Dukes Continue to Lead Red-Hot Bruins

By Mitchell Broughton
Top-ranked Broadway continues to prove to the rest of the RCBL that they are the team to beat. Last night, the Bruins won their fifth straight game when they beat the Montezuma Braves 7-2 at JMU’s Eagle Field.
 
Every team around the league has a core group of veteran players that usually lead the team. For Broadway, it is the bunch of RCBL rookies from James Madison University that have stolen the show and taken the league by storm. Last night four Dukes shined for the Bruins — Chase DeLauter, Josh Jones, Travis Reifsnider and Anthony Piccolino.
 
Starting on the mound for Broadway was DeLauter. The lefty struck out six batters and only allowed one hit. At the plate, he continued his dominance — going 4-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs. Chase DeLauter has gone ten straight games with at least one extra base hit and now has a league-leading batting average of .534. He is on pace for the league’s MVP, Rookie of the Year, and also a Triple Crown batting title. 

Josh Jones had the biggest at-bat of the night. Following a DeLauter double, Jones took a fastball from Montezuma pitcher Lance Tate over the left field wall for a two-run home run — his third homer of the year. Jones finished the game with three hits and three RBIs, putting him just behind DeLauter (30) for second-most RBIs in the RCBL with 25. Travis Reifsnider broke a dry spell of his at the plate as well when he doubled in the bottom of the seventh; he also scored twice and was fantastic behind the plate for the Bruins.
 
Finally, the fourth JMU Duke to make an impact on last night’s game was the Bruins’ closer Anthony Piccolino. The left hander, in the final two innings, shut down the Braves’ hopes of a comeback. He struck out four and only allowed one hit, but most importantly secured the win for the first place Bruins. 

As a unit, Broadway out-hit Montezuma 13-5 last night. The Braves’ starting pitcher Andrew Ward tried his best to contain the high-powered offense for as long as he could, but couldn’t contain the beast for long.

Broadway widens their first place lead as they improve to 13-4. The Bruins will travel to Ruritan Field to take on the Bridgewater Reds on Friday and Saturday. Montezuma falls to 6-10 and will host New Market in a makeup game tonight at Ruritan Field. 

FINAL: Montezuma 2 Broadway 7. Win: Bailey Hall (1-0). Loss: Lance Tate (0-2).

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