SHAWNEE TOWNSHIP -- Fans got a full ear of the blasting Locos' train horn on Wednesday.
    The horn, which hits a near-deafening level when the Locos score a run, was blasting off the roof in the Locos' nine-run first inning.
    By the end of the inning, the horn was out of steam and Lake Erie wasn't far behind.
    The Locos rolled to an 11-2 victory over Lake Erie in the opening round of the double-elimination Great Lakes Collegiate League tournament championship Wednesday at Shawnee High School.
    Locos shortstop Jacob Robbins (Kennesaw State) went 4-for-5 with a double and an RBI. Travis Fultz (Montevallo) went 1-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs. Bryan Bonner (Georgetown) went 3-for-4 with an RBI.
    Evan Armitage had a triple and three RBIs in the key first inning when the Locos jumped out to a 9-0 lead. It was the Locos' best offensive inning of the year.
    "That set the tone," Armitage said.
    Robbins said, "Tonight we needed to score a lot of runs to get things rolling going into the tournament."
    The big lead enabled right-hander John Frawley (North Florida) to relax and throw his fastball, breaking ball and change-up for strikes in his eight innings of work.
    "The pressure is off the starting pitcher (after the first), where he can go ahead and pitch and not worry about making a mistake and hurting the team," Locos coach Rob Livchak said. "It was something we hadn't had in a while and it was nice to see."
    The Locos advance to the winner's bracket game against Cincinnati at 4 p.m. today at Shawnee. Cincinnati rolled over Granville, 13-2, in the other first-round game at Shawnee on Wednesday.
    At 1 p.m. today at Shawnee, Granville will meet Lake Erie in an elimination game.
    The Locos wasted little time in firing up the train horn.
    Travis Jones led off the game with a double to the left-center field gap. Robbins reached on a bunt single. Drew Hoisington put down a perfect bunt to move Jones and Robbins over to second and third.
    Fultz reached on a throwing error by shortstop Sergio Morales, which allowed Jones to score to give the Locos a 1-0 lead. Shaun Pfeil walked to load the bases.
    Bonner's RBI single to right gave the Locos a 2-0 lead. Sean Boley reached on an error, which brought in Fultz to make it 3-0. Eric
Severson's walk with the bases loaded pushed the Locos' lead to 4-0.
    Armitage then came to the plate with the bases loaded and sent a three-run triple to the right-center field fence. That kicked the lead to 7-0.
    "That opened the gates up for us and that was a big hit by Evan," Livchak said.
    Armitage said, "He grooved me a fastball down the middle and I did what I needed to do with it. I saw it get in the gap and the right fielder was playing in a little bit, so once I saw him turn his back, I knew (I was going for third)."
    Robbins' second hit of the inning was an RBI single to left to make it 8-0.
    Lake Erie starter right-hander Jay Clites lasted only 1/3 of an inning. He gave up nine runs, two earned, on four hits.
    In the fourth, Fultz delivered a two-run home run to left to give the Locos an 11-1 lead.
    Frawley, who posted a 13-4 victory over Lake Erie on July 25, gave up two earned runs on five hits in his eight innings of work. He struck out six and walked one.
    "I wanted to establish the fastball in the first couple of innings," Frawley said. "I was a little nervous the last couple of days (when he heard he was getting the start). I got that nine spot and it really took the pressure off. I just wanted to throw strikes and get groundballs and try to get the guys back in the dugout. I struck a couple guys out with the curveball, but my change-up really showed up in the later innings."
    The Locos and Cincinnati begin day two in the winner's bracket at Shawnee.
    "We were set up pretty good with our pitching before it (the tourney) started, and with Jack (Frawley) throwing eight strong innings, it's put us in a good spot. But that doesn't mean we can sit back," Livchak said.
    LOCOS NOTES: The Locos will send right-hander Chris Rubio (Dayton) to the mound today.
    In the first game of the day at Shawnee, Cincinnati scored five in the first and cruised to a 13-2 romp over Granville. Former Lima Loco Tony Kennedy went 4-for-5 with a double and three runs for Cincinnati. Brandon Besl went 5-for-5 with a double and four RBIs. Zach Hurley went 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs.