By Nolan Potts
Veteran left-hander Tyler Conley threw a complete game and got some run support from his offense as third-seeded Clover Hill took down sixth-seeded Montezuma 9-2 in game three of their quarterfinal series.

The Bucks await the winner of the Massanutten-Stuarts Draft series in the next round.

Conley allowed eight hits, just two runs, and struck out eight while throwing 132 pitches.

Luke Tomajcayk went 3-4 with three RBIs for the Bucks, while Tyler Bocock went 2-4 with two runs scored. Alex Knicely had two RBI in the nine-hole, while John Siciliano, Lucas Bauer, and Kevin Kirk all had one RBI.

The Bucks scored one run in the third, three in the fourth, one in the fifth, one in the seventh, and then three more in the eighth.

For the Braves, JT Stevenson – who won the 2024 RCBL Batting Title – and Kyle Armstrong each had two hits and drove in one run each. Tyler Smith, Carter Childs, Josh Lallo, and Noah Kessler all had one hit each.

If Massanutten wins game two on Thursday night of their series and advances, the semifinals will start Saturday night at Clover Hill. If Stuarts Draft forces a game three, then the semifinals will start Sunday night at Buck Bowman Park against whoever wins that decisive game three.

 

By Nolan Potts
Massanutten tied the game in the ninth and then won it in the bottom of the tenth as the Mountaineers took game one of the quarterfinal series from Stuarts Draft by a score of 3-2 in ten innings.

It was a classic pitcher’s duel for most of the night between Massanutten’s Kirk Messick and Stuarts Draft’s Parker Heinemann. The Diamondbacks scored two runs in the fourth off of Messick to make 2-0 Draft, but that would all they’d be able to muster against the veteran left-hander. He went 7.2 innings, allowed just four hits with those two runs (one earned) and struck out nine on 130 pitches.

Heinemann was equally as impressive. He went eight innings, allowed seven hits, two runs, and struck out six on 126 pitches.

Massanutten finally got on the board in the seventh on an RBI single from shortstop Matt House to make it 2-1.

In the ninth, the Mountaineers loaded the bases with no outs. Jaden Click led off the inning with a walk, which forced Heinemann out of the game and brought Job Harrell in from the bullpen. Kaden Spaid then laid down a perfect bunt for a single, and then Matt House drew a walk. Nick Arnold would hit a sacrifice fly to center field to bring home Click and move Spaid up to third base. Dawson Russell then hit a hard ground ball up the middle that second baseman Daniel Jones made a nice play on and threw Spaid out trying to score the winning run. Harrell then struck out pinch hitter Mason Sawyers to send the game to extras.

Will Decker led off the tenth with a single off Andrew Baugher. Baugher then struck out Caden Richter, intentionally walked Chaz Harvey, struck out Charle Pausic, walked Ezra Andres, and then induced a ground ball to third base. The throw to first was low, but first baseman Conner Houser scooped it out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the tenth, Houser singled to lead off the inning and was replaced by pinch runner Dominic Pancione. Nate Brookshire then walked, and Kaplan Ambrose was hit by a pitch. Jaden Click struck out for the first out of the inning, but Spaid drew a bases-loaded walk on a 3-2 count to walk it off and scored Pancione.

Baugher got the win in relief, going the final 2.1 innings, allowing no runs, one hit, and striking out three.

House went 2-3 with a triple and an RBI, while Houser went 2-5.

For the Diamondbacks, Harvey and Pausic each had two hits, while Decker and Ryan Jones each added one hit. 

Game 2 of the series is Thursday night at Stuarts Draft. If the Mountaineers win, they’ll advance to the semifinals against Clover Hill. If the Diamondbacks win, game three will be Friday night at Spotswood High School.

By Nolan Potts
Clover Hill saw themselves ahead 7-1 entering the bottom of the fifth inning, but Montezuma scored five in the fifth and another in the sixth to tie the game. The Bucks would add one in the seventh to take the lead for good and hold on to win the game, 8-7.

Grant Thomas picked up the win in relief for Clover Hill, going 4.1 innings and allowing one run on four hits and striking out three.

Offensively, Josh Eberly had three hits and two RBI for the Bucks, while Bryce Suters also had three hits. Christian Harris and Lucas Bauer each had two hits, with Harris driving in one run and Bauer driving in two. Nick Stavros also had a hit and two RBI out of the leadoff spot.

For Montezuma, Kyle Armstrong and Dylan Rankin each had three hits, with Rankin also driving in two runs. Josh Lallo had two hits and an RBI, while Noah Kessler had a hit and an RBI.

Game three of the series will be Wednesday night at Clover Hill at 7:45. The winner of this series will advance to the RCBL Semifinals and take on the winner of the Massanutten-Stuarts Draft series.

 

By Nolan Potts
Bridgewater trailed 6-3 entering the top of the sixth inning at Elkton on Tuesday night. By the time the top of the sixth ended, the Reds had scored 17 runs in the frame and led 20-6.

They would win by that score in seven innings to advance to the RCBL Semifinals where they will take on the Broadway Bruins.

Caden Swartley had three hits and six RBI, while Mason Hamilton had two hits and four RBI. Chris Huffman drove in three runs, as did Grey Sherfey. Malachi Simmons also drove in two runs for the Reds, while Cam Herron added three hits of his own.

Ryan Costello came in to relieve Issac Van Meter in the fourth inning and picked up the win, going 1.2 innings and allowing no runs, two hits, and striking out three. Sam Garber and Corbin Lucas both pitched a scoreless inning, as well.

For Elkton, Grayson Smith led the way offensively with two hits and three RBI, Addison Stewart and Mitchell Gaskins each had a hit and one RBI for the Blue Sox.

By Nolan Potts
Broadway – the number seven seed – upset the number two seed Grottoes for the second straight night and the Bruins advance to the RCBL Semifinals after a 3-1 win on Tuesday night.

Broadway will take on top-seeded Bridgewater in the semifinals.

The Bruins got a masterful outing on the mound from right-hander Kody Dobyns. Dobyns, a rising sophomore at Shenandoah University, went the first 8.1 innings, allowing just one run, nine hits, no walks, and striking out six. He turned it over in the ninth to Grant Landis, who induced a 4-6-3 double play to clinch the victory.

Offensively, Landis had a hit and two RBI for Broadway, while Seth Moomaw had a triple and had the other RBI. Brody Bower had two hits, one of which was a triple, while Carl Keenan, Ryan Martin, and Conner Michael each had a hit.

For Grottoes, starting pitcher Eli Lam went 7.2 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out seven. Cam Irvine got the final out of the eighth inning, which was a strikeout.

The Cardinals got three hits each from Austin Nicely and Clayton Michael, while Dylan Nicely had a hit and drove in the only run of the game.

By Nolan Potts
Game one of the series between the Mountaineers and Diamondbacks was supposed to be Monday night, but too much rain fell in Penn Laird and the field wasn’t playable. Members of the Mountaineers’ team worked tirelessly to get the field in good shape for Tuesday night, and then did just that. But, Mother Nature decided she didn’t want this game to be played, so around 5:00 it started raining at the field and did enough damage to where the game couldn’t be played. Coaches and players from both teams, as well as the umpires, walked the field to inspect the damage, but it was too soft and unsafe to get on tonight.

So, game one is now scheduled for Wednesday night at Spotswood HS at 7:00 PM.

The first game between Massanutten and Stuarts Draft was rained out due to rains that fell Sunday night and Monday morning in Penn Laird, making the field unplayable. As luck would have it, heavy rain hit the field around eight o’clock Monday evening, which would have caused the game to have been postponed only an hour after starting.

Game one — weather permitting — will take place on Tuesday night in Penn Laird.

By Nolan Potts
Montezuma rushed out to a 10-2 lead after four innings and never looked back as the sixth seeded Braves won at Clover Hill in game one, 14-8. The game was called after eight innings due to the three-hour time limit.

Kyle Armstrong hit a two-run homer in the first inning to get the Braves on the board. He finished with four hits, three runs scored, and four RBI. Noah Kessler had two hits and three RBI for the Braves, while Jacob Cude drove in two runs. Tyler Morley, Gavin Rush, Dylan Rankin, and Dalton Hall each had one RBI for Montezuma.

Roman Borders got the win, going the first six innings while allowing ten hits, four runs (one earned) while striking out four.

For the Bucks, Drew Easter came off the bench and hit a triple and had three RBI, while John Siciliano had two RBI and Luke Shiflett and Luke Tomajcayk each had two hits and one RBI each. Bryce Suters also had two hits for Clover Hill.

Game two is Tuesday night at Montezuma

By Nolan Potts
The number seven seed Broadway went on the road and took home field advantage with an 8-5 win over the Grottoes Cardinals.

Grottoes got out to a 4-0 lead after two innings, but Broadway scored three in the third, two in the fourth, two in the fifth, and then another in the eighth to pull away,

Broadway’s Wesley Landis, who led the league in ERA during the regular season, went eight innings and threw 130 pitches in the win. He allowed eight hits, five runs (two earned) while striking out nine. He turned it over to Ethan Burgreen for the ninth, and Burgreen picked up the save while striking out two batters.

Bruins’ leadoff hitter Brody Bower had three hits and scored two runs while driving in one, while Jayden Nixon also had three hits, and Grant Landis, Noah Leonard, Ryan Martin, and Conner Michael – numbers six through nine in the lineup – each had two hits. RCBL Rookie of the Year Seth Moomaw also had two hits and a RBI, while Carl Keenan had a hit and RBI, as well.

For Grottoes, Austin Nicely had three hits and two RBI, while Tucker Garrison had two hits. Dylan Nicely also drove in a run for the Cardinals.

Game two is Tuesday night in Broadway.

By Nolan Potts
Bridgewater jumped out to a 4-0 lead through four innings, but Elkton scored two in the sixth and two in the eighth, necessitating the Reds to bring in RCBL MVP and Pitcher of the Year Chris Huffman to finish the game out as the Reds took the first game of the series, 5-4.

Derek Shifflett made the start for the Reds and went five innings, allowing two unearned runs and just two hits while striking out eight. Elkton got to reliever Nick Griffin and had the bases loaded down 5-4 with one out in the eighth, and that’s when the Reds pulled Huffman in from shortstop. He got out of the eighth and left the bases loaded, and then set the Blue Sox down in order in the ninth.

Elkton’s starting pitcher Eli Hall did a good job of keeping the Reds’ bats in check, allowing nine hits and four runs (three earned) in his five innings. Reliever Colby Cave was fantastic out of the bullpen, going 1.2 innings while allowing no hits and striking out four.

Mason Hamilton had three hits for Bridgewater, while Ryan Williams and Corbin Lucas each had one hit and drove in two runs. Huffman also drove in a run.

Evan Sutton had two hits for the Blue Sox, while Tyler Stobbs, Wyatt Estep, and Zach Hafer each had one. Estep and Grayson Smith both drove in a run.

Game two is Tuesday night at Elkton.