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By Josiah Schulz
Imagine this. Bottom of the final inning, your team is down 3 runs. Every single base is loaded, and you’re up next to bat. You are the single only thing standing in the way from a victory or a loss for your team. The stadium is so quiet in preparation for what is to come, you could almost taste the tenseness in the air. Next thing you know, you hear the loud “crack” coming from your bat. Home. Run. The fans absolutely explode in excitement and joy, cheering and chanting your name over and over and over again. You have single handedly won that game for your team. This is a story that almost any baseball fan all around the globe dreams about frequently, perhaps even on a nightly basis. For Blue Sox’s shortstop Jose Rocha, this dream turned into reality. Rocha would prevail as the hero of our story, conquering the #1 team in the league, the Clover Hill Bucks. Rocha would display an absolutely unhuman performance this evening. Out of his 4 appearances at bat, 2 out of the 2 hits he made contact with both resulted in Home Runs, subsequently RBI’ing 7 guys and demolishing an 8-0 lead by the Bucks. After an even-keel and competitive first 3 innings, the 4th inning for the Bucks would prove to the spectators the eliteness of their team, and show the abundance of Clover Hill fans in attendance why it was exactly that they would travel nearly 45 minutes to Elkton for tonight’s ballgame. The Bucks would put up 7 runs in the 4th inning alone, ultimately crushing any hopes of a Blue Sox comeback, and all the fans of Elkton would pack up their things and head home… or would it? Quite the contrary actually. Virtually none of the fans left their seat. No shouts of criticism or hate from the Blue Sox supporters, and most surprisingly of all, no hanging heads of any of the Blue Sox players. In fact, after the 4th inning is when the Blue Sox defense really came alive. Elkton would hold the Bucks scoreless for the rest of the 4 innings left in the game, other than one sole run in the 7th inning. Meanwhile, the love and support of the Blue Sox fan base only grew larger and larger, constantly shouting words encouraging their beloved team and praying for a late-game comeback. Their prayers would eventually be answered. The momentum of the game would slowly start gaining traction from a small snowball to an unstoppable avalanche. The Bucks would watch their 8-0 lead slowly get smaller and smaller. It would be the 7th inning for the Blue Sox that would ultimately change the tide of the game. A stagnant Clover Hill defense would open the perfect opportunity for a big time Sox comeback, not only on the scoreboard but mentally as well. Entering the 8th inning, the score was 9-5 in Clover Hill’s favor. A line drive from Koice Quintanilla would RBI fan favorite J.J. Loker. This hit would lead to bases loaded, and next up to bat would be none other than Jose Rocha. Despite the huge amount of pressure on his shoulders, Rocha would tone all of it out, hitting a home run that would have all fans in attendance on their feet. With that Home Run, Rocha would complete the comeback, with the score 10-9 in Elkton’s favor. Due to RCBL’s curfew rules of games not extending past 3 hours, this would be the final inning. “What was my approach? I was just trying to put the ball in play. With one out, I knew that if I would have gotten something to the outfield then we would have scored at least one guy. I tried to stay as relaxed as possible. When I get too tense, the ball seems to come faster, my head starts to shift in different directions.. But as soon as I heard the ball hit the bat, I knew the game was over. That was an awesome feeling.” Said Rocha. With this victory, Jose Rocha became the Player of the Week for Elkton’s local newspaper: ‘The Valley Trail’. The Blue Sox prepare for a double header tomorrow night against the Broadway Bruins @ the JMU’s Eagle Field at 7:30 p.m. The Clover Hill Bucks will try to avenge their loss against the Montezuma Braves @ Ruritan Park at 7:30 p.m. Final Score: Elkton 10 - Clover Hill 9.
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By Mitchell Broughton and Josiah Schulz
When the first pitch at JMU’s Eagle Field was thrown yesterday, the Broadway Bruins held sole possession of first place in the County League with an 8-3 record. However, following the last out, the Bruins fell out of first to a tie for second after a 10-4 loss to the Bridgewater Reds. Bridgewater drew the highest card in the duel between JMU pitchers. Right hander Lliam Grubbs secured his first win of the season after seven dominant innings. Grubbs struckout six while only giving up three hits and just one run to the Bruins. “It took me a while to get my groove going tonight, playing against great hitters, especially my teammates from JMU [Broadway’s Reifsnider, DeLauter, and Jones],” Grubbs said. “After I got situated, I was getting ground balls, got great plays for my defense to make which they did, so all around just a great defensive outing as a team tonight.” On the other side, Chase DeLauter struggled to get in a rhythm for Broadway. Only pitching three innings he gave up three hits, walked five, and allowed four runs. Though, at the plate he led the Bruins with three hits including a double and a two-run home run — bringing his 2020 total to five, leading the County League this season. His reliever, another JMU duke, Liam McDonnell made more progress for the Bruins. The left hander went five innings, striking out seven while allowing just four hits and one walk. Catering to the comedic relief of the crowd on hand at Eagle Field, McDonell also reached base on a walk in his first appearance at the plate since he was in the tenth grade. Bridgewater’s offense started out strong but finished the game stronger. Right fielder Corbin Lucas led the way for the Reds per usual. Lucas hit two RBI-doubles, one in part of Bridgewater’s four-run third inning and the other as a part of their five-run ninth inning rally that secured the win. Lucas told Josiah Schulz after the game about his team finally getting all the parts to work together: “We were just more confident in ourselves tonight,” Lucas explained. “I believe if we continue to clean up our defense, if our pitchers continue to play as great as they have been doing, I feel like we will be competitive in every single ball game coming up.” Grey Sherfey also had a double in the top of the fourth and scored two batters later. And veteran player and JMU alum Derek Shifflett put on a show at his alma mater. The shortstop not only made many impressive plays in the field, but went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and used his speed to score from first base off an error in the outfield in the top of the ninth. Shifflett also closed out the game on the mound for the Reds in the bottom of the ninth, striking out two to solidify the win for the visiting team. The Reds now have some quality wins this season to try to even out some of the bad games they’ve lost. Tonight, it was apparent that Bridgewater was finally getting all their gears to turn at once. Manager Robert Sherfey spoke with Schulz after the game and had nothing but praise for his ballplayers. “The guys are finally starting to play as a team now. Like I had said before, it takes time. Everyone was on tonight. Pitching, offense, and defense did their job to get the win. We stayed with it and never gave up,” Sherfey said. “You're going to have good days and bad days. But right now, the way I see this team going and the direction they’re leaning towards, we’re going to be a great team. It’s coming.” Bridgewater improves to 7-6 on the season and will travel to Montezuma on Friday to take on the Braves. Broadway falls to 8-4, but will look to improve that record tomorrow when they face Stuarts Draft at the Diamond Club. FINAL: Bridgewater 10 Broadway 4. Winning pitcher: Lliam Grubbs (1-0). Losing pitcher: Chase DeLauter (1-1). — Around the County League: It took extra innings, but Clover Hill managed to sneak out of Grottoes with an 8-5 win over the Cardinals. The Bucks scored three in the top of the eleventh, starting with a ground rule double by Bryce Suters. Four home runs for Elkton helped the Blue Sox grab a 9-1 victory over Montezuma. Lee Carneal, Jose Rocha and Will Decker all went yard for Elkton. Nick Goode scores in the top of the eighth off an error by the Stuarts Draft catcher to take the lead and grab a 9-8 win for New Market over the Diamondbacks. Goode finished the game with two hits and an RBI to go along with the winning run scored. Draft’s Will Hass went 4-for-5 on the night with a home run. Follow the RCBL on Twitter for more news, scores, and updates — twitter.com/RCBLonline By Leyton Pullin
On Wednesday night Clover Hill defeated Grottoes 8-5 in 11 innings at Shifflett Field. The Bucks got off to a slow start as they were held scoreless as Grottoes’ Tucker Garrison was able to strike out 3 in his first 5 scoreless innings of work. The Cardinals on the other hand would hop on the board early in the top of the first as Tristan Shoemaker would hit a lead off double and would later score on an Austin Nicely RBI single making it 1-0 Grottoes. Keegan Woolford would square up on a pitch with 2 runners on for a 2 RBI double down the right field line to make the score 3-0 Grottoes. The Cards would add two more in the 4th inning as Shoemaker would hit a 2RBI single scoring David Wood and Clayton Michael to extend the lead out to 5-0 Grottoes. Clover Hill would respond in the 6th as Luke Shifflett would pinch hit and come through with a 2RBI single scoring Suters and Navedo to cut the lead to 5-2. The Bucks would chip away at the lead again in the 8th after a leadoff Kevin Navedo double and then he would score on a ground out by Shifflett cutting the lead to 5-3. The Bucks would tie it up in the top of the 9th after a Blake Sipe RBI single that would score Braeson Fulton and then with a Kevin Navedo RBI single that would score Ross French sending us to extra innings. In the bottom of the 10th Grottoes would load the bases but would fail to score as Jacob Zoeller would fly out and David Wood would strike out to end the inning. In the top of the 11th Clover Hill would put tw runners on via the walk and then Suters would drive in Blake Sipe with a RBI ground rule double. Tyler Bocock would come across on an error by Jacob Merica and Suters would eventually score as well to give the Bucks an 8-5 lead to win the game. For Grottoes they drop their 5th straight game and drop to 6-7 on the year. The Cardinals got a solid start out of Tucker Garrison who would go 6 innings giving up 3 hits and 2 earned runs. The Cardinals came close to ending their skid but came up a few outs short with a costly hit or two down the stretch. The Cardinals will get a chance to bounce back as they travel to Stuarts Draft for a doubleheader with the D-Backs on Saturday. The Bucks advance to 8-3 on the season as Steven Woerner picks up the win (2-0) after the submariner threw 10 innings in just under 150 pitches. Clover Hill will travel to Elkton on Saturday for a date with the Blue Sox at Stonewall Memorial Park. By Mitchell Broughton
Coming into Tuesday night’s game at Rebel Field, the New Market Shockers were riding the longest win streak of the season at five games, scoring 50 runs during that stretch. That run and their offensive momentum, however, ended after a 4-1 loss to the Montezuma Braves. In the early stages, there was quite the pitchers duel between the starters on the mound. New Market’s Hunter Enstminger went five scoreless innings for the first-place Shockers. The James Madison right hander struck out five and only allowed two hits and no walks in his longest outing of the season. On the other side, for Montezuma, Turner Ashby pitcher Grant Thomas made his first start of the season after a few rough outings earlier on for the Braves. In his three appearances in 2020, Thomas had only pitched a total of 3.2 innings with a 12.2 ERA. Last night, he pitched completely beyond his stats. In Thomas’ seven scoreless innings, he struck out four and gave up five hits; he was able to get his team out of some pinches, stranding seven Shockers on base. Heading into the top of the sixth it was still scoreless between the two ball clubs. Two walks by Enstminger and a dropped fly ball by shortstop Frankie Ritter loaded up the bases for the Braves with no outs. Enstminger was able to strike out Jeremy Wagner in the next at bat, which put the game in the hands of his brother, Will Wagner. Wagner then took a fastball to deep right center, over the advertisement-plated wall at Rebel Field for a grand slam and the lead. That was Will Wagner’s only hit of the night, but it was one swing of the bat that changed the game and ultimately broke the Shockers’ win streak. The sixth was Enstminger’s last inning on the mound, he finished with eight strikeouts, three hits, two walks, and four earned runs. During their win streak, New Market had five players batting over .400 in those games: Pearce Bucher, Nick Goode, Henry Delavergne, Matt House and Calvin Pastel. Those five players went just 3-19 during last night’s contest; the lone run for the Shockers came courtesy of Frankie Ritter in the bottom of the ninth. New Market falls from first place, now sitting in third in the RCBL at 7-4. The Shockers travel down to Stuarts Draft tonight to take on the Diamondbacks. Montezuma improves to 5-7 and is currently on a two-game win streak. The Braves will go out to Elkton to take on the Blue Sox at Jackson Memorial Park. Both games, as always, are scheduled to start at 7:30. FINAL: Montezuma 4 New Market 1. Winning pitcher: Grant Thomas (1-1). Losing pitcher: Hunter Enstminger (1-1). Saving pitcher: Kyle Armstrong. — Broadway takes sole possession of first place after defeating the Elkton Blue Sox 6-5 last night. Josh Jones and Chase DeLauter both had doubles for the Bruins and reigning pitcher of the year John Judy was back on the mound, going five innings and striking out six. Derek Shifflett throws a complete game for Bridgewater, striking out 11 as the Reds take down Grottoes 6-3 at Ruritan Park in Montezuma. The Nicely brothers, Austin and Dylan, continue their performances at the plate for the Cardinals, sitting at #1 and #2 in the RCBL in hits — but it wasn’t enough to outdo the Reds. Follow the RCBL on Twitter for more news, scores, and updates — twitter.com/RCBLonline By Josiah Schulz
This season for the Elkton Blue Sox so far could be summed up in one word. Tough. Elkton had so much to look forward to beginning this season, coming off a heartbreaking semi-final exit in the 2019 RCBL Playoffs. Since then, however, wins have come few and far in between for the Blue Sox, including tonight's 6-5 loss against the Broadway Bruins. And although the chances of the Blue Sox reaching the top of the leagues standings by the end of the regular season are beginning to dwindle away, there is one factor that remains consistently strong: the fan base. The folks of Elkton showed out this evening and stayed out until the very last pitch; despite the numerous defensive errors and sleepy hitting from their beloved Blue Sox. There were 5 total innings this game where neither team scored a run, and through it all, the faithful people of Elkton remained in the stands, cheering on and shouting words of encouragement for whoever was next up to bat for their team. As a reward for the tremendous loyalty displayed by their fans, the Blue Sox would gift their supporters through a riveting bottom of the 9th inning. The Sox would rally together and produce 3 runs, coming back from a 6-2 deficit, and as a result leaving the Broadway Bruins in utter disbelief. The Bruins would eventually awaken, catching a pop fly from right outfielder Lee Carneal to conclude tonight's matchup. If that ball had been dropped, however, it would have allowed two Blue Sox to glide in for two runs, ultimately resulting in a score of 7-6 in Elkton’s favor. This situation could have possibly been avoided entirely if it wasn’t for a tough first inning where Elkton would figuratively ‘shoot themselves in the foot’. Top of the first, bases loaded with Bruins and two outs already from the defending Blue Sox. Then, anticlimactically, the next three at-bats all resulted in walks, scoring 3 Bruins without even a single hit. A pitching substitution would be finally made, and a line drive to 1st base from lead-off hitter Bryce Strawderman would end up as out number three. Yes, I did say lead-off hitter. The entire batting rotation for the Bruins would see at least one at-bat in the top of the 1st alone, ending off the inning with a 4-0 lead against the Blue Sox. On the total opposite side of the spectrum, reigning Pitcher of the Year John Judy would boast 10 strikeouts in only 5 innings played and allowing only two runs; both of which coming in the bottom of the 4th inning. “I felt really good early. Later on my arm kinda died, but for the most part I felt I played my role to the best of my ability.” Said Judy. “Bailey (Hall) called a great game behind the plate and I had a great defense behind me. I just felt like I could throw just about anything in the zone and they wouldn’t hit it.” After it all, Blue Sox coach Dave Loker would walk off the field tonight with a smile still on his face and a sense of optimism radiating from his body. “We really didn’t go into this game any different with Broadway than with anybody else. The record doesn’t indicate everything! I feel like we can beat anybody on a good night, and similarly we can be beat by anybody any given night. We just didn’t hit the ball when we needed to tonight and we gave up a few free runs early that changed the outcome of the game. But you know, I like how we played tonight… after the first inning.” Coach Loker said, accompanied with a hearty laugh. “They hung in there and played hard. Mack Rexroade and Jose (Rocha) I felt both played really well. So you know, we did some good things tonight. At this point though, we are just looking ahead towards the playoffs. We’re not banking a whole lot on wins or losses. Obviously we want to win, but our goal is to be ready to play and to compete when it comes time for the playoffs. That’s what this team is looking forward to.” Said coach Loker with a bright smile illuminating his face. With this victory, Broadway remains at the tip top of the leagues standings, improving to a 8-3 record and look forward to playing the Bridgewater Reds for their first bout of the season tomorrow night @ JMU’s Eagle Field at 7:30 p.m. With this loss, however, Elkton’s record will take a hit, dropping to 3-8: only one game above the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks for the worst record in the league. The Blue Sox will look to snap their current two game losing streak against the Montezuma Braves tomorrow night @ their home in Stonewall Memorial Park at 7:30 p.m. Final Score: Broadway 6 - Elkton 5 By Josiah Schulz
Errors were the name of the game for the Bridgewater Reds tonight after coming off a resounding 28-2 victory over the Elkton Blue Sox last evening. The Reds began their offensive game well, making contact with many pitches that would not result in any runs. This would finally change at the bottom of the 4th when outfielder Corbin Lucas would do what he does best: hitting home runs. Lucas would slam a ball right over the center fence for his first appearance at bat, putting up the first run for the Reds this game. On the opposite side of the Reds dugout, the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks would also come out with fire, particularly due to one man: center fielder Terrell Thompson. An incredible standout performance from Thompson would kickstart the D-Backs energy for the rest of the night by eventually scoring off his lead-off hit. Another score that inning by teammate Kent Rooklin alongside a run a piece for both the D-Backs and Reds in the 5th would have the score at 3-1 in the Diamondbacks favor entering the 6th inning. The top of the 6th inning, however, is when Bridgewater seemingly fell apart. Four fielding errors and many dropped fly balls by the Reds later, the visiting Diamondbacks would post 7 runs in just the 6th inning alone. Bridgewater would finally hold two meetings at the mound for relief pitcher Matt Schobe before ultimately replacing him with Nick Griffin. Diamondback Terrell Thompson would gladly capitalize on the mistakes of the Reds, posting a tremendous stateline of 3 runs, 3 hits, an RBI, and a hit at every single at bat to this point in the game. “I felt really comfortable tonight. Pre-game I was nice and loose, but most importantly mentally focused and prepared for the game.” Said Terrell Thompson. “We knew that we needed to win some ball games, and luckily tonight I felt that everybody was locked in. We took a ‘L’ last night, but we are focused on getting over the hump and I feel like we really are on the right track.” Prior to tonight’s game, the Diamondbacks ranked dead last in the league standings, holding a 1-7 record which would include the 14-6 loss against the Reds on opening night. “What was different about tonight as opposed to any of our previous losses? Nothing.” Said Stuarts Draft’s head coach Chuck Booth. “We have great team chemistry and we get along great as a team. Tonight just happened to be a night that we clicked on all cylinders. We were making contact with the ball, we minimized our errors, and we capitalized on the mistakes they made. No difference in mentality. They always bring it. The first five games we played we threw away with errors. The sixth game we just got beat. We are starting to find our groove and once we do we’ll be a team to beat.” As the Diamondbacks look to carry this momentum throughout the rest of the 11 games left in the regular season and improve their record, player/coach George Laase still remains optimistic for the remainder of the season and beyond for his team. “Anytime we get a chance to play the game of baseball, it’s the greatest day in the world. Being 38, next year going into coaching, this means everything to me. A lot of the guys on this squad are young, but they are very willing to listen and try hard to pick up what the rest of the vets and I are trying to put down. They’re really fine tuning. And though you may not be able to see the advancements this team is making on a night especially like this one, in the long run, in the marathon, experiencing soul crushing losses like this one is going to make the kids much better off. It’s just fun to be a part of the game and pass it onto the next generation.” Final score: Stuarts Draft 12 - Bridgewater 6. By Mitchell Broughton
In what could be the most lopsided victory in RCBL history, the Bridgewater Reds demolished the Elkton Blue Sox, in seven innings, 28-2 at Stonewall Memorial Park. Bridgewater accumulated 26 hits on Saturday night, five of them being home runs, and one of those home runs was a grand slam courtesy of Mason Mitchell in part of an eight-run fifth inning. Mitchell finished the night with three hits and six RBIs. Designated hitter Michael Fyvie was 6-for-6 with a double, two home runs, and five RBIs. Jacob Grabeel and Kyle Eagle also hit their first home runs of 2020. Waring Garber started on the mound for the Reds. The right hander from Roanoke College lasted four innings. He stuck out two, walked two, and gave up four hits, but capitalized off Bridgewater’s offensive onslaught to grab his third win of the season — tied for most in the RCBL so far. Ironically, Elkton actually scored the first runs of the game in the bottom of the first off of a two-run double by Jack Bourdon. He finished the game with two hits and two RBIs. Second baseman Will Decker was 3-for-4 with a double as well for the Blue Sox, but that’s about all the offense that they could muster up against the Reds’ pitching. Bridgwater gets back to .500 on the season at 5-5. The Reds will host the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks at Buck Bowman Park. Elkton falls to 3-7 and will play again on Tuesday, hosting Broadway. FINAL (in 7): Bridgewater 28 Elkton 2. Winning pitcher: Waring Garber (3-1). Losing pitcher: RJ Payne (0-1). — Around the County League: Chase DeLauter hits his fourth home run of the season as Broadway moves back into a tie for first after defeating Stuarts Draft 8-3. Trent Abernathy, Josh Bell, and Anthony Piccolino put forth an excellent performance on the mound for the Bruins. New Market makes a huge jump in the standings and moves into a tie for first after winning both games of a doubleheader against Grottoes 6-5 and 11-3. Pearce Bucher had six hits and two doubles in both games. Clover Hill falls to Montezuma 5-3 at Buck Bowman Park. Tyler Bocock went the full nine innings for the Bucks but it wasn't enough to beat the Braves. Tavian Hall hit his second home run of the season for Montezuma. Follow the RCBL on Twitter for more news, scores, and updates — twitter.com/RCBLonline By Leyton Pullin
Broadway defeated Stuarts Draft 8-3 on Saturday night thanks to a dominate pitching performance from their staff. Trent Abernathy would get the start for the Bruins of Broadway and would get run support before he ever threw a pitch as Broadway would load the bases and Travis Reifsnider would score the opening run on a pitch that got away from D-Backs catcher Tyler Wilcher making the score 1-0. Josh Jones would hit a 2 RBI double to follow giving the Bruins a 3-0 lead with 0 outs in the top of the 1st. The Bruins would end up leaving the bases loaded in the top of the first failing to tag onto their lead. When Abernathy would finally get to the mound, he retired four straight batters until D-Backs slugger Cody Bartley belted a solo home run to right center putting Stuarts Draft on the board but still trailing 3-1. Abernathy would only go for 4 innings but strike out 10 with only the 1 earned run. In the top of the 4th inning Broadway would load the bases up again and then catcher John Judy would hit a sacrifice fly to left field to extend the lead to 4-1. Natty Solomon would follow him up as he would hit a 2RBI single scoring Chase Delauter and Josh Jones to extend the lead to 6-1. Josh Bell would come into the game for Broadway and retire his first 5 batters before Kent Rooklin would hit a ball to right center that would go in and out of the glove of Travis Reifsnider putting him aboard in the bottom of the 6th. Bell would then give up a single to Will Hass and then another to Cody Bartley that would drive in Rooklin cutting the lead to 6-2. The next batter would be Jack Pausic who would crush a ball that would hit off the outfield fence and drop for a RBI single cutting the lead to 6-3. In the top of the 8th Broadway would find some insurance runs in the way of the long ball as Chase Delauter and Natty Solomon both would go yard to extend the lead to 8-3. For Broadway they advance to 7-3 with another dominate pitching performance as Abernathy picks up the win and Josh Bell and Anthony Picolini would both put in solid relief efforts on the mound for the Bruins. At the plate the Bruins had a few stand outs as Chase Delauter would go 1 for 2 with 3 walks and a homerun(4) and Natty Solomon would go 3 for 4 with 2 singles and a homerun(2) with 3RBIs(7). Broadway will host Montezuma(4-7) on Sunday at JMU. For Stuarts Draft they drop to 1-7 on the year and Trever Mitchel would take the loss. Cody Bartley would go 2 for 4 with a homerun(3) and 3RBIs(10) as one of the high spots for the D-Backs. Stuarts Draft will Travel to Buck Bowman Park to take on the Bridgewater Reds(4-5) on Sunday. By Josiah Schulz
The 2020 campaign so far has not panned out the way the Montezuma Braves had hoped for to say the least. Nearing the halfway mark of the RCBL regular season, the Braves held a 3-7 losing record and were coming off a gut wrenching 19-4 loss to a formerly winless Stuarts Draft, handing the Diamondbacks their first win of this season. “Last night, after the game was over, we met as a team to discuss where we were mentally.” Head coach Chris Rush said. “We talked as coaches to them, but then we let the guys have time as a team to communicate on their own and pretty much told them to figure it out. When they came to the ballpark tonight they were ready to play.” And ready to play the Braves certainly were. Montezuma came out of the gates strong, beginning the second inning with a home run from third baseman Tavian Hall, sending teammate Jacob Haney across home plate in the process. “We really needed to start off faster than what we did last night, cause last night was ugly.” said Hall. “You play a team like Clover Hill, you cannot come out slow or else they’ll put you in the dirt for the rest of the game. We started strong, we held strong, and I feel like the more and more we unify as a team the stronger we become.” Hall was not the only player for the Braves to perform at a high level tonight. Outfielder Jeremy Wagner made a big time hit at the top of the 5th to send home fellow outfielders Gavin Rush and Owen Stuart to extend the lead to 4-1. “We know who we’re playing against, we know where we’re playing at, now it’s just time for us to put it in another gear and step it up.” said Rush. “These past couple games have been tough, but through it all we’ve learned that we need to bring fire every single inning and never let up, and that’s exactly what we did tonight.” The bottom of the 7th would host an exciting hot hitting streak for the Bucks, resulting in the bases being fully loaded and would keep the audience in attendance on their toes. This, however, would be quickly thwarted by a crucial catch by Rush to end the inning and effectively end the momentum Clover Hill had been building. “Last night, as tough as it was, was good for them. They needed to feel that loss, and realize what they gotta do to get out of it and they did it. The change in emotion and energy shown tonight compared to the past 10 games was like night and day.” said coach Rush. “Clover Hill is a very good team, and this win tonight was very important for us mentally moving forward.” The Braves look to improve their record to 5-7 tomorrow night vs. the Broadway Bruins at JMU Eagle field at 7:30 p.m. By Mitchell Broughton In a rematch of the opening-night thriller, the Clover Hill Bucks outlast a potential Broadway Bruins ninth inning comeback to win 8-7 last night at Eagle Field. On the mound for the Bucks, Eric Yankey was brilliant at his old stomping grounds. The left-hander struck out five and gave up just one hit in five complete innings. Overall the Clover Hill pitching core hindered the high-powered offensive Broadway onslaught, limiting the Bruins to just four hits through the entirety of Friday night’s contest. For a starting lineup without some key position players such as Bryce Suters and Drew Easter, Clover Hill’s game continued on as normal. Shortstop Ross French, catcher Braeson “Barbie” Fulton, and designated hitter Tyler Bocock lead the way for the Bucks on offense. Barbie Fulton started the game with back-to-back RBI singles, opening up the early lead for Clover Hill. French doubled twice, knocking in one run and scoring once himself. As for Bocock, he did what he does best. With bases loaded in the top of the sixth, a single to right field scored two more runs in part of what could’ve been a game-winning inning for the Bucks. He finished the game with three RBIs, increasing his season total to a League’s second best of 15. Broadway struggled early at the plate. Through six innings of play the Bruins’ lone hit came from center fielder Chase DeLauter, who homered over the right field wall in the bottom of the fourth, his third of the season — tied for most in the RCBL thus far. DeLauter later doubled in the seventh, scoring three runs in a momentum shifting inning for Broadway, bringing his season total to League-best 16 RBIs. Entering the game as the RCBL’s most efficient batter, Tyler Ault was held without a hit for just the second time this year. Down two heading into the bottom of the ninth, Broadway found themselves with bases loaded and no outs. DeLauter then grounds out to first base, which allows a run to score. Josh Jones would then be walked the next at bat, putting Broadway in an optimal position to walk the game off with bases loaded and just one out. But Clover Hill closer Tyler Conley regained composure and struck out the last two batters to save the game and put the Bucks in sole possession of first place after two full weeks of play. Clover Hill improves to 7-2 on the season and will host Montezuma tonight at Buck Bowman Park. Broadway falls to 6-3. The Bruins will travel south to the Diamond Club to take on Stuarts Draft. Both games, as always, are scheduled for 7:30 starts. FINAL: Clover Hill 8 Broadway 7. Winning pitcher: Eric Yankey (2-0). Losing Pitcher: Brett Whiteman (1-1). Saving pitcher: Tyler Conley. — Around the County League: Helping Clover Hill take sole possession of first place, New Market tops Grottoes in a 13-hit performance for the Shockers. Pearce Bucher went 3-for-4 with a triple and three RBIs for the Shockers. Austin Nicely doubled twice for the Cardinals, but his brother Dylan was skunked at the plate, going 0-for-4 on the night. Elkton shocks Bridgewater at Buck Bowman Park, the Blue Sox’s pitchers stunned the Reds in a 6-3 victory. Carrson Atkins hit a solo home run in the sixth and later doubled in the eighth for Elkton, breaking the late-game tie. Stuarts Draft surprisingly pulls off the most dominating performance of Friday night. The Diamondbacks mercy-ruled the Montezuma Braves in seven innings 19-4. Cody Bartley homered in part of a five hit, five RBI performance for Draft. Jack Pausic homered twice to join the tie for most in the league with three on the season. Pausic finished the game with four hits and four RBIs for the Diamondbacks in a revenge game over the Braves. Follow the RCBL on Twitter for more news, scores, and updates — twitter.com/RCBLonline |
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August 2023
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