It was one big swing — a mighty swat, for sure.

Vance Gerhard broke a lot of Tamaqua hearts Thursday evening when he crushed a full-count, two-run homer to dead center field, lifting an upstart band of Weatherly 12-year-old Little League All-Stars to a stunning 2-0 win over perennial power Tamaqua in District 18 tournament action at Billy Angst Stadium.

Gerhard’s round-tripper — which drove in Tucker Gilbert, who had singled — came like a jolt of lightning.

Neither team had threatened much to that point, thanks to a stellar pitching duel between eventual winner Gilbert and tough-luck loser Jackson Faust.

When Gerhard connected, it sent a hush over the Tamaqua-heavy crowd. But it brought pure elation to the Weatherly dugout, as players poured out to greet Gerhard at home plate, and a roar rolled through the Black and Orange fanbase.

Hits were scarce on both sides. Weatherly managed just three: Gerhard’s homer, Gilbert’s hit, and a third-inning knock by Colton Delauretis . The only other baserunner came when Kaden Witner reached on an error with two outs in the second inning. Faust was nearly untouchable at times, and Tamaqua’s defense turned a slick double play in the third on a liner to second base that erased Delauretis.

“That was one heck of an effort from our kids,” said Weatherly coach Jeremy Witner. “This is a pretty experienced group, and (Gerhard) stepped up in the moment. He’s definitely one of our top two hitters.”

Witner said his team came in with confidence.

“We wanted to put Weatherly on the map,” he said.

They may have done just that. The win moved Weatherly to 2-0 in tournament play, while Tamaqua — now 3-1 — suffered its first loss.

Gilbert was solid on the mound, allowing just two hits — both by Joshua Setlock — before being lifted after reaching his pitch limit of 83. Setlock singled in the second and again in the fifth, but both times Gilbert buckled down and escaped trouble. He matched Faust with six strikeouts. Faust did not issue a walk; Gilbert allowed three.

“My hat goes off to (Weatherly) and to Gerhard — he hit that one deep,” said Tamaqua manager Mark Bartczak. “We didn’t hit the ball well, and credit to their pitcher. But I know we’re a better hitting team than we showed tonight.”

Tamaqua’s best scoring chance came in the second, when Setlock advanced to second on a wild pitch after his single to left. But Gilbert worked through it and kept Tamaqua off the board.

“I wasn’t too concerned,” Witner said. “We have arms.”

After Gilbert exited, Owen Titus entered with no outs in the sixth and Kory Tirpak on first following a walk. Titus struck out the next three Tamaqua batters on just 13 pitches to preserve the victory.

GLOVES ON DISPLAY … Both teams made several highlight-reel defensive plays. Weatherly right fielder Matt Skonieczny made a pair of outstanding catches in the fifth inning, while second baseman Ethan Barilla handled back-to-back grounders in the fourth. Tamaqua’s third baseman also shined, snaring a line drive to rob Dembrosi of a two-base hit, and later fielding a hard shot off the bat of Chase Bachert in the fifth.

Tamaqua 000 000 - 0 2 1

Weatherly 000 02x - 2 3 0

Faust and Baddick; Gilbert, Titus (6) and Titus and Bachert (4). W - Corbert. L - Faust.