NEWS

Thad Johnson rounds third with Hornell's first run. (Photo by Brian Horey a/k/a BRIANthePHOTOguy)

By Paul Gotham

HORNELL, N.Y. -- The fly ball to left settled gently into a glove. Blue and white rushed the field and gathered around the pitcher's mound. The New York Collegiate Baseball League crown had returned to Hornell.

Seth Cornell (Houghton) hurled a complete game, and Brandon Sandoval (Vanguard) paced the offense as Hornell defeated the Oneonta Outlaws, 6-4 to sweep the 2014 NYCBL Championship Series, 2-0.

Cornell earned Most Outstanding Defensive Player of the Championship Series. After allowing three runs on three hits in the first inning, the right-hander held the Oneonta offense in check as Hornell claimed its first league title since 2005.  He struck out five and walked zero.

"He's a fantastic competitor," Hornell manager Tom Kenney said. "He was going to get it done. It didn't matter if it was a two-run cushion or a one-run cushion. Once we got the lead, they came back. We responded again. After that, I said 'we ain't gonna lose it.'"  READ MORE...