NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y.- After a shaky first inning for ace pitcher Mark Armstrong, Clarence defeated Section 5's Victor in the Far West Regionals. 

 Armstrong walked the first two batters he faced. Victor then took an early 1-0 lead off an RBI single by Tommy Wagner. But Armstrong finally found his rhythm. He ended the inning with a strikeout.

That momentum carried into the second for the MLB prospect. Armstrong started off the inning with a stikeout but the Clarence offense was still quiet. That all changed in the third inning. The Red Devils scored four runs in the third and it all started with an RBI by Bryan Jost. Then Evan Harof and Mark Materise both cracked RBI singles in the scoring fest. After three innings, Clarence rallied for a 4-1 lead.

Clarence, N.Y.-At one time or another all of us dream of playing a sport professionally. For Clarence righthander Mark Armstrong that dream may come true later this week during the Major League Baseball draft.

Mark Armstrong: Ever since I picked up a baseball bat. Every since I started playing when I was about three years old. I always had a dream team the Yankees of course but at this point I could care less what team it is.

Scouts are very much aware of Armstrong's stuff he throws in the mid 90's. They are always looking for insight into Armstrong off the field. That's where Clarence head coach Dave Smith comes in. He told Stu " He's very focused. He understands that are going to be things that go wrong. He handles those things with a maturity that is commendable and not like most other 18 year old so obviously he's physically mature but in addition he's mentally mature."

(Welcome to our pet column, courtesy of Pet Connection Programs Inc. of Marilla. We post a new article each week, so be sure to check back on a regular basis!)

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