Grottoes takes 8-0 win to stay in first place

By Matthew Atkins

BROADWAY - Keegan Woolford drew three walks in the Cardinals’ 8-0 win over Broadway on Tuesday night, but he thinks that has more to do with his plate discipline than his home run prowess.
 
“I’m just being patient looking for my pitch,” Woolford said when asked if he thought opposing pitchers were avoiding pithing to him. “I don’t take it personally. If it’s not there, I’m not going to swing in certain counts.”
 
Woolford leads the league in home runs with six on the season, but he’s been working on other aspects of his game besides his power hitting. His ability to draw walks has led him to an on base percentage of .526, which leads the league.
 
“I’ve cut down on strikeouts a little bit,” Woolford said. “I wish I’d done that in school ball. Getting better every day, that’s the key.”
 
Woolford’s OBP jumped 19 points in the win over Broadway. The Shenandoah University sophomore finished the night 1-for-2 with two runs scored as the Cardinals picked up their second straight win.
 
The game was scoreless until the top of the fourth inning when Grottoes put four runs on the board. Woolford scored the first run of the game on an RBI single by Ray Tricarico.
 
Three more runs came across when Logan Grimm hit a triple to right field scoring Eli Lam, Tricarico and Jacob Zoller. Grimm was tagged out at home trying to turn the triple into an inside-the-park home run.
 
The Cardinals put up two more runs in the fifth and then one each in the seventh and eighth to take home the victory.
 
Grottoes starter Spenser Davis picked up the win, tossing five innings and giving up no runs on four hits. Davis struck out three batters in his outing.
 
Woolford wasn’t the only Grottoes player to have a successful night at the plate. Lam finished the night 2-for-3 with two walks and three runs scored. Grimm was 2-for-3 on the night with three RBIs.  
 
The win is the Cardinals’ second consecutive victory over a West Division power after defeating Bridgewater 11-10 on Sunday night. While no team in the East is above .500, the top three teams in the West are all above .700, so two straight wins gives Grottoes some confidence going forward.  
 
“The team’s feeling good,” Woolford said. “We’re putting the pieces together defensively, offensively and pitching. So we’re looking good and looking forward to the last stretch of the season.”
The Cardinals are now 9-10 on the season and in first place in the East Division.

Grottoes’ next matchup comes tonight as the Cardinals take on Elkton at home. The Blue Sox trail the Cardinals by just one game and won the last matchup between the two teams 7-4 on Friday night.
 
“That’s a huge matchup,” Woolford said about tonight’s game. “Every game from here on out is huge for us since the season’s been compressed since the rain. We’re going to try to go out there and win as many as we can.”
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Tonight’s game is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. at Shifflett Field.

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