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By Dean Barker After blowing a three run lead, the Clover Hill Bucks came storming back to mercy rule the Broadway Bruins 18-8 in eight innings on Tuesday, July 13 at the Clover Dome. The Bucks are the first team to mercy rule the Bruins since their RCBL championship last year. The game concluded a two game series with the Bruins, the Bucks winning 6-4 Monday in Broadway, and taking Tuesday’s game to sweep the series. The win moved Clover Hill to 9-6 and third place, and the Bucks are just two games out of first. The loss dropped Broadway to 8-7 and a tie for fifth place. Jackson Sherman got the win to move to 1-0, giving up three runs in the last three and a third innings pitched with three strikeouts. He relieved Sam Imeson, who gave up five runs in four and two thirds innings. Cole Holsinger took the loss for the Bruins to fall to 0-2, giving up nine runs in three innings of work. He relieved Jacob Petersheim and Jared Rice, who gave up four and five runs, respectively. The Bucks scored first in the bottom of the second with an RBI double from Cole Jenkins. The Bruins would respond in the third with an RBI single from Trent Abernathy to tie the game at one, but Cody Swisher walked with the bases loaded in the bottom half to make the score 2-1. John Siciliano reached first on an error, and two runs came home to make the score 4-1 Clover Hill. A Bruins run would come home in the fourth with an infield grounder from Trent Thomas, which was a failed fielder’s choice at second. With the bases loaded, Justin Lohr was hit to make it 4-3, and a sacrifice fly from Abernathy tied the game at four. Jett Shue would rip an RBI single in the top of the fifth to take the 5-4 lead, which would close the books on Imeson. Josh Eberly said the Bucks didn’t give up when they blew their early lead, simply saying “It’s baseball, things happen.” The Bucks loaded the bases with one out in the fifth. Jacob Grabeel’s walk would tie the score at 5, and Alex Knicely would drive in two more with an RBI double to center, which would lead to Rice being pulled. Eberly would smoke a three run bomb to put the game out of reach at 10-5. In the bottom of the sixth, Ross French would double to bring in another run, an error from Holsigner would score one more, and a two run double from Eberly made the score 14-5. Holsinger would try to help his own cause with a three run homer to left in the top of the eighth to make the score 14-8. However, it would prove to be futile in the bottom half, when two RBIs from Knicely, one from Eberly, and one from Kevin Kirk pushed the Bucks ahead for the “walkoff” mercy rule. The Bucks had just one error and left seven runners aboard. The Bruins had two errors and left ten runners on. Eberly was a triple short of the cycle, going 4-4 with six RBIs and two runs scored. Knicely was 3-4 with four RBIs and two runs scored. Jenkins, Grabeel, French, Swisher and Kirk all had one RBI. The Bucks had 19 hits on the evening. Holsinger went 1-4 with three RBIs and a run scored. Abernathy went 2-3 with two RBIs. Shue and Lohr each had one RBI. The Bruins had a total of ten hits. Eberly says there was nothing special about his approach that led to his huge evening, only “Just taking it, you know, a day at a time, and just simple approach, and it just happened to be a good night.” The Bucks will have two nights off before they travel to Bridgewater to take on the rival Reds on Friday, July 16 at 7:30 pm. The Bruins will travel to New Market on Thursday, July 15 at 7:30 pm for a rematch of last year’s RCBL championship finals with the Shockers.
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By Leyton Pullin
On Tuesday the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks defeated the Elkton Blue Sox by a score of 14-4 in 7 innings. The first inning and a half went scoreless before the Diamondbacks blew the game open in the bottom of the 2nd. Will Hass was retired via the ground out to start the inning before Bob Funk was hit by a pitch the next at bat. Tyler Wilcher followed up by doubling off of the right field wall to put runners on the corners with only one out. Grayson Bush game to the plate next and delivered with a 2 RBI double to score Funk and Wilcher. Stuarts Draft scored 2 more runs later in the inning as Terrell Thompson stayed hot and hit a 2 RBI single to score Bush and Calen Owens who reached on an infield single. Stuarts Draft took a 4-0 lead to the third. The D-Backs added 4 more runs off the Elkton starter Will Craig but this tie all 4 were unearned as his defense let him down multiple times in the inning. Will Hass was the first hitter to reach on a single in the inning followed by a ground ball by Funk that was mishandled by the third base man Steve Michael to allow everyone to reach safely. Wilcher came up next and slapped another base knock off the wall in right allowing for Funk to try and score. The relay for the Blue Sox from Chase Pullin to Seth Berry to Tristan Gordon at the plate was in time but Gordon did not come up with the ball as it went in and out of his glove to the back stop allowing Hass to score as well. Bush did his job at the plate next with a sacrifice fly that should have been the third out of the inning if it wasn’t for the error at third earlier in the inning. Calen Owens came up next and the lefty from West Virginia Tech crushed a ball over the short porch in right field for a 2-Run home run to stretch the D-Backs lead to 8-0 after 3 innings of play. Elkton put a run on the board as Michael tried to make up for his error the previous inning as he singled allowing Will Craig to score as he came into the game as a sub for the injured Elliot Erkel. This cut into the Stuarts Draft lead making it an 8-1 game in the top of the 4th. Stuarts Draft added another run in the bottom of the 4th as Jack Pausic stayed hot at the plate with a ground rule double and then was driven in on a Bob Funk double down the third base line to make it 9-1. The D-Backs offense continued in the bottom of the 5th putting up 3 more runs to stretch the lead out to 12-1. Lucas Adam delivered a RBI single and Will Hass hit a 2 RBI single to stretch the lead. Elkton then decided to scratch across another run in the 6th as Berry led off the inning with a single. He was later driven in to score on a Michael ground out to cut it to a 12-2 game. Stuarts Draft stretched the lead with 2 more runs in the bottom of the 6th to push the game into run rule territory as Bush and Owens scored to make it 14-2. Elkton tried to keep the game alive knowing they were facing the run rule in the top of the 7th. The Blue Sox drew two straight walks to start the inning. Tillman Butler the grounded out to the pitcher for the first out allowing the base runners to advance to second and third with one out. The next at bat a pitch got away from the catcher which allowed Cam Shields to score from third. The Blue Sox added another run on a Gordon RBI single that scored Jack Marshall to make it 14-4 which would be the final as the next two hitters were retired. For Elkton they drop to 2-14 on the year with only five games remaining on the schedule. The Blue Sox committed 3 errors on the night which proved to be lethal along with the Stuarts Draft bats. Will Craig takes the loss allowing 9 hits, 4 earned runs and striking out a batter in 3 innings. The Blue Sox will host Montezuma (9-5) on Thursday July 15 at 7:30PM. For Stuarts Draft they move to 9-7 on the year putting them in a tie with Grottoes for No. 4 in the RCBL standings. For the D-Backs it was a pitch by committee night as Les Sandridge and company employed 5 different arms on the night. “The biggest thing tonight was to try and get guys on the mound that hadn’t been on for a while,” said Sandridge. The entire D-backs staff only allowed 4 runs, 7 hits and struck out 6 on the way to victory. Stuarts Draft will be back in action as they travel to Broadway (8-7) on Saturday July 17 at 7:30 in a matchup that features two teams right in the thick of the RCBL race for the pennant. By Dean Barker
Former Montezuma Braves Adam Hackenberg and Will Wagner were selected in the 18th round of the 2021 MLB Draft on Tuesday, July 13. Wagner was drafted by the Houston Astros with the 538th pick. Hackenberg was drafted by the Chicago White Sox with the 545th pick. Braves head coach Chris Rush was very happy to hear the news about two of his former players. “I am very excited for these two guys,” Rush said. “They have worked hard over the years to better their game and to separate themselves from others and to make themselves some of the best in their positions and sport.” Hackenberg played with the Braves in 2020 and made the All-RCBL team as catcher. He hit .258 for the Clemson University Tigers with 17 RBIs as a junior this year. While he was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 2018, Hackenberg decided to go to Clemson instead. Wagner was an infielder for the Braves in 2017 and 2020, as well as with the Liberty University Flames. After hitting .200 in 2017 for Montezuma, Wagner returned in 2020 to hit .350 with six homers. Wagner made the ASUN All-Conference First Team in 2019, and made the pre-season team in 2020. Rush said that while these players are gone, they are still impacting the 2021 Braves ball club. “Many of our returning players this year are trying to model the way these two guys played the game, Rush said. “Will and Adam were not just good athletes, but they were good young men with great attitudes. Our players this year see how Will and Adam’s hard work has paid off and it challenges them to better themselves every time they take the field.” He also is confident that these two players will be able to do well in professional baseball. “Both these guys have dreamed of this opportunity for a long time and I feel confident they will do everything within their power to excel at the next level,” Rush said. By Leyton Pullin
The Grottoes Cardinals picked up an 11-7 victory over the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks thanks to some timely hits and great defensive plays. Stuarts Draft squandered an opportunity in the bottom of the 1st as Zach Roberts led off with a hit and then was put out on a fielder’s choice that allowed Terrell Thompson to reach. Thompson the stole second and third base straight up before being stranded. Stuarts Draft got the scoring started in the 2nd inning as Jack Pausic crushed a solo home run to left and make it 1-0 D-Backs. Stuarts Draft added another run as Thompson singled and then stole second again. The next batter Will Hass hit a ground ball to third base that Jacob Dansey fielded and then airmailed to first that allowed Thompson to round third base and come home to score and put the D-Backs on top 2-0 in the 3rd. Later in the inning Bob Funk crushed a ball to deep left center field and it looked to have the distance required but Kevin Saylor made a leaping catch at the wall for the robbery and the final out of the inning. The Cardinals bounced back the very next half inning as they pushed 4 runs across in the top of the 4th. Keegan Wollford led the inning off with a double to right field. Later in the inning Tucker Garrison hit a ground ball to second that went off of Roberts and into the outfield. That allowed Woolford to score. The next at bat Jacob Dansey fell into a 2-2 count but put a charge into a ball to left center field for a 2-run line drive home run. Kevin Saylor then reached on a dropped third strike as the catcher Jack Pausic airmailed the throw into right field. The Next at bat David Wood hit a sacrifice fly to score Saylor and cap off the inning 4-2 Grottoes. Grottoes added another run in the top of the 5th inning as Jacob Merica reached on an error by Roberts at second and then scored also on an error later in the inning as Dylan Nicely hit a ball to third base that was miss handled to put Grottoes on top 5-2. Stuarts Draft struck back in the bottom half of the 5th as Terrell Thompson walked and then Will Hass singled to left field but the ball got away from Merica in left allowing Thompson to score and Hass to get to second base safely. The D-backs had cut the lead to 5-3. Grottoes extended their lead with solo home runs in the 6th and 7th. The two left-handed power threats for the Cardinals Wood and Woolford each put one out of the park to stretch the lead to 7-3. Grottoes opened the game up in the 8th as they put 4 more runs across to push the lead out to 11-4. The inning was capped off by a Dylan Nicely 3 RBI double with the bases loaded. Ty Lam came in for the Cardinals in the 6th in relief for Adam Dofflemeyer who went 5 innings. Lam tossed 3.1 scoreless before he began to struggle in the top of the 9th. Stuarts Draft Put Hass aboard with a lead off single he was followed by another Pausic homer this time a 2-run missile to left to make it 11-5. Bob Funk drew a walk the next at bat before Lucas Adam delivered a RBI single that would be the final blow Lam would take on the night. Tim Nicely called upon Tyler Pullin to come in and finish the game for the Cardinals with one down. The first hitter the right hander from Point Park University faced was Tyler Wilcher who singled to put runners at the corners. Trevor Mitchell came in to pinch hit in the nine spot in the order following Wilcher. Mitchel grounded out to the second baseman Moyer for the second out but a run did score to make it 11-7 with now two outs in the bottom of the 9th. The switch hitter Roberts came to the plate next looking to keep the rally alive. The first pitch of the at bat Roberts drilled a pitch down the right field line but the ball went well foul to the dismay of some of the D-Back faithful. The next pitch Roberts drilled again this time to center field. Saylor retreated to the fence and made another nice defensive play to seal the victory for Grottoes. For Stuarts Draft they fall to 8-7 on the season. William Mullins takes the loss for the D-Backs after going 5.0 innings, giving up 5 hits, 5 runs, 2 of those earned and striking out 4. Jack Pausic and Terrell Thompson both had outstanding nights at the plate. Pausic went 2 for 5 and those two hits were home runs. Pausic also added 4 RBIs. Thompson went 1 for 4 at the plate but his success was on the base paths as he had 3 stolen bases and 2 runs scored. The D-Backs get back in action with little turn around as Elkton (2-13) comes to the Diamond Club for a 7:30PM date on Tuesday July 13. The Grottoes Cardinals pick up the victory and move to 9-7 on the year. Adam Dofflemeyer (2-1) gets the win for the Cardinals. The south paw went 5.0, gave up 6 hits, 1 earned run and struck out 4. Kevin Saylor made his presence felt as the former Bridgewater College Basketball star made some spectatular catches including a catch where he ran through the fence out in center field and somehow managed to hang on to the ball. “Took us a while to convince [Saylor] to come back and play baseball. We’ve been working on him for two years,” said Grottoes manager Tim Nicely. Saylor had not been the Cardinals everyday center fielder but was called upon as Boogie Saunders is sidelined with an injury. Nicley also credited him with the spark the offense needed after his spectacular home run robbery in the 3rd inning. Grottoes will be back in action after a few days off as the will host Montezuma (9-5) on Friday July 16 in their final home game of the regular season. By Olivia Carson
Last night New Market secured the regular season series against the Bridgewater Reds with an 11 - 0 sweep. New Market also picked up their fifth straight win keeping themselves at 1st place with an 11 - 4 record while Bridgewater remains in 7th (4 - 11). The Reds had a promising start to the game last night as Derek Shifflett led with a double, followed by a single from Brett Tharp. However, the Shockers defense responded quickly by turning a double play and continuing to end the 1st inning with no runs on the board. The Shockers got their offense going in the 2nd as George Auel singled. Matt House followed with a single that moved Auel to third base. With a runner in scoring position, Kaden Spaid stepped up to bat and reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Auel. Shockers pitcher Kirk Messick was able to hold the Reds in the bottom half of the inning and picked up 2 strikeouts in the half. New Market kept things moving with a leadoff single in the 3rd by Henry Delavergne. After advancing to second on a fielder’s choice, Delavergne continued his trip around the bases, stealing 3rd and then scoring on a sacrifice fly by Frankie Ritter. After Auel’s second hit of the game and a drawn walk by Kaden Spaid, the Reds Pitcher, Shifflett was able to pitch his way out of the 4th inning with no damage. However, after the strong defensive stance by the Reds, their offense still remained quiet throughout the half. The 5th inning is where the Shockers dominated the game, starting with a walk from Delavergne and Luke Keister reached 1st base on a fielder’s choice to follow. The next few batters in the lineup, Ritter and Pearce Bucher, stepped up to put runners in scoring positions as they both singled to load the bases for Luke Estep. With a 0 - 1 count, Estep took Shifflett deep with a grand slam to extend the lead to 6 - 0. Keeping the spark going, the Shockers scrapped another run before ending the half on a single by Spaid, scoring Auel. Once again, the Reds could not string anything together to respond to New Market’s long inning. The 6th inning hit off with the Shockers drawing 3 back-to-back walks by Keister, Ritter and Bucher. With bases loaded, Auel came through again with a sacrifice fly to score Keister. In the bottom of the inning, the Reds began to threaten as they collected a few hits. Jonathan Sexton began with a single and Jerrod Meadows walked. Shifflett was able to get a hit to move Sexton to third but Meadows was thrown out at second by the Shockers right-fielder. Tharp responded with a walk, loading the bases; however, Bridgewater still could not find a way to manufacture runs. The Shockers comfortable lead was extended yet again in the 7th beginning with a Delavergne single. Keister then stepped up and delivered with a double, scoring Delavergne. Later, with 2 runners on, Bucher confidently scored both on a single, adding to their lead of 11 - 0. Bridgewater could not respond to the deficit and had their 5th three-up-three-down inning of the game. Winning pitcher, Messick, finished the game with 5 strikeouts, 2 walks and only gave up 4 hits through 7 innings. When asked what has been a key to the Shockers success so far, Messick; who is also New Markets assistant coach, could not pinpoint one reason. “I don’t think one thing is standing out more than anything really. I think our pitching has been on, our hitting has been on and our defense...has actually been really good,” says Messick. “If there’s one thing we need to work on it’s our baserunning. We’ve had games where our base running costs us runs in close games. Finishing out the season and heading into playoffs, all runs are crucial so we need to fix those mistakes.” The impressive 12 hit game from New Market was led by Auel (3), Bucher (2) and Delavergne (2). The key point in the game was Luke Estep’s grand slam in the 5th. The Shockers who are sitting at the top of the rankings in the RCBL, are currently on a 6-game win streak and will play the Broadway Bruins on Thursday July 15. Bridgewater’s 4 hit game came from Shifflett (2), Sexton and Tharp. The Reds will play again on Friday July 16 against the Clover Hill Bucks at home again. By Dean Barker and Leyton Pullin The East opened the scoring in the first inning as Zach Roberts opened the game with a lead off single and was driven in two batters later as the RCBL home run leader Keegan Woolford crushed a 2-run homerun to put the East on top 2-0. The East added another run in the second inning as Tucker Garrison crushed a solo homerun to center field to extend the East lead to 3-0. The West scored all of their runs in the bottom of the third inning putting up 8 runs all earned against Elkton’s Will Craig. Trent Abernathy got the scoring started with a 3-run homerun. Bryce Suters and Jonathan Sexton both added a RBI single each. Trevor Thomas walked with the bases loaded to drive in another run before an Isiah Blanks RBI sacrifice fly stretched the lead out to 8-3. The East slowly began to cut into the lead beginning in the fifth inning as Garrison would score on an error by the catcher Brett Tharp to make it 8-4. The East would strike again in the sixth with a Jose Rocha RBI single to score Tristan Gordon. Rocha would later score in the inning as Garrison hit a well struck fly ball to left that Alex Knicely was unable to secure cleanly. The lead was cut to 8-6 at that point. Again, the East All Stars took a chunk out of the deficit in the eight as Rocha singled and scored on an error to make it a 1 run game, 8-7. The East finally got their chance to take the lead in the 9th and they did that and more against Eric Yankey who came in to attempt the save for the West. Calvin Pastel walked to start the inning and was driven in by his New Market teammate Josh Tayman to tie the game. Yankey proceeded to walk the bases loaded and then walked Rocha to force across the go-ahead run for the East. The East added one more on a Garrison RBI groundout to stretch the lead out to 10-8. Clayton Michael came in for the save and retired the West in order to finish the game for the East. Grottoes Cardinal Tucker Garrison was named the RCBL All Star Game MVP as the Bridgewater alum went 1-3 at the plate with 2 RBI, 2 runs scored and got the win on the hill for the East. New Market Shockers The Shockers enter the All Star break at the top of the league standings at 10-4 and winners of five straight games. Pearce Bucher sits second in the RCBL in average at .444 averaging 4 hits per every 9 at bats. “My approach at the plate is just to stay within myself, not try to do too much and put faith in the guys behind me,” said Bucher. The key to New Market’s success so far this season has to be their chemistry which Bucher later alluded to as the majority of the team is from Shenandoah University. “From the fall to the spring we have the same system when we play at Shenandoah and we try to use that here,” said Henry Delavergne. The Shockers get back to it on Tuesday July 13 as they travel to Ray Heatwole Field for a 7:30PM date with the Reds (4-10). Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks The Diamondbacks come to the break with a record of 8-6 and are in fourth in the league standings. They sit 2 games back of first place New Market. Zach Roberts sits atop the league in average hitting .459 on the year. “It’s been see ball, hit ball really,” said Roberts. “We’ve go-t a good offense, one of the better ones in the league. As long as the pitching keeps the ball in the yard and the offense keeps going, we’re in a good spot.” The D-Backs will be back in action on Monday as they host nearby rival Grottoes (8-7) at the Diamond Club at 7:30PM. Grottoes Cardinals The Grottoes Cardinals maintain their reputation as one of the most entertaining teams in the league sitting at 8-7, sixth in the standings but 2.5 games out of first place. The bats have been the key for the Cardinals thus far this year with Dylan Nicely leading the league in RBI(22) and Keegan Woolford leading the league in home runs(6). Nicely and Woolford both said they go to the plate and “… see ball hit ball.” Nicely also talked about his teammates, “I’ve got some good guys ahead of me with Boogie [Saunders] and Clayton [Michael] that make my job pretty easy.” Grottoes will travel to the Diamond Club to play the D-Backs on Monday July 12 at 7:30 PM. Elkton Blue Sox The Elkton Blue Sox sit at the bottom of the RCBL standings at 2-12 on the year. Elkton will look to turn their season around as they get back in action Monday July 12 as they travel to Montezuma at 7:30PM. Bridgewater Reds The Bridgewater Reds are 4-10, in seventh place in the RCBL, and six games out of first. However, the Reds have been clicking lately, winning three of their last five games of the first half. They will return to action against New Market at home on Tuesday, July 13 at 7:30 pm. Derek Shifflet thinks the Reds will continue to trend upward in the second half. “Just keep having fun, keep playing baseball like we know, keep the errors down, and just keep having a good time,” Shifflet said. Shifflet is leading the league with 50 strikeouts, and struck out five in the All-Star game, while also reaching first on an error. Clover Hill Bucks The Clover Hill Bucks are 7-6, fifth place in the RCBL, and 2.5 games out of first. The Bucks have struggled as of late, losing three of their last four. Bucks pitching coach Justin Getz thinks the team will improve as the season goes on. “We’ve got some pieces missing in the puzzle right now. Things will fall in together as they start playing hot baseball here late in the season, and start rolling into the playoffs,” Getz said. The Bucks will open the second half at the Broadway Bruins on Monday, July 12 at 7:30 pm. Montezuma Braves The Montezuma Braves sit tied with the Broadway Bruins for second at 8-5, 1.5 games out of first place. The Braves were in first place going into the last week, but lost three of their last four to fall into second. They did, however, win the season series against second-place Broadway, 2-1. Keegan Oliver thinks Montezuma will have to produce from the mound in order to have a good second half. “Keep going out, and just think three up, three down every inning,” Oliver said. Oliver gave up three runs in the All-Star Game. Broadway Bruins The Broadway Bruins are tied with the Montezuma Braves for second place at 8-5, a game and a half out of first. After starting the season 3-0, the Bruins went 5-5 until the break. Bruins outfielder Trent Abernathy hit a three run homer for the West. While last year’s team won the RCBL title, the current Bruins only have five returning players from that club. However, head coach Chip Abernathy likes what he has seen from his young team. “They’re all young, so you can throw them in there, and they don’t really know yet that ‘Hey, I’m not supposed to produce here,’” Abernathy said. The Bruins return to action Monday, July 12 at 7:30 pm at home against the Bucks. By Dean Barker The New Market Shockers utilized a late offensive spurt to push past the Clover Hill Bucks 3-2 on Friday, July 9 at Rebel Field. With the win, the Shockers take their fifth in a row to finish the first half at 10-4 in first place, while Clover Hill closes out at 7-6 in fifth place. Joel Smith pitched a complete game to pick up the win for New Market to improve to 2-0. Smith gave up two runs on just five hits, and struck out two. Sam Imeson took the loss for the Bucks, giving up two runs on six hits in two innings to fall to 0-2. Jacob Grabeel gave up just one run on four hits with four strikeouts in six innings to get the no-decision. The Bucks got on the board first in the top of the second inning with an RBI double to left field, bringing in Ross French. The Shockers left nine runners on base, compared to three from the Bucks. Each team had one error, but neither error accounted for any runs. After two quick outs in the bottom of the fifth, Matt House would rip a single to left, and Ty Bennett would walk. Both runners would steal second, and Henry Delavergne would draw a 3-0 count, but he would pop out to the pitcher to end the inning. With one out in the top of the sixth, Kevin Navedo hit a single to center field for the Bucks. However, Drew Easter would ground into a 5-4-3 to end the inning. Following two more quick outs in the bottom half, Pearce Bucher would double, and then come home on an RBI single to right from Josh Tayman. After a four-pitch, 1-2-3 top of the seventh, Imeson would come on to relieve Grabeel. Imeson would get two quick outs, but gave up a single to Bennett and an infield single to Delavergne, and Luke Keister would drive in Bennett with an RBI single to center, putting New Marker up 2-1. For the fourth time of the game, Smith got Clover Hill to go 1-2-3 in the eighth. Bucher led off the eighth with a double to right field, and would reach third on an error from the catcher. Tayman and Yogi Hartigan would go down, but George Auel would reach on an RBI single to third to make it 3-1. House would single, but Bennett could not bring him or Auel in. With one out in the ninth, Navedo ripped a triple to center field, and would score on a sacrifice fly from Drew Easter to make it 3-2. That would be all, however, as Cody Swisher would ground out to second to end the game. Navedo led the Bucks in defeat, going 3-4 with a run scored. Eberly went 2-3 with one RBI. Easter was 0-3 with one RBI, and Ross French was 0-3 with a run scored. Bucher went 2-3 with two runs scored. Keister was 2-4 with an RBI. Tayman was 1-3 with an RBI. Auel was 1-4 with an RBI. Bennett went 1-3 with a run scored. House went 2-4. Shockers head coach Nolan Potts was frustrated with the lack of offensive production, but was still proud of his team’s effort. “(I’m) proud of the effort. Didn’t start off well, frustrating for me the first five or six innings, but we battled,” Potts said. “We knew it was a game we needed to have, and Joel gave us an excellent performance on the mound.” The Shockers left nine runners on base, compared to three from the Bucks. Each team had one error, but neither error accounted for any runs. Potts is hopeful that the Shockers could continue their winning ways in the second half and into the playoffs. When asked how they might do this, he said “Just playing consistent. I think the defense has been pretty good. The base running needs to get better, but if you get good pitching performances and the bats start swinging, then I think we’ll be okay.” The Shockers will have three days off before they begin the second half at the Bridgewater Reds on Tuesday, July 13 at 7:30 pm. The Bucks will return to action on Monday, July 12 at 7:30 pm when they travel to Broadway to take on the Bruins. By Olivia Carson
After losing to Broadway the night before, the Montezuma Braves returned last night with a fight to secure the regular season series against the Bruins. This game was big for both teams as Broadway lost their opportunity to tie with New Market for first place and now with an 8 - 5 record, Montezuma is tied with the Bruins for second. Every time these two teams have played each other this season it has been a closely scoring and competitive game. Similar to their first matchup, last night the Braves overcame the Bruins by just one run (4 - 3). Team manager for the Braves, Chris Rush, is proud of his team for the way they played against such a competitive team. “They [Broadway] are a good quality team and we knew coming into tonight that it was going to be tough. So, I was proud of my guys, the way they played tonight, defensively, good pitching and they just played through everything,” says Rush. Montezuma applied pressure early in the game with a line drive single to left field from Hunter Clever that advanced Michael Robertson home at the top of the 1st inning. Neither team allowed another run for the next 3 innings as Issac VanMeter pitched for Broadway until the middle of the fifth inning, collecting 4 strikeouts, giving up 3 runs and allowing 1 walk. Lance Tate took home the win for the Braves, striking out 6 in the first 6 innings and giving up only 2 runs. TR Williams retired Tate at the bottom of the 7th to strikeout 1 and not allow any runs, hits or walks in just the 1 inning. Wesley Payne pitched the last 2 innings for the Braves giving up one run and striking out 3. As the Braves are now tied for second in the league, Tate has confidence that his team has what it takes to win it all. “We got a lot of good guys...they’re ready to play ball and once everything clicks together like it is right now, I think we’re going to be dangerous,” says Tate. The Braves were the first to score again in the 5th inning starting with two back-to-back singles from Owen Marshall and Robertson. Marshall got sent home during a putout and Robertson scored once again off a single from Clever. Later in the inning, the Bruins made a pitching substitution as Dalton Benson stepped up to the mound to escape a bases loaded situation, leaving 3 on base for Montezuma entering the bottom of the fifth with a 3 - 0 advantage. The Bruins started adding runs to the board at the bottom of the fifth as Tate allowed 3 walks and Bryce Turner scored off a sacrifice fly to the left fielder with bases loaded. Trent Abernathy then singled to score Jacob Petersheim who was subbing in for Kevin Rush as a pinch runner. Broadway still remained at a disadvantage moving into the 6th inning down by 1 run (3 - 2). Montezuma extended their lead by one in the top of the 6th after Trevor Thomas subbed in to pitch for Broadway and Wyatt Campbell scored off a ground rule double from Blanks. Thomas finished the inning striking out Clever for out number 3 and neglected to allow another run from the Braves in the rest of the matchup. Broadway collected the final run of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning as Abernathy scored off a sacrifice fly to right field after Payne stepped in as a save pitcher for Montezuma. The Bruins still trailed by one run and neither team got a hit in the last inning, ending the matchup with a 4 - 3 win for the Braves. Montezuma will take on the Elkton Blue Sox on Monday July 12 after the All-Star Break this weekend while the Bruins will return back to home on the 12th to play Clover Hill. By Dean Barker The Grottoes Cardinals closed out the first half with a 13-7 win at the Elkton Blue Sox on Thursday, July 8. Grottoes sits in sixth place at 8-7, two games back of the first-place New Market Shockers. Elkton is in eighth/last place at 2-12, 7.5 games out of first. Cardinals head coach Tim Nicely is glad his team has a winning record at the break, but hopes they will be able to do more in the second half. “To… be above .500, you know, we’re okay with that, but we’re gonna have to be more consistent in the second half from game to game if we want to be in a better position at the end of the year,” Nicely said. Tucker Garrison picked up the win to move to 3-2, giving up seven runs (five earned) in seven innings and striking out six. Garrison also led the Cardinals offensively, going 4-5 at the plate with five RBIs and two runs scored, one off a home run. Clayton Michael pitched the last two innings, giving up one run and striking out three. Offensively, Michael went 1-6 with an RBI and a run scored. Seth Berry took the loss for the Blue Sox to move to 0-2, giving up ten runs (eight earned) on 13 hits in eight innings. At the plate, Berry was 1-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Will Craig gave up three earned runs on four hits in the ninth inning. The Cardinals wasted no time getting started on offense. After Boogie Saunders was hit to lead off the first, Dylan Nicely would drive him in with an RBI double to left field. Garrison would hit a ground rule double to center field to plate Nicely, and Jacob Dansey brought him in with a double to left to make it 3-0 Grottoes. With two aboard in the bottom of the first with no outs, a double play ball from JJ Loker looked like the break the Cardinals needed. Tristan Gordon, however, would come up to drive in Mack Rexrode and make the score 3-1. David Wood hit a solo home run in the second, Saunders ripped an RBI single in the third, and Garrison hit an RBI double in the fourth to make the score 6-1 Cardinals. Jacob Cude led off the bottom of the fifth with a home run to center field to cut the Grottoes lead to 6-2. Nicely would reach first with a single in the top of the sixth, and Garrison would bring him home with a single off the right field wall. In the bottom half, Gordon would reach with a single, and Berry’s triple brought him home. Gauge Jenkins would ground out to shortstop to plate another run for the Sox. After Cude and Jack Bourdon walked with two outs, a fly ball to center from Rexrode was just out of Jacob Merica’s reach, and both Cude and Rexrode would score. Coach Nicely would contest that Rexrode was out at the plate, but an umpire conference decided not to change the call, leaving the score 7-6 Cardinals. Saunders drove in Wood with a double in the seventh, but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. Garrison ripped a two out, two run homer to left center in the top of the eighth to stretch the lead to 10-6. Alex Mann would bring in Jenkins with an RBI groundout in the bottom half to cut the lead to 10-7. With two runners in scoring position and one out, pinch hitter Andrew Baugher drove in one with an RBI single to left field, and Michael would follow up with another RBI single to left. Nicely’s sacrifice fly to left would plate Baugher to make it 13-7. Michael would strike out two and retire the side in the bottom of the ninth. The Cardinals had three errors, leading to two unearned runs, and left nine runners on base. The Blue Sox had four errors, which resulted in two earned runs, and left six runners on base. For Grottoes, Nicely was 2-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored. Saunders went 2-4 with two RBIs and one run scored. Dansey was 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored. Wood went 1-2 with one RBI and two runs scored. Baugher was 1-1 with one RBI and one run scored. The Cardinals had a total of nine hits. Rexrode led the Blue Sox in defeat, going 3-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. Cude was 1-3 with an RBI and two runs scored. Jenkins went 1-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Gordon was 1-5 with an RBI and a run scored. Mann was 0-1 with an RBI. Elkton had nine hits on the evening. Despite giving up seven runs, Coach Nicely was happy that his team was able to counter each punch from Elkton. “I was just glad that… you know, every time they scored, we were able to (for the most part) bounce back, put a couple runs on the board, and keep the lead manageable,” Nicely said. The Cardinals will return to action on Monday, July 12 when they travel to Stuarts Draft to take on the Diamondbacks at 7:30 pm. The Blue Sox will begin the second half on the road at the Montezuma Braves on Monday, July 12 at 7:30 pm. By Olivia Carson
Clover Hill took the win last night in a very high scoring matchup against the Elkton Blue Sox. The last time these two teams competed against each other, Elkton came out with a 12 - 10 advantage over the Bucks. This time however, Clover Hill traveled to stonewall memorial park with vengeance and defeated the Blue Sox 26 - 18. Both teams completed a total of five pitching changes during the night which mostly occurred in the 6th inning, along with most of the scoring. Winning pitcher and starter for the Bucks was Eric Yankey who pitched 4 innings with 3 strikeouts, allowed 4 walks and 7 out of 18 of Elkton’s runs. Kevin Kirk was the first to score for the Bucks at the top of the 1st inning when Bryce Suters walked to first base with bases loaded. A single from John Siciliano and Hayden Baldwin adds three more runs to the board, ending the first inning at 4 - 0. Kevin Navedo starts off the second inning hitting a home run with no one on base. Suters followed with another home run to add 4 more runs for Clover Hill. Elkton started scoring in the bottom of the second with two singles, one from Seth Berry (1 RBI) and another from Gauge Jenkins (2 RBI) entering the 3rd inning falling 8 - 3. Elkton made their first pitching substitution at the top of the 3rd, changing Jack Bourdon for Wyatt Estep who only allowed the Bucks to score one run in the 3rd off of a sacrifice fly. The Blue sox also only added one run in the 3rd inning from Tristan Gordon who scored off a dropped catch. Clover Hill did not get a chance to score in the 4th inning but allowed for Elkton to gain 3 runs off of a JJ Loker homerun with two runners on base, finishing up the inning still falling to the Bucks 9 - 7. The Second Elkton pitching change occurred in the middle of the top of the 5th inning right before back-to-back home runs from Clover Hill. Jenkins subbed in as pitcher for Elkton as Cody Swisher hit one out of the park with bases loaded and Suters followed directly after to hit a home run with no one on base. The Bucks improved their lead 14 - 7 going into the 6th inning where they were able to add 10 more runs. Sam Imeson got subbed in to pitch for Clover Hill in the bottom of the 5th and did not allow Elkton to add any runs. Before the 6th inning started, Elkton subbed in Chase Pullin to pitch. Pullin allowed three walks leaving the bases loaded for his sub, Gordon who let Ross French walk for the Bucks, scoring Kirk. Two more runners scored off a line drive from Suters to left field and another two off a single from Josh Eberly. Jacob Grabeel walked with bases loaded and another RBI single from Jenkins left the bases loaded for Taylor Fitzgerald who then doubled and scored three more runners. Fitzgerald reached home plate later in the inning off of a single from Drew Easter after one last Elkton pitching change, subbing in their catcher, Robert Carbello. Colby Knicely got subbed in to pitch for the Bucks at the bottom of the 6th to allow 2 walks and a 2 RBI single by Gordon that caused another pitching change to Shannon Knicely. Jacob Cude scored off a dropped catch and Gordon scored later once Jeremy Kwolek was walked with bases loaded. Jacob Leveall got hit by a pitch with bases loaded and Koice Quintanilla advanced to 1st because of an error at second base, letting two more runners score. Clover Hill made their last pitching change for the inning, subbing in Tucker Hrasky who allowed an RBI single from Mack Rexrode leaving the bases loaded once again. Jose Rocha and Cude both walked to first, each walking a runner to home plate to gain Elkton’s 9th and final run of the inning. Both teams managed to add two more runs each in the seventh inning starting with a home run from Grabeel scoring himself and one other runner on base. Elkton attempted to catch up after the Bucks sub in Grabeel to pitch at the bottom of the 7th and Carbello scored off Leveall’s putout. Another scored run by Cam Shields off a sac fly to center field puts the Blue Sox down 26 -18, ending the game after the 7th inning. Elkton falls to a 2 - 11 record while Clover hill continues at 7 - 5 and will play the New Market Shockers at Rebel Field on July 9. The Blue Sox will play another home game tonight at Stonewall Memorial Park against the Grottoes Cardinals at 7:30pm. |
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