Trojans Drop Sunday Doubleheader to Mansfield

ETTRICK, Va. – Virginia State was swept in a Sunday doubleheader 8-5 in game 1 and 5-1 in game 2 against Mansfield.

GAME 1 VSU 5 MANSFIELD 8 

  • The Mountaineers scored in the top of the first after two walks and a pass ball got runners on first and third before a sac fly would bring in the runner 
  • In the third inning after two outs a batter was hit by the pitch, stole second and advanced to third on a balk. The next batter then hit a single down the right field line to make it 2-0 
  • In the fourth inning the Trojans Jimmyll Williams would single, Christian Henderson then got a bunt single, before a sac bunt got runners on second and third with one out.  Jaquan Tucker then doubled to tie the game at 2 
  • In the top of the fifth Mansfield would answer with a five spot, VSU would score two in the bottom of the fifth by a Henderson walk and Jamari Pooler HBP 
  • VSU would load the bases in the bottom of the seventh, but would only score on a pass ball allowing Henderson to come home 

GAME 2 VSU 1 MANSFIELD 5 

  • After getting two batters on via the walk a single through the right side scored the first run followed by a sac fly to score the second run in the first inning 
  • The Mountaineers would then add another three in the top of the third 
  • The Trojans would get something going in the bottom of the sixth as Avante Banks walked advanced to second on a sac bunt then get to third on a single by Williams. Williams would then get thrown out at second but Banks would come around to score 
  • In the last opportunity for VSU Norman Jackson would single followed by walk to Jamari Pooler, but the next three Trojans would get out to end the game 

The team is now 4-5 overall and will return to action next Saturday for a doubleheader against Holy Family starting at 1 pm. 

Story courtesy govsutrojans.com; Photo by Winston Chen on Unsplash

Apprentice Splits Twin Bill Versus Mont Alto

HAMPTON, Va. – Apprentice opened up a four-game series with Penn State Mont Alto Saturday with a doubleheader sweep, falling in the opener before walking off the day’s finale.

In the first game of the day, Mont Alto jumped out to a 6-0 lead through the top half of the fourth inning before the Builders finally scratched a run across on a Matt Phoebus RBI double. Trailing 7-1 headed to the bottom of the seventh, Apprentice found two more runs off a Hunter Johnson sacrifice fly and a Riggs Ellis RBI groundout, but the Lions got out of the inning to win their season opener.

In the nightcap, the Lions scored a run in the first, but Apprentice (7-2 overall, 2-0 NSAC) answered much quicker, tying the game in the first before taking the lead in the second. The Builders scored a pair off a PSU error in the frame and then followed those up by a Nolan Edwards RBI single in the third and another Johnson sacrifice fly in the fourth to take a 5-1 lead.

Mont Alto (1-1) responded with three in the fifth and five in the sixth to retake the lead at 9-5, but the Builders got two back in the bottom of the sixth off a Riggs Ellis bases-loaded RBI single. Apprentice shut the door in the seventh before plating three in the bottom half, winning the game on a bases loaded walk to finish the day with a split.

The Builders and Lions will finish the four-game set tomorrow with a 1 p.m. doubleheader.

Story courtesy Walker McCrary/Apprentice Athletics; Image courtesy Kaitlyn Olson/Apprentice Athletics

VSU Drops Home Openers to Lock Haven

ETTRICK, Va.- After going 3-0 in Atlanta last weekend, Virginia State dropped decisions of 8-1 and 8-2 in a double header against Lock Haven on Saturday in the Trojan’s home openers.

GAME 1 LOCK HAVEN 8 VIRGINIA STATE 1 

  • After both teams managed to get players in scoring position in the first innings but neither could cash in the oppurtunity. 
  • The Bald Eagles started the second inning with a seeing eye single up the middle and then back-to-back errors by the Trojans in the field to juice the bases. Joseph Hastings came back and struck out the next batter before walking the next to make the score 1-0, then a double to left center plated all three Eagles on the basepath to make the score 4-0 
  • In the bottom half of the inning Dawyson Hock singled to center and TJ McGowan walked. Jody Morris then laid down a sac bunt to make it Trojans on thrd and second with just one out. The next two VSU batters grounded out the third and short to end the inning 
  • To lead off the third Lock Haven singled and stole second base to get a player in scoring position with no one out. After a Hastings strikeout a single to left would plater another making it 5-0 
  • In the bottom half of the inning Thomas Moore hit a one out double to left then Christian Henderson would score him on a two out single through the right side to get VSU on the board 
  • Lock Haven would score runs in the fourth, sixth and seventh innings while holding the Trojans to limited opportunities with runners in scoring position 
  • Hastings moved to 0-1 on the year but ended his day with five innings pitched and six strikeouts 

GAME 2 LOCK HAVEN 8 VIRGINIA STATE 2 

  • LHU only needed three batters before they scored a run off a one out double to center field. The next batters were hit by the pitch and hit a single to load the bases. A walk and a sac fly would plate the next two run making the score 3-0 in the first inning  
  • The Bald Eagles would hit another sac fly in the top of the second inning making it 4-0, before finally going down in order in the third and fourth innings for the first time all day 
  • In the top of the fifth LHU would single to left, followed by a single to right but the batter was out a second that allowed the runner to who was on first to advance to third though. Two batters later a single through the right side would score him making it 5-0 
  • In the bottom half of the inning Jaylin Lovett walked and stole second with one out. Victor Johnson then hit a single to set up runners on the corners. Lovett and Johnson then performed a double steal to get VSU on the board. Thomas Moore then singled past the short stop to plater another making it 5-2 
  • In the top of the sixth the Bald Eagles would plate their final three runs with a single down the left field line, a stolen base and a double down the left field line 

The team is now 3-2 on the season and returns tomorrow to take on Lock Haven for another double header starting at 12 pm. 

Story courtesy govsutrojans.com

Builders Take Doubleheader from MACU in NSAC Opener

HAMPTON, Va. – The Apprentice School baseball team opened their 2024 season Wednesday with a doubleheader sweep of Mid-Atlantic Christian, winning 6-5 and 5-2 in the first two New South Athletic Conference games of the 2024 season.

GAME 1 – AS 6, MACU 5
After two scoreless innings to start the day, the Builders were first to the scoreboard as Hunter Johnson doubled down the right field line to push home Camden Weston for the game’s first run. The Mustangs came alive, though, in the fifth with a sacrifice fly to tie things up before taking advantage of three Apprentice errors in the sixth to push three more runs across for a 4-1 lead.

MACU scored its fifth run in the top of the seventh, but the Builders did not go quietly as they loaded up the bases with no one out for Weston to hammer a grand slam into the wind in left field to tie things up at 5-5. After Johnson found his way on base, Caleb Russell brought him home on a walk-off single to left to get the first win of the season.

Ryan Watson (1-0) got the win in relief of Logan Earley, who threw five innings of two-hit baseball, giving up just one run on the day.

GAME 2 – AS 5, MACU 2
MACU came out of the gates strong in the nightcap, plating both of their runs in the top of the first, but Apprentice had the last laugh of the day. Riggs Ellis got things started in the bottom of the first, plating Johnson on a RBI double in the left center gap to cut the lead in half. The bats went quiet until the fifth when the Builders poured it on. Johnson got the scoring started with a RBI single to tie things up. Ellis kept it going with a single through the left side to take the lead. Two batters later, Russell hit a sacrifice fly to stretch the lead out before Jeremy Harmon finished the scoring with a single right back up the middle.

Bryce Post (1-0) earned the win, throwing three innings of shutout baseball in relief, allowing just six hits.

Story courtesy gobuilders.com; Photo by Bill Stephan on Unsplash

MACU Season Ends with World Series Loss to Mont Alto

Penn State Mont Alto broke open a 3-2 lead with a seven-run sixth inning during the Small College World Series on Wednesday evening, defeating Mid-Atlantic Christian by a final of 10-2.

After walking the bases loaded with one out in the top of the first inning, Mont Alto starting pitcher Elijah Snyder was able to get out of the jam with a strike out and fly out to end the threat. Mont Alto would win the inning when Brady Bigler followed up a Jared Pine leadoff double with one of his own.

Following back-to-back strike outs to start the top of the second inning, MACU strung together two singles and Raine Franklin scored both runners on a double to left field. The Mustangs led 2-1 after one and a half. Mont Alto tied the game in the bottom of the fourth inning as Jarrett Goodyear got the inning started with a home run to right center field. Mont Alto would retake the lead in the home half of the fifth inning as Kyle McKeon started the inning off with a triple and Jared Pine scored him with a triple of his own down the right field line. Mont Alto led 3-2 after five innings of play.

Goodyear started off the sixth inning with a single to right, Blake Orndorff moved pinch runner Brady Cullen over to third on a double to set up a threat in the bottom of the sixth inning. Tyler Moreland walked to load the bases with one out. Braden Zeger got the scoring started in the inning with a RBI single. Pine would clear the bases on a miscue by the left fielder two batters later with two outs. Caiden Smith recorded a RBI single and Goodyear had a 2 RBI double as Mont Alto scored seven in the sixth inning on five hits and one error.

Luke Davis closed the door on the comeback attempt as Mont Alto kept their season alive with a 10-2 victory.

MACU ends its best baseball season to date with a 23-26 record and earned its first ever World Series win.

Story courtesy psumontaltoathletics.com. Image courtesy gomacumustangs.com

Tigers Down Mustangs in USCAA First Round

Tenth-seeded Salem had a huge 4th inning and handed 7th seed Mid-Atlantic Christian its first loss Monday night 15-3 in opening round play of the USCAA Small College World Series.

The Mustangs made the first mark on the scoreboard in the third, but Salem uncorked its offensive showcase in the 4th with a whopping 10 runs. The highlight of the inning was the 2-run homer from Jacob Hurley, and they also got RBI doubles from Jose Lojo and Tyler Shin. Luis Angarita also contributed an RBI single in the same inning.

After a Mustang rally in the 5th, Salem sealed the deal with another 5 runs in the 6th. Tyler Shinn doubled again with RBI to lead off the scoring, then Jacob Hurley chipped in a RBI single. After 6 innings, Salem controlled the game at 15-3, and that would be enough for them to advance in the tournament. On the pitcher’s mound, Frankie Gulko got his 7th win of the season with 6 innings of work, and he struck out 5 Mustang batters in the process.

This win advances Salem to the second round of the USCAA Small College World Series. In that round, they will take on the #2 Centurions of Bucks County Community College on Tuesday, May 16th at 11:15 AM in Dubois, Pennsylvania.

MACU falls to the losers bracket in the double-elimination tourney and will face 6th seed Atlantis Tuesday at 4:45 PM.

Story and image courtesy salemtigers.com/Erin Zappia

Salem, MACU to Meet in Small College World Series First Round

Two New South teams will square off on the first day of competition in this year’s USCAA World Series Baseball Tournament.

Mid-Atlantic Christian was seeded seventh by the USCAA on Sunday afternoon, but had to wait until Monday to learn its opponent. After a dramatic win to take home the NSAC crown on Sunday evening, the Salem baseball team came off the bubble and was tabbed as the #10 seed to face the Mustangs. First pitch will be at 2:45 PM on Monday, March 15th.

The USCAA World Series features the top 10 USCAA programs from across the country and is hosted in Dubois, Pennsylvania. The Tigers defeated the Mustangs in their only meeting this season, 17-2, on Saturday of the NSAC Tournament in Ettrick, Virginia.

Image courtesy salemtigers.com/Chris Waugaman

Salem Wins Four Straight to Take NSAC Title

After falling into the losers bracket with a loss to Virginia State on Friday, Salem bounced back with four straight wins on Saturday and Sunday to claim the New South Athletic Conference baseball title.

On Saturday, the Tigers slipped past Apprentice 5-4 and manhandled Mid-Atlantic Christian 17-2 to advance into Sunday’s finals, where they needed two wins over the host Trojans to take the trophy to West Virginia.

In Sunday’s game one, the Tigers opened up the scoring when Tyler Shinn had two RBI’s from a single and a sacrifice fly out bringing home Luis Angarita twice. Salem scored again in the 7th and 8th inning thanks to sacrificed fly outs from Angarita and Jacob Hurley which allowed Jose Lojo and Hayes Lightsey to score. In the 9th inning, five total runs were scored by a double from Hurley and a single from Aaron Forbes. This took the final score to 10-0 giving that Frankie Gulko and Tyler Salmons a scoreless game with 10 strikeouts between the two.

In the second game of the day, Virginia State came out of the gates strong scoring three runs in the 1st inning and two in the 2nd. Salem answered this by scoring three runs in the 3rd inning when Kaiden Zacharias doubled down the right field line earning 2 RBI’s and bringing home Angarita and Forbes. Shinn then singled up the middle scoring Zacharias. In the 8th inning the Tigers scored another three, Shinn ran home on an error, a sacrifice fly out from Forbes bought home Lightsey and Brett Ehr scored on a sacrificed bunt. In the last inning Ben Matos walked with the bases loaded, allowing Nathan Kuhn to score the walk off run and Salem the 7-6 win.

Congratulations, Salem Tigers!

Story and image courtesy salemtigers.com

Trojans, Tigers Advance to Sunday Championship

ETTRICK, VA – Joseph Hastings was absolutely dominant on the mound Saturday afternoon as he allowed just one hit and a walk through seven innings to lead Virginia State to a 3-1 victory over Mid-Atlantic Christian University and a berth to the New South Athletic Conference Championship on Sunday.

Hastings struck out six batters and took a no-hitter bid into the sixth inning before surrendering his first and only hit of the game. At the plate, the Trojans generated just enough offense, especially with Ricky Jones two-RBI single through the left side in the fourth.

The Trojans’ overall record improves to 21-27 and will play in the championship game of the NSAC Tournament at 1 p.m.

The Trojans avoided disaster in the bottom of the seventh to secure their place in the title game. A catcher’s interference call on the Trojans led to the bases being loaded with no outs. Avante Banks recorded the first out by catching a popup foul ball and Virginia State completed a very close double play (shortstop to second to first) to win the game. The Trojans are defending conference champions for a reason and Hastings and the defense showed why in the half-inning.

The four combined runs in this game all came in the fourth inning.

Virginia State led the inning off with four consecutive singles from Norman Jackson, Liam Simpson, Ricky Jones, and Dawsyn Hock. Jones scored Jackson and Simpson with his single and Hock’s hit up the middle brought Jones home.

The lone Mustang run was caused by a lone Trojans’ fielding error in the outfield that resulted in the runner advancing to third base and scoring on the next at-bat.

The Trojans are a win away from earning their second consecutive NSAC Championship.

After a tough loss on Friday evening, Salem had its work cut out in the elimination round. The Tigers faced off with the Builders of the Apprentice School, and picked up a dramatic 5-4 win. That win earned them a contest with the Mustangs of Mid-Atlantic Christian, and Salem ran away with that one with a dominant 17-2 victory.

The two wins today have earned the Tigers a spot in the NSAC Championship and a rematch with the Virginia State Trojans at 1 p.m. Sunday. Should Salem win, tht will force a second and deciding game starting 30 minutes after the close of the first game.

Story content and image courtesy govsutrojans.com and salemtigers.com

MACU’s Louis Named Baseball Coach of the Year

Mid-Atlantic Christian University’s Michael Louis has been named the 2023 NSAC Baseball Coach of the Year.

Louis, in his third season at the helm and fourth overall with the program, led his team to the best record in the program’s short history this season. Included in the victories was a series win over then-fifth ranked Atlantis, their first-ever win over rival Apprentice, and the program’s first no-hitter.

Coach Louis has led the Mustangs to back-to-back appearances in the USCAA National Tournament, has guided five USCAA All-Americans, and one USCAA Academic All-American. The guidance of Coach Louis has made an impact not just on the field but also in the classroom, as the Mustangs set a program record for highest team GPA recorded in 2022, and in the community with over 350 hours of community service registered by the team in 2022.

Louis has also been responsible for spearheading the relationship with Elizabeth City Parks and Recreation to make improvements to Holmes Field at Knobbs Creek, including visual improvements to the facility as well as to the outfield fence. Louis also has improved the fundraising arm of the program, raising over $40,000 for the improvement of the program in his two years.

Congratulations to Mike Louis, the New South Conference Coach of the Year!