Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
P. O. Box 3711
204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
276-638-8801
Toll Free: 800-234-6575
|
|
 |
|
|
| Magna Vista and Patrick Co. will meet in Thursday's consolation game at Hooker |
.jpg)
Bassett's Grant Wickline hits a first-inning triple against Patrick County in the semifinals of the Piedmont District Tournament on Tuesday at Hooker Field. (Bulletin photo by Johnny Buck) |
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
By JOHNNY BUCK - Bulletin Sports Editor
The Tunstall Trojans have won seven straight Piedmont District baseball tournaments, and if Tuesday night’s game at Hooker Field was any indication, eight in a row might be a safe bet.
Tunstall’s first five batters scored against Magna Vista, serving as a prelude to what became an 18-2 win over No. 4 seed Magna Vista.
“We swung the bats really well,” said THS coach Barry Shelton. “I was
glad to see us jump out early and get some runs on the board. It always helps you.”
The top-seeded Trojans scored six runs in the first inning and led 14-1 after four frames.
They added four more in the bottom of the sixth, as the 10-run mercy rule was not a part of this postseason affair.
Hunter Hedrick led THS at the plate, going 4-for-4 with a triple, two doubles, a single, a walk and four runs scored.
Teammate Will Hardy went 3-for-4 and drew a walk on the way to scoring
three runs, and Virginia Tech signee Joe Mantiply went 2-for-2 with two runs scored.
Brett Hylton added a two-run homer to right field and scored three times.
Shelton, whose team got a first-round bye in this event after going unbeaten in PD play during the regular season, used the lopsided contest as a chance to give his depth some playing time.
“Overall, it was a game where we got a lot of people on the field,” Shelton said.
“It’s important to get those guys some work,” he added.
Tunstall trotted three pitchers to the mound, with starter Jason Tunnel earning the victory.
Magna Vista starter Nathan Lawless lasted just 2⁄3 of an inning and took the loss.
The Warriors were led by Josh Cox’s 2-for-3 performance. Teammates Lawless and Chris Ramey scored in the second and fifth innings, respectively.
MVHS head coach Rick Ramey said his team made too many mistakes, especially considering its opponent.
“They’re the No. 1 seed for a reason,” he said. “You just can’t give a team four, five, six outs in an inning. It’s just not gonna work.”
The Warriors (3-20 overall, 2-6 PD) will face Patrick County at 5 p.m. in Thursday’s consolation game at Hooker Field, while the Trojans (18-1 overall, 8-0 PD) will square off with Bassett on the same day following the third-place contest.
Tunstall has already secured a first-round regional tournament home game. Shelton said that contest will be played Tuesday in Dry Fork.
Bassett 12
Patrick County 4
Bassett jumped out 5-0 lead after three innings and pitcher Roy Morgan threw a complete game Tuesday night on the way to a 12-4 win over Patrick County in the semifinals of the Piedmont District Tournament at Hooker Field.
“That was huge,” Bassett coach Bill Parks said of the early start, which included three first-inning runs during a two-out rally. “We swung the bats, got the momentum our way and allowed Roy to kind of settle down a little bit.”
Morgan struck out seven, scattered nine hits and walked three. With a 9-4 lead entering the sixth inning, he had the option to leave the game, but opted instead to remain on the mound.
“I told him to let me finish it,” the junior said.
“I had everything (working),” he added. “It was probably one of the best games I’ve thrown.”
Patrick County got three runs in the fourth inning, thanks in part to a BHS fielding error that set the wheels in motion and directly allowed one runner to cross home.
The No. 3 Bengals (11-9 overall, 4-4 PD) responded, however, as Patrick Martin began the frame with his second home run of the contest, this one to deep center field. That sparked a three-run fifth that extended Bassett’s lead to six.
Martin also hit a homer to left in the third inning. It was the first time he’d hit two bombs in his varsity career.
Martin finished the game 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double and three runs scored.
Teammate Bruce Young went 2-for-4, reached on an error and scored three times.
No. 2 seed Patrick County was led by Jake Williams’ 3-for-4 performance. Williams had a double, two singles and scored once.
Eric Renegar, Zach Sawyers and Chad Trent also scored for the Cougars.
The win served as revenge for BHS, which lost to PCHS twice during the regular season.
The Bengals will now face top-seeded Tunstall at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Hooker Field.
THS got the better of two regular season matchups against Bassett this year, winning by a combined scored of 27-0.
“It’s gonna take seven innings of perfect ball from us, but I still love my guys’ (chances),” said Parks of the pending matchup. “We don’t have a lot to lose, but we do have a lot to prove to ourselves.”
|
| |
|
|
.jpg)
.jpg)
