CRANBERRY TWP — As the No. 1 seed in the Eagle County League playoffs, Mars I has been waiting for the winner of the Mars II-Cranberry Township best-of-3 series winner.

The team must wait a little longer.

In the rubber match of their first-round series Thursday, Mars II and Cranberry fought to a 2-all tie through nine innings at North Boundary Park before the game was called due to darkness.

The game will resume at 6 p.m. today, weather permitting, with the winner to play at Mars I at a day to be determined.

Mars II took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning on Derec Ciafre's RBI single. Chet Shaffer followed with a suicide squeeze that plated Ryan Leonberg.

Cranberry Township countered with one in the home half of the second when Bill Clinefelter had a one-out RBI single. With runners on first and third, Scott Jordan retired Brian Wisniewski to end the threat.

Cranberry Township tied the game in the fifth inning, when, with two outs, Ben Follett doubled and scored on Bill Stehle's single.

Mars put two runners on after two outs in both the eighth and ninth innings, but Stehle, in relief of Justin Papania, was able to escape without further damage.

Cranberry Township also stranded two runners in the eighth inning — it had runners at first and third before Mars II reliever Brian Hart entered and extinguished the rally.

In the bottom of the ninth, Cranberry Township got a two-out single from Hugh Mulvey, but Hart induced a popout by Bill Clinefelter and the game was called at that point.

"We need to be ready," said Mars manager Josh Rape. "We just need some clutch hits. Hopefully, it will be dry. The grass was pretty wet and took a couple of hits away."

"We're hoping for good weather (Friday)," said Clinefelter, also Cranberry Township's manager. "The grass is slow and it being wet made it even worse."

Hart and Stehle will resume pitching when the game is picked up in the 10th inning today.

Curt Schnur struck out 12, walked one and surrendered just one hit in a complete game as Saxonburg won 2-0 in the first game of its best-of-five semifinal series against Freeport Thursday at Pullman Park.Dustin Lalle and Brendan Malone each singled twice and scored a run, Dan Pickard singled twice and added an RBI, and Schnur doubled for Saxonburg (23-7-1).Cy Haponski doubled for Freeport's lone hit.Game Two will be played at 6 p.m. today at Pullman Park.