BUTLER TWP — Joe Marak was working on a one-hitter — then got worked over.

North Allegheny scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning before Marak could record an out, lifting the Tigers to an improbable 4-3 win over the Lyndora Lancers Saturday night at Highfield Park.

The losers bracket game of the double-elimination Palomino East Zone Tournament spelled the end of the Lancers' season.

"That's baseball. It happens," Lyndora manager Ron Zawrotuk said.

But nobody saw it coming.

After an earlier 6-2 loss to Long Island, N.Y. — the most talent-laden team in the six-team tournament — Zawrotuk turned to Marak to extend the Lancers' season. And he delivered.

Through six innings, the right-hander struck out seven and allowed only four baserunners. Mike Cammarata's seeing-eye single up the middle to begin the fourth inning was North Allegheny's lone hit. Two runners reached on errors and Marak walked one.

Marak threw only 78 pitches in the first six innings.

"You can ask Joe. He wasn't tired at all," Zawrotuk said. "It was the hidden vigorish, a bloop and a blast, that's all."

Mark Jackson began the NA seventh with a sharp single inside third. Connor Yates hit a slow chopper to third and beat it out for a hit. Rob Sittig hit a ball off the end of his bat that blooped into center, loading the bases.

Matt Gaus hit a Baltimore chop that caromed well over the head of first baseman Tim Geibel, plating two runs. Anthony Bianco followed with a two-run double to deep left and the game was over.

Run-scoring singles by Luke Szymanski and Nick Bole in the fifth inning helped the Lancers build a 3-0 lead. But Lyndora wasted a two-out double by David Schmidt in the sixth and a lead-off triple by Szymanski in the seventh.

Szymanski was nailed at the plate when an attempted suicide squeeze bunt was missed.

Lyndora stranded 19 runners in the two games, many in scoring position.

"We didn't add on. Missed scoring chances came back to bite us in both games," Zawrotuk said.

Long Island began play Saturday with a 2-0 shutout of Cincinnati, then banged out 13 hits in its 6-2 triumph over Lyndora.

The outcome could have been worse, but Long Island stranded two baserunners in five of its six innings. The New York team failed to do further damage in a three-run second inning despite loading the bases with none out after scoring those runs.

"We draw from a broad area of baseball talent," Long Island manager Gregg Sarra said. "A lot of our kids are in their final year with us, so we decided to try Palomino ball. It's been fun."

Long Island reached the semifinals of the AABC World Series in New Mexico last year. All 18 of its players are headed to college ball, including 10 to Division I schools.

Three of its players — Steve Matz, Marcus Stroman and Kyle Hansen, younger brother of Pirates pitcher Craig Hansen — were selected in baseball's amateur draft. None of them made the trip to Butler.

"Of the first 20 high school pitchers chosen in the draft this year, our team faced 14 of them at some point over the years," Sarra said. "We've played in a lot of tournaments and a lot of states."

Despite Long Island's experience, Lyndora trailed just 3-1 in the fourth and had the tying runs in scoring position with less than two outs.

"You just go out and play the game," Zawrotuk said. "Everybody wants to win and be humble when you do win. But you learn from losing.

"Everybody makes mistakes and that's OK. We mature and grow from them."

Winner of the tournament, which concludes today at Highfield, earns an all-expenses paid trip to San Jose, Calif., for the Palomino World Series this weekend.

Palomino East Zone Tournament at Highfield ParkLyndora 000 100 1 — 2 7 0Long Island 030 210 x — 6 13 1W: John Soldinger (4 IP) 6 K, 3 BB.

L: Matt Monnie (3 IP) 2 K, 3 BB.

Lyndora: Eric King 1B, Roman Bargo 2B 1B RBI, Lyke Szymanski 1B, Tim Geibel 2-1B RBI, Nick Bole 1B

Long Island (37-5): Mike Annunziata 2-2B 1B RBI, Chris Bozza 1B RBI, Anthony Zarrella 1B 2-RBI, John Yohe 2B, Max Greenough 3-1B, Joe Solomeno 2B RBI, Tom Buckley 2-1B, Matt Calvert 1B RBI

Lyndora 001 020 0 — 3 7 2North Allegheny 000 000 4 — 4 6 3No outs when winning run scoredW: Zach Jergan (2Z\c IP) 2 K, 3 BB.

L: Joe Marak (6 IP) 7 K, 1 BB.

Lyndora (21-15): Eric King 1B, David Schmidt 2B, Roman Bargo 2B, Lyke Szymanski 1B 3B RBI, Nick Bole 2-1B RBI,

North Allegheny (20-18): Mike Cammarata 1B, Mark Jackson 1B, Connor Yates 1B, Rob Sittig 1B, Matt Gaus 1B 2-RBI, Anthony Bianco 2B 2-RBI