Keyser said. ‘‘Win the Neil Keller Tournament, win our region, states and all that good stuff. It’s a good start for us.”