RICHBORO - There was lightning before the game.

And thunder during the game.A dark sky, filled with flashes of lightning, caused a long delay before the start of the Tamaqua 9-11-year-old Section 6 Little League tournament against Lehigh on Thursday.But the thunder was the Tamaqua offense, which stormed each inning and helped wash away Lehigh in the first round of tournament action, 15-5."Our offense, I can't say more about it," said Tamaqua head coach Trevor Steigerwalt. "Our focus is trying to win each inning. Win the small battles, and see where we are after 18 outs."Tamaqua scored at least once in each of the five innings. Steigerwalt's team trailed 5-4 after the second frame, but his club answered the bell immediately and posted four runs in the top of the third.Zander Coleman, Luke Kane, and Blaise Gigli led off the frame with a trio of singles.Lucas Kamant then slugged an opposite-field shot, which squirted past the Lehigh right fielder and allowed two runners to score.Chase Andrews had an RBI groundout, and leadoff hitter Brian Hinkle had a sacrifice fly to help put Tamaqua ahead for good after building an 8-4 lead after three."Lucas coming off the bench, he adds that spark," Steigerwalt said. "It's a solid hitting lineup. I have power and speed sprinkled throughout, and it kind of keeps the other team off balance."Tamaqua added two more runs in the fourth and five in the fifth.Coleman had his way with every Lehigh pitcher, finishing the game 4-for-4 dish with two RBIs. Kamant would later add another double, while Gigli finished with three singles."Zander stayed within himself, stayed back on the ball and was doing what he does," the Tamaqua coach said."He put the good part of the bat on the ball. Everyone I brought in stepped up and did a great job. When your bench is in the game and ready to play, that's all you can ask for."After Lehigh's second-inning surge, Tamaqua held it scoreless the rest of the way. The tally was 15-5 after five innings and the mercy rule was put into effect."Great kids and great parents are making it fun," said Steigerwalt."The nerves came out a little, but they made plays when they needed to."LATE NIGHT… The game that was slated to start at 8 p.m. finally started just before 9:30. The prior game between Stroudsburg and Lenape Valley was delayed in the final inning due to lightning. Tamaqua will square off with Lenape at 8 tonight in the semifinal again at the Northampton Recreation Center. "I think it actually relaxed the kids," said Steigerwalt. "I think if we actually played on time, I think they would have been a little bit nervous. It got them relaxed, and they were hanging out doing a couple different things. I think it benefited us more than it hurt us."MI CASA, SU CASA… Tamaqua was determined as the away team during each game of its postseason run. "The thing I like about our boys is that we hit and put pressure on them every inning. We've been playing as the visitor this entire tournament so far. We've been the away team every single time and we've just put the pressure on everybody's defense."GOOD RELIEF… Cian McLaughlin tossed two innings of shutout ball across the fourth and fifth innings to help seal the deal.Tamaqua 134 25 - 15 17 4Lehigh 140 00 - 5 4 3Coleman, Gigli (2), McLaughlin (4) and Kane; Zumas, Ondria (2), Figueroa (4) and Diez-Rivera. W - Gigli. L - Ondria.