Marion downs Carbondale for key South Seven win

MARION -- It took some help in the form of errors and using three of the team's top pitchers but the end result for the Marion High School baseball team was a 5-4 victory over rival Carbondale on Tuesday at the Crisp Sports Complex.
Marion coach Marty Manfredo started with Cory Howard on the mound, then brought in Cavan Cameron and ultimately needed Hez Goodman in the seventh to nail down the victory and keep the Wildcats' hopes for a share of the South Seven Conference title alive.
Marion, which improved to 7-2 in the league with the win, was scheduled to play Mt. Vernon on Thursday to decide the final standings.
The winning run came in the sixth when Brendan Soldner, who was 3-for-3, singled and Drake Gravatt followed with a hit, then Josh Griffin hit into what looked like a double play but the throw was high and Soldner scored.
Soldner also walked and scored in the first inning before his three hits, the second of which was an RBI bunt in the fourth that resulted in a scary collision at first base.
Goodman and David Fletcher also scored after collecting hits in the win, but it was Carbondale's seven errors that helped the Wildcats as much as anything.
Cameron threw five innings of relief with three strikeouts and Goodman struck out the side in the seventh after allowing a leadoff double.
Marion then traveled to Harrisburg on Wednesday and lost 5-4 to push the season record to 16-5.
Harrisburg scored with a pair of hits and a bunt in the third, then used the squeeze in a two-run rally in the fourth before plating another pair in the sixth.
Marion's runs came late. Fletcher hit a two-run double in the sixth and Jackson singled in a run in the seventh.