UPDATE: Games 3 and 4 Scheduled for Tomorrow

UPDATED 8/1, 6:30 p.m.

Games three and four will be played at noon tomorrow on the previously scheduled fields. The championship game is at 4 p.m.

UPDATED 8/1, 5:45 p.m.

Tonight's games between Medford and Hickory, and Piedmont and Douglassville have been postponed. According to league secretary Bryan Walbridge, they will most likely be played Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. with the championship game being played at 5 p.m.

UPDATED 8/1, 5:00 p.m.

Piedmont def. Ridley, 12-2

Hickory def. Paulino, 10-3

Games three and four are postponed due to rain delay. Patch will have the update as it becomes available.

ORIGINAL POST

Spring-Ford was one of the competitors in the 2011 Cal Ripken Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament, which began on Friday night with opening ceremonies. However, the team's journey would end prematurely over the weekend, as the tournament continues today and Tuesday.

Following a split in action on Saturday and an 11-4 set back to Piedmont from Wilmington, Del. on Sunday morning, the scenario to extend the season and keep the hope of a regional title alive rested upon a match up against Medford, N.J.

The philosophy was simple: Win and your in.

Having defeated the Hickory Hornets 7-2, Spring-Ford needed to win the game or hold Medford under two runs scored to eliminate Hickory and move on to the semifinals on Monday.

As Noah Grosshanten took the mound, the Hornets were in full force cheering for the Renegades.

Grosshanten limited Medford to three hits and one run though three innings, allowing the Spring-Ford offense a chance to get it going.

Peyton Gensler led off the third with a double and later scored the first run for the Rams when Chase Simmons, who scored seven runs in the tournament, singled down the line.

Jason Smiley drilled a ball that gave Simmons a chance to score of the fielder’s choice, posting Spring-Ford to a 2-1 lead, quieting the Hornets on the sidelines.

Two base hits that found their way through the Rams' infield led to the Renegades putting up a four spot in the visitors' fourth. That putthe pressure back squarely on the shoulders of a Spring-Ford squad that has mounted many come backs through out the season.

Spring-ford responded immediately as Matt Pinone (seven hits, three runs scored in the tournament) led off the fourth with a single then scored promptly as Luke Piontek ripped an RBI single, helping the Rams cut the lead to one.

The parents and volunteers that had worked so tirelessly for months to get the tournament together erupted with joy in the fifth frame as Smiley scurried home with the tying run on an RBI fielder’s choice by Pinone.

The wheels fell off the Spring-Ford wagon in the top of the sixth, though. A couple of hits found gaps in the defense, allowing the three-time New Jersey state champions to put up five runs.

Ryan McLauglin worked a walk to start the final at bat and scored following a double by Nick Romonjulu (2-for-4 in the game, six hits overall) but it was as close as the Rams could draw. The dream of playing in the World Series fell by the way side as the Spring-ford season came to a close, much to the delight of the Hickory team.

Monday’s Semifinal Action

Game 1: 10 a.m., Field 2 - Hickory vs. Paulino

Game 2: 10 a.m., Field 3 - Ridley vs. Piedmont

Game 3: 5 p.m., Field 2 - Hickory vs. Medford

Game 4: 5 p.m., Field 3 - Piedmont vs. Douglassville