By Dean Barker
​The Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks overcame an early deficit and picked up a 7-5 road win at the Clover Hill Bucks on Tuesday, June 27. With the win, the Diamondbacks improved to 6-10 and snapped a three game losing streak, while the Bucks fell to 9-5. 
 
“(The key was) just picking each other up,” Diamondbacks head coach Les Sandridge said. “Playing when we needed to play, get timely hits, and running bases smart.”
 
Job Harrell picked up the win to improve to 1-0, pitching two and a third innings, giving up runs on four hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Jacob Grabeel pitched the first four innings before leaving with an injury, giving up two earned runs on three hits with one walk and four strikeouts. Josh Matheney pitched an inning and two thirds, giving up no runs on no hits with two walks and no strikeouts. Chandis Goff got his second save of the year, pitching the ninth and giving up two earned runs on four hits with no walks and two strikeouts.
 
“We needed that win,” Goff said. “After the other night that we lost twice, we needed to get on top of everything, just take a breath and just throw the ball. We needed everything we could do.”
 
Sam Imeson took the loss to fall to 3-2, pitching five innings and giving up three earned runs on seven hits with a walk and seven strikeouts. Will Waller pitched three innings and gave up an earned run on two hits with no walks and six strikeouts. Tyler Conley gave up three earned runs in the ninth on three hits with two walks and a strikeout.
 
Kyle Carlson led off the bottom of the second with a solo shot over the left field wall to give Clover Hill a 1-0 lead. 
 
After two two-out throwing errors from the Diamondbacks in the bottom of the third, Koice Quintanilla would single to left to drive in the Bucks’ second run.
 
Following infield singles from Landon Lightner and Nate Wayne in the top of the fifth, Grayson Bush would single to center to plate Lightner, and Calen Owens singled to the shortstop to load the bases. Logan Duff singled to center to give Stuarts Draft a 3-2 lead. 
 
Waller hit Will Hass and Wayne in the sixth, and Grayson Bush drove in Hass with a two out double to right to make it 4-2. Alex Knicely hit a solo shot to left in the seventh to cut the lead to one.
 
Owens drove the first pitch of the top of the ninth over the right field wall to extend the Stuarts Draft lead to 5-3. Duff walked and Chaz Harvey singled. With one out, Hass doubled off the center field wall to drive in two more. After Hass stole third, Landon Lightner flew out to right, and Hass was thrown out at the plate.
 
“(I was thinking to) get a barrel, expect fastball to the right side, I know we had runners in scoring position, and just absolutely crush something that way,” Hass said.
 
Knicely, Bauer and John Siciliano led off the bottom of the ninth with a single each. Navedo and Shifflet struck out. Carlson singled off Goff’s glove into center field to drive in two, but TJ Johnson grounded out to end the game.
 
The Diamondbacks had seven runs on twelve hits with two errors and ten runners left on base. Owens was 3-5 with an RBI. Duff went 2-4 with two RBIs. Bush was 2-5 with two RBIs. Hass went 1-4 with two RBIs. Lightner was 2-5. Wayne went 1-3. Harvey went 1-5.
 
The Bucks had five runs on eleven hits with one error and ten runners stranded. Carlson was 2-5 with three RBIs. Knicely was 2-3 with an RBI. Quintanilla was 1-4 with an RBI. Bauer was 3-5. Siciliano went 2-4. Shifflett was 1-5.
 
The Diamondbacks will host the Elkton Blue Sox on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 pm. The Bucks will host the Grottoes Cardinals on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 pm.

By Dean Barker
​After both teams took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, the Broadway Bruins exploded in the fifth and sixth innings to mercy rule the Elkton Blue Sox 11-0 on Monday, June 26 at home. With the win, the Bruins improved to 9-5, while the Blue Sox fell to 0-15.
 
“(The key was) being able to put together good at-bats, what we’ve been doing all year,” Bruins head coach Bryce Strawderman said. “Finally had some hits fall there in the (fifth and sixth) innings, be able to put some runs across. Put together some better at-bats at the plate, draw some walks, make some (Elkton) errors, and be able to put runs across.”
 
Sam Vandry picked up the win for Broadway to improve to 1-1, pitching six scoreless innings and giving up two hits with five walks and four strikeouts. Dalton Benson pitched a scoreless seventh with one hit, no walks and no strikeouts.
 
“(I was able to) really just execute my pitches,” Vandry said. “All I could do was locate fastball, locate slider, and just weak contact. I’m always a weak contact guy, so I just let my fielders work tonight.”
 
Taran Baker took the loss for Elkton to fall to 0-4, giving up seven runs (three earned) on four hits with four walks and two strikeouts. Garrett Critzer pitched two thirds of an innings and gave up four unearned runs on two hits with three walks and a strikeout.
 
Jake Wakefield broke up the no-hitter in the top of the fifth with a leadoff single in the fifth, and reached second on a bunt from Wyatt Estep, but he could go no further.
 
Micah Canterbury would break up the Blue Sox’ no-hitter with a leadoff single. Carl Keenan would bunt a single, and a wild throw allowed Canterbury to reach third. Kevin Rush walked to load the bases. Brody Bower would ground into a forceout at home. Ryan Martin singled to left to give Broadway a 2-0 lead. A sacrifice fly from Colin McGuire and a two run single from Ethan Burgreen made it 5-0.
 
Brandon Mullins and Ethan Painter walked with two outs in the sixth, and Aiden Baker singled to center to load the bases, but Jake Wakefield struck out with a full count to end the inning.
 
With the bases loaded in the sixth, Brody Bower singled to right to make it 7-0. McGuire was hit for the eighth run. Burgreen was walked to push the lead to nine, and Jayden Nixon singled to center to make the lead 11-0, which is how it would end.
 
The Bruins had eleven runs on six hits with one error and three left on base. Burgreen was 1-3 with three RBIs. Nixon was 1-1 with two RBIs. Bower was 1-2 with two RBIs. Martin was 1-3 with two RBIs. McGuire was 0-2 with two RBIs. Canterbury was 1-2. Keenan went 1-3.
 
“I was just focused on getting up in the box and making sure I was getting the ball out front,” Burgreen said. “Even though it was on the slower side, you can get caught up in waiting back too much, you know, I was not trying to do that, I was trying to stay out, get the ball out here and get some barrel, and I think that’s what we started to do after that fifth inning.”
 
The Blue Sox had no runs on three hits with two errors and seven base runners stranded. Baker and Wakefield went 1-3. Estep was 1-2.
 
The Bruins will try to push their win streak to four at the Montezuma Braves on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 pm. The Blue Sox will look for their first win at the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks on Wednesday, June 28 at 7:30 pm.

By Dean Barker
​The Broadway Bruins erased deficits in both games to sweep a doubleheader with the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks, winning game one 5-4 on a walkoff and game two 8-4 on Sunday, June 25. The Bruins improved to 8-5, while the Diamondbacks fell to 5-10.
 
“All in all, we’re on the right track to win a championship here,” Bruins head coach Bryce Strawderman said. The Bruins have now won three of their last four games.
 
Carl Keenan pitched six innings and got the no-decision in game one, giving up two earned runs on five hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Colin McGuire got the win to move to 1-0, pitching the seventh and giving up two earned runs on three hits with no walks and no strikeouts.
 
Parker Heinemann pitched three and a third innings, giving up three earned runs on three hits with seven walks and five strikeouts. Logan Stump took the loss to fall to 1-1, giving up two runs (one earned) in three and a third innings on two hits with four walks and three strikeouts.
 
With the bases loaded in the bottom of the first, Jayden Nixon grounded out to first, but Ozzie Torres came home before Stuarts Draft caught McGuire running home for the third out. Chaz Harvey responded with a leadoff home run in the top of the second to tie the score at 1-1.
 
A lightning delay was called before the bottom of the third inning. After the delay, Micah Canterbury would drive in Ethan Burgreen with a double to left to make it 2-1. A two-out RBI single from McGuire would push the lead to 3-1 in the fourth.
 
A two out solo shot from Caden Richter would cut it to 3-2 in the top of the sixth. Nate Wayne and Tommy Weaver would triple with an out in the top of the seventh to tie the game, and Grayson Bush would single to give the Diamondbacks a 4-3 lead.
 
Three walks would load the bases in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs, Hunter Deavers tied it up with an infield single to the shortstop. James Sibert grounded to third, but Richter’s throw to first was wild, allowing the winning run to come home.
 
Broadway scored five runs on five hits with two errors and ten runners left on base. Stuarts Draft had four runs on eight hits with one error and four base runners stranded.
 
Karson Jennings pitched the first two innings of game two, giving up no runs on three hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Hunter Deavers pitched the third and was tabbed with the win, giving up four earned runs on four hits with a walk and no strikeouts. Brayden Collier pitched three scoreless innings, with no hits, no walks and four strikeouts. Micah Canterbury pitched a scoreless seventh with no hits, no walks and two strikeouts.
 
Grant Landis would put the Bruins on the board first with an RBI double in the bottom of the second.
 
A sacrifice fly from Logan Duff in the top of the third would tie it, and a single to third from Harvey made it a 2-1 game. Richter would then hit his second home run of the day to push the lead to 4-1.
 
A leadoff triple from Torres was followed by an RBI single from McGuire, and a single from Austin Whetzel made it a one run game. Keegan would walk with the bases loaded to tie the game, and a pair of sac flies from Nixon and Landis completed the comeback to give Broadway a 6-4 lead. Keenan stole home to make it 7-4 after three. Micah Canterbury would rip a two out RBI double down the left field line in the fourth to push the lead to 8-4, and that would be the final score.
 
The Bruins had eight runs on eight hits with one error and five men left on. The Diamondbacks had four runs on eight hits with no errors and six runners stranded.
 
Grayson Bush was 5-8 on the day with an RBI for the DBacks. Richter was 2-4 with three RBI’s. Owens was 3-8 with an RBI.
 
McGuire was 3-5 with two RBIs on the day to lead the Bruins. Keenan was 2-5 with an RBI. Whetzel was 2-4 with an RBI.
 
“I just stayed short and quick to the ball, stayed back and hit my pitch, and I guess most of them dropped,” McGuire said.
 
The Bruins will be back in action when they host the Elkton Blue Sox on Monday, June 26 at 7:30 pm. The Diamondbacks will hope to rebound when they travel to face the Clover Hill Bucks on Monday, June 26 at 7:30 pm.

By Dean Barker
​The RCBL Shockers had a powerful offensive night and handed the defending RCBL champion Bridgewater Reds a 10-2 loss on Saturday, June 24 at Spotswood High School. With the win, the Shockers improved to 8-3 and took first place in the league, while the Reds fell to 10-4 and are now in second. The win was the seventh in a row for the Shockers, who started the season 1-3.
 
“…What it takes to beat good teams is to put all three phases of the game together, and we’ve been doing that lately,” Shockers head coach Nolan Potts said.
 
Matt House picked up the win for the Shockers to improve to 3-1, pitching a full nine and conceding two earned runs on thirteen hits with one walk and eight strikeouts.
 
“Just trust in the pitch calling, trust in the defense, I mean, without that, I don’t know what else to do,” House said. “Just attack the hitter and trust what’s called.”
 
John Barrett took the loss for Bridgewater to fall to 0-1, giving up five earned runs in two and a third innings on five hits with two walks and a strikeout. Jared Peake pitched an inning and two thirds, giving up two earned runs on two hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Brett Tharp pitched three innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Eric Yankey pitched the eighth, giving up no runs on no hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
 
A two out double to center from Corbin Lucas would give the Reds a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. The Shockers would respond with a two out RBI triple to right, and came home on a wild pitch to give the Shockers a 2-1 lead.
 
Brett Tharp would drive in the tying run in the top of the second, grounding into a bases loaded double play.
 
Harrison Madagan broke the tie with a two run double to left field in the third. Connor Houser would drive him in with a single to center to make it 5-2 Shockers, at which point Barrett was pulled for Peake. Bodie Pullen and Luke Keister came home on wild pitches in the fourth to make it 7-2.
 
Pearce Bucher would add some more insurance in the sixth with a two run single to center field, pushing the lead to 9-2.
 
With two outs and two on in the seventh, Madagan would plate one with an RBI single to left, making it 10-2. Bucher would try to add to the damage with a sharp liner, but Chris Huffman was there to make the leaping catch and end the inning. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Bodie Pullen struck out to end it. The game would end on the Shocker’s third double play of the night in the top of the ninth.
 
The Shockers had ten runs on twelve hits with no errors and twelve base runners stranded. Keister was 4-5 with three runs scored. Madagan was 2-4 with three RBIs. Bucher was 2-5 with three RBIs. Kaden Spaid went 2-4. Houser was 1-3 with an RBI. Nate Brookshire was 1-5.
 
“The whole mentality is to try to be relaxed, go out and have fun,” Madagan said. “(I’ve) just been focusing on my AB’s.”
 
The Reds had two runs on thirteen hits with no runs and nine runners left on base. Lucas was 2-4 with an RBI. Tharp and Cody Swartley were both 2-4. Ryan Williams and Patrick O’Niel both went 2-3. Huffman, Mason Luck and Jordan Yankey were all 1-4.
 
The Shockers will look for their eighth straight win when they host the Grottoes Cardinals on Monday, June 26 at 7:30 pm. The Reds will look to bounce back when they host the Montezuma Braves on Monday, June 26 at 7:30 pm.

By Tyler Carney
The rain held off in the Valley and allowed the Reds to dominate the Bucks and send everyone home early. The Bucks only managed one run off of Reds ace Chris Huffman as the Reds won 14-1 in 7 innings.
 
The battle for sole possession of first place started great defensively with both pitchers working their stuff well for the first two frames, however the Reds would score 5 runs in the bottom of the 3rd.
 
Leadoff hitter Derek Shifflett would double and then score on an RBI single from Brett Tharp. Tharp would eventually get to 3rd then he’d cross the plate on an RBI single from Mason Luck. The Reds would then load the bases and Ryan Williams would draw a walk bringing Chris Huffman into score. To cap the inning Grey Sherfey would hit a 2 RBI single but the Reds would strand two in their big inning.
 
The top of the 4th saw some life from Clover Hill as they managed to get some offense going however the only run they scored was on a wild pitch, that runner was Kevin Navedo.  The Bucks would then strand 3 runners and take us to the bottom of the 4th.
 
The Reds would pad their lead scoring two unearned runs as Huffman reached on a throwing error by the second baseman and Brett Tharp scored on that play. A weird play where the Bucks had Chris Huffman dead to rights on a rundown but allowed him to return to first. Had they got him out they would’ve ended the frame. However an RBI single from Mason Luck would score another run.
 
The Reds were not done, adding one run in the 5th on a solo home run from Jordan Yankey. Then in the 6th the Reds would send 12 hitters to the plate in a 6 run onslaught of an inning.
 
The second hitter of the inning Corbin Lucas started it off with a solo no doubt home run that no outfielder even bothered to chase. After loading the bases an RBI single from Jordan Yankey would add another run on. The bases stayed loaded and the Reds earned walks to score the next two runs. Shifflett and Noah Cornwell would earn those walks. To cap off the scoring Chris Huffman would deliver a 2 RBI double after flying out to lead off the inning. The inning would eventually come to an end as the Reds left the bases loaded.
 
No scoring in the 7th from the Bucks meant the game was called due to mercy rule 14-1 after just 7 innings.
 
“ We started putting together great ABs and had timely hitting and that always helps get runs across,” said Reds pitcher Chris Huffman, “ We were firing on all cylinders but they're still a really good team, we were just on our A game.”
 
The Bucks put 4 pitchers on the mound to try and slow down the Reds to no avail. Sam Imeson would get the start going until the 5th. He started strong but a big third from the Reds saw his good day end. Imeson would also earn the loss, his first of the season. In the 5th Payson King would come in and get a K but then gave up the first home run of the game. In the 6th he would manage two outs before being replaced by Cole Freeman. Freeman was meant to get out of the jam but not his day as he couldn’t manage a single out and allowed 4 runs. He was quickly replaced by the Bucks final pitcher Clay Guyer who would get the final out.
​
On the Bridgewater side Chris Huffman would throw a complete 7 inning game. He’d throw 104 pitches and strike out nine Bucks only allowing the one run.
 
The Reds now 10-3 claim sole possession of 1st place in the RCBL, their next time out will be away against the 6-5 Broadway Bruins June 23rd.
 
The Bucks fall to 9-4 and will look to get their mojo back June 21st on the road against the still winless Elkton Blue Sox.

By Dean Barker
The RCBL Shockers overcame a two run deficit in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks 4-3 on Tuesday, June 20. With the win, the Shockers improved to 7-3 and moved to second in the RCBL, while the Diamondbacks fell to 5-8.
 
“Baseball is a crazy game, you see there at the end, we’ll never see a game end like that, but we’ll take the win any way we can get it,” Shockers head coach Nolan Potts said. “That’s a testament to these guys sticking with it all night; as bleak as it looked there in the ninth heading in after they scored two, we were able to come away with the win, and that’s really all that matters.”
 
Matt House picked up the win for the Shockers, giving up two earned runs in three and ⅔ innings on six hits with no walks and five strikeouts.
 
“It all comes down to defense,” House said. “All the trust I have in the defense, I just know I can throw right to the glove and just hope for the best and that the hitters miss it, or just hit it right to them.”
 
Kaden Spaid got the no-decision, pitching five and ⅓ innings and giving up one earned run on two hits with four walks and eleven strikeouts.
 
“I just tried to throw strikes, throw through the bat, let my defense make the plays,” Spaid said. “I had command of all my pitches, so that felt good, and I was just trying to get it through the bat, let them hit it.”
 
Chandis Goff took the loss for Stuarts Draft to fall to 1-1, giving up three runs (one earned) on four hits with no walks and a strikeout. Jacob Grabeel took the no-decision, pitching six innings and giving up one earned run on seven hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Josh Matheney pitched a scoreless sixth with one hit, one walk and one strikeout. Job Harrell pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth with no hits, walks or strikeouts.
 
With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, the Shockers scored first with an RBI double to deep center from Bodie Pullen to make it 1-0.
 
Cody Bartley would tie it back up with a solo shot to right center in the top of the sixth.
 
Keegan Costa led off the top of the ninth with a double to right field, and Nate Wayne would single and steal second. With two outs, Calen Owens ripped a two run double to left field to put Stuarts Draft up 3-1.
 
Pearce Bucher, Connor Houser and Harrison Madagan led off the bottom of the ninth with singles to left, center and right, respectively. Spaid drove in the Shockers’ second run of the game with a sacrifice fly to left. Brody Pickette struck out in a pinch hit appearance. Luke Keister’s soft grounder to the pitcher snuck by to load the bases for Bodie Pullen. Goff balked to bring home Drew Hogue, pinch running for Houser, to tie the game. Harrison Madagan scored the winning run on a wild pitch.
 
The Shockers had four runs on eleven hits with no errors and seven runners left on base. Madagan went 4-4. Pullen was 3-4 with an RBI. Spaid was 1-3 with an RBI. Houser was 1-3 with a walk. Bucher was 1-4. Keister went 1-5.

“I got into a couple of two strike counts, luckily I was able to shorten up, put something in play, and the balls were falling,” Madagan said.

The Diamondbacks had three runs on eight hits with one error and nine runners stranded. Owens went 3-5 with two RBIs. Nate Wayne was 2-4. Cody Bartley went 1-4 with an RBI. Grabeel was 1-3. Keegan Costa was 1-4.
 
The Shockers will look for their seventh straight win when they host the defending RCBL Champion and first place Bridgewater Reds on Saturday, June 24 at 7:30 pm. Coach Potts recognizes that this game will not be a cakewalk.
 
“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” Potts said. “They’re the defending champs, they’re playing well right now, they got their tenth win tonight… so we’ve gotta come out and hit better than we did tonight, that’s number one… Play solid defense behind our pitching, throw strikes, and if we do that, we’ve got a shot.”
 
The Diamondbacks will hope to bounce back when they host the Elkton Blue Sox on Friday, June 23 at 7:30 pm. Diamondbacks head coach Les Sandridge doesn’t think his team will be too bogged down by this loss to move on to that game.
 
“(I told my team) that I’m proud of them, we played a good game, it’s just that baseball is baseball,” Sandridge said. “We win as a team, we lose as a team, (it’s) nobody’s fault. We’re a good group of guys, so we take it and move on to the next game.”

​Chris Huffman was named Week 4 RCBL Player of the Week for his performance on the mound and at the plate last week. Huffman was .500 at the plate with four hits and five RBIs, including a grand slam at the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks on Friday, June 16. On the mound, he held the Broadway Bruins to one run and four hits, and struck out eleven on Wednesday, June 14. Huffman was also named Week 3 Player of the Week.
 
“It’s an honor and definitely exciting to see the results from all of the preparation and hard work in the off season and witnessing your own process/routine paying off,” Huffman said. “I’d like to thank my family, teammates, and coaches for not only supporting me through my journey, but always pushing me to do my best. I feel blessed to be able to still play this game that I love so much and to be able to stay healthy throughout the season too.”

By Dean Barker
​The RCBL Shockers never took their foot off the gas pedal in a 13-0 seven inning win over the Grottoes Cardinals on Monday, June 19. With the win, the Shockers won their fifth in a row and moved to 6-3 and third place in the RCBL, while the Cardinals fell to 7-6 and are in fifth.
 
“We’ve got a 37 year old who can throw strikes, and he keeps guys off balance, and lets the defense make plays; we made plays,” Shockers head coach Nolan Potts said of Kirk Messick. “Obviously the offense kind of spoke for itself tonight, but a couple of diving plays out there; Luke had one at second, Haden had one out in left, the defense was phenomenal.”
 
Kirk Messick picked up the complete game shutout win to move to 2-0, giving up just three hits with no walks and seven strikeouts.
 
“I just try to throw as many strikes as I can, I’m not going to overpower anybody,” Messick said. “I was just able to locate all my pitches really well tonight, and… shoutout to (the catcher) for calling the right pitches for me tonight.”
 
Lucas Cash took the loss for Grottoes to fall to 0-2, giving up ten runs (six earned) in four innings on nine hits with no walks and two strikeouts. Jacob Dansey pitched an inning and gave up two earned runs on two hits with a walk and a strikeout. Eli Elgersma pitched one inning and giving up an earned run on one hit with a walk and two strikeouts.
 
The Shockers got on the board in the second with a Harrison Madagan RBI ground rule double, and then he and Drew Hogue came home on wild pitches to make it 3-0.
 
In the third, Frankie Ritter would drive in Luke Keister on a single, Pearce Bucher would plate Ritter on a single of his own, and two runs would score when Harrison Madagan reached on an error. Haden Madagan drove him in with a home run to left to make it 9-0.
 
“After the first strikeout, I was like ‘You know what, might as well try to get a hit here, bunt one down,’ but then after that… I tried to go Kent Murphy (i.e. hit a home run) on that one, and it went over,” Madagan said.
 
The Shockers would add the tenth run in Keister in the fourth with a Nick Arnold sacrifice fly. In the fifth, Harrison Madagan drove in Bucher with a single, and Bodie Pullen drove in Griffin Hott on a fielder’s choice. Drew Hogue added the final run on a sacrifice fly to score Jaden Click in the sixth.
 
The Shockers scored thirteen runs on twelve hits with one error and two men left on base. Harrison Madagan was 2-3 with two RBIs to lead the way. Haden Madagan was 1-3 with two RBIs. Keister was 2-4. Bucher was 2-3 with an RBI. Ritter was 1-3 with an RBI.
 
The Cardinals had no runs on three hits with one error and five base runners stranded. Whit Scafidi and Natty Solomon went 1-3, and Luke Tomajcyzk was 1-2.
 
The Cardinals will hope to bounce back when they host the Montezuma Braves on Friday, June 23 at 7:30 pm. The Shockers will look to extend their win streak to six when they host the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks on Tuesday, June 20 at 7:30 pm.

By Dean Barker
​The Broadway Bruins and Clover Hill Bucks split a double header in Broadway on Saturday, June 17, with the Bruins winning game one 6-1 and the Bucks taking game two 5-1. The Bucks moved to 9-3 and the Bruins moved to 6-5.
 
“We’re just playing fundamental baseball, that’s what we talked about, what we preach,” Bucks head coach Kevin Chandler said. “Play good defense, string good at bats together, press them 90 feet, that’s what we talk about all the time, and these guys are really buying into it, and gelling well together, so it’s been fun so far.”
 
Bruins head coach Bryce Strawderman was happy to pick up one game against the first place Bucks.
 
“That’s a good baseball team, that’s one of the better teams we’ll see all year,” Strawderman said. “We started to string it together in the first game, which is good to see after the last couple of nights. Second game, we’ve just gotta take care of the baseball, four errors is the story of that game.”
 
Carl Keenan took the win in game one for Broadway to improve to 2-2, going a full seven and giving up one earned run on four hits with no walks and nine strikeouts. Keenan was 3-6 with an RBI at the plate for the whole day. Tucker Hrasky was handed the loss for Clover Hill to fall to 2-1, going a full six innings and giving up six runs (three earned) on eight hits with four walks and four strikeouts.
 
“I just put the ball in the zone a lot, lot of swings and misses on my fastball, I didn’t have to rely on my offspeed too much, just used it to get me over, just threw a lot of strikes,” Keenan said. “At the plate, just staying through it, keeping things simple.”
 
With the bases loaded and two out in the bottom of the second in game one, a grounder from James Sibert was bobbled at second, allowing the first run to score. Ozzie Torres followed it up with a two run single to center to make it 3-0. A fifth inning two-out, two-run double from Micah Canterbury pushed the lead to 5-0, and Keenan would help his cause with an RBI single to right, making it 6-0.
 
A two out double from Jose Rocha in the sixth gave Luke Shifflett the chance to drive him in with a single to left, getting the Bucks on the board at 6-1, but they could do no more.
 
The Bruins had six runs on eight hits with one error and three runners left on base. Torres led the way for the Brew Crew, going 2-4 with two RBIs. Canterbury was 1-3 with two RBIs. Keenan was 2-3 with an RBI. Adam Whetzel and Jayden Nixon were both 1-2. Ethan Burgreen went 1-3. James Sibert was 0-3 with an RBI.
 
The Bucks had one run on four hits with two errors and four runners stranded. Shifflett was 1-3 with an RBI. Josh Eberly, John Siciliano and TJ Johnson were all 1-3.
 
Jaden Isidro picked up the win in game two, moving to 2-0 and pitching five innings and giving up one earned run on five hits with a walk and three strikeouts. Tyler Conley pitched two scoreless innings of relief with one hit, three walks and no strikeouts.
 
“After losing one, we said ‘good teams don’t lose two games in a row,’ so we knew we’d need a good outing from Isidro,” Conley said. “He came in and did his job, and I was able to come in the last two (innings) and shut the door.”
 
Micah Canterbury took the loss to fall to 1-1, pitching four innings and giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Colin McGuire pitched two innings of relief, giving up two earned runs on two hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Karl Jennings pitched a scoreless seventh with no hits or walks and one strikeout.
 
The Bruins got started early, as Ozzie Torres would single, steal second and take third on a wild pickoff attempt, and score on a Colin McGuire sac fly in the first.
 
With two in scoring position in the top of the fourth, a Caden Simmers grounder to short would bring in the tying run in John Siciliano, and a sac fly from Brooks Bowman would give Clover Hill the lead. Eberly would bring in another with an RBI single to make it 3-1.
 
With two on and two out in the top of the fifth, Simmers would drive in both with an RBI single and reached second on a throwing error from the pitcher. The Bucks and the Bruins both left the bases loaded in the top of the seventh.
 
The Bucks had five runs on six hits with one error and eleven runners left on base. Simmers was 2-4 with two RBIs to lead the Bucks. Eberly was 1-4 with an RBI. John Siciliano and TJ Johnson were both 1-4. Alex Knicely was 1-3. Bowman was 0-3 with an RBI.
 
The Bruins had one run on six hits with four errors and eight base runners stranded. Sibert was 2-3. McGuire was 1-2 with an RBI. Torres was 1-4. Canterbury was 1-1. Keenan was 1-3.
 
The Bucks will be back in action when they travel to the Bridgewater Reds on Tuesday, June 20 at 7:30 pm. The Bruins will host the Reds on Friday, June 23 at 7:30 pm.