by Frank Aceto

Associate Sports Editor

They're banged up and their chances of winning the first-ever Northeast Ohio Conference Valley Division title are pretty much slim and none.

And yet, the Black Tigers might be considered the favorite to win a Division I district title.

The Cuyahoga Falls baseball team captured the top seed and is scheduled to host either Akron Firestone or Medina May 15 in a sectional championship game. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m. at Water Works Park. Firestone is scheduled to play Medina May 14.

Twinsburg got the second seed and defending district champion Brecksville-Broadview Heights and Wadsworth got the third and fourth seeds, respectively.

"I thought we deserved the top seed," said Black Tigers head coach Jim Farrell, whose team had a 15-6 overall record as of press time. "I think 10 of these teams can come out of our district."

The postseason tourney will be Falls' only pursuit now. The Black Tigers had a 2-4 record in the Valley Division and trail first-place Hudson by three games.

Visiting Falls rebounded from a loss with a 9-4 victory over Mayfield May 6.

Jordan Paolini had a home run and three runs batted in and right-hander Bryon Holland got the win on the mound to improve to 5-2. Holland allowed three earned runs in seven innings of work.

"Bryon stepped up," Farrell said.

Catcher Shaun Vineyard, who made his 2008 debut after dealing with an elbow injury, hit a double to tie the game at 3-3. He also singled and Alex Walke added two hits.

"Shaun's hit sparked us," Farrell said. "To the kids' credit, they came back from a 3-1 deficit."

Mayfield (13-5, 3-3) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, but the Black Tigers tied it up with a run in the second.

Mayfield took a 3-1 advantage in the third, but Falls tied it up with two runs in the fourth. The Black Tigers took the lead for good with two runs in the fifth to make it 5-3 and added a run in the sixth to make it 6-3. Mayfield scored a run in the bottom of the sixth and Falls added three more runs in the seventh.

The Black Tigers had 11 hits and two errors and Mayfield had seven hits and three errors.

On May 5, Mayfield broke a 2-2 tie with five unanswered runs in the top of the seventh to earn a 7-2 win at Water Works Park.

Mayfield scored two runs in the top of the first and Falls tied it up with two runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Mayfield had eight hits and one error, while the Black Tigers had four hits and two errors. Walke (4-2) took the loss.

"That was another game that got away from us," Farrell said. "A couple of plays didn't go our way."

Falls has had a successful season despite dealing with injuries. Pitchers Taylor Paridon and James Mathews, who have seen some action in the batting order, have not spent much time on the mound because of arm injuries. The Black Tigers also recently lost center fielder and leadoff batter Marcus Hardy for the season because of a shoulder injury.

"James was one of the few pitchers who threw well against Solon," Farrell said.

Falls was set to visit Cleveland St. Ignatius May 8. Results were not available at press time.

The Black Tigers are set to visit Valley Division foe Garfield Heights May 12 before returning home to play Garfield Heights May 13. Both contests are slated to begin at 4:30 p.m.

E-mail: faceto@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-686-3914