Clarke Homers and Gens Win 6-1

The Generals’ offense was relentless in their 6-1 win over the Turks on Saturday night. They scored in five of their nine offensive frames with nine hits.

Scoring started in the second inning for the Gens. They loaded the bases thanks to a hit-by-pitch, a walk, and a Seth Cannady (Florida International) single. Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast) grounded into a fielder’s choice to bring in Santiago Garcia (Alabama St) for the first run of the game. Kobe Lopez (Florida International) kept the line moving with his RBI single to bring in Wes Clarke (South Carolina) to make the score 2-0 in favor of the Generals.

The Gens would get back on the scoreboard in the 4th when Wes Clarke hit his first homer of the season on the second pitch of the inning. He blistered the ball over the right-center field wall for the first home run hit by a General this season.

In the 5th, the Generals would get on the board again. Elijah Quiceno (Gannon U) drilled a one-out double and was brought in on the very next pitch. Ethan Cady (East Tennessee State) singled to put the Gens up 4-0.

The 6th inning got off to a slow start with the first two batters being retired, but when Christian Proffitt drew a two-out walk, the Gens would put together a nice two out rally. Kobe Lopez would follow up with his second single of the night, Joe Kinker (Florida Gulf Coast) would load the bases with a walk, and Elijah Quiceno drew a bases loaded walk to bring in Proffitt. This made the score 5-0 after six complete innings

The 7th inning would make it four straight innings that the Gens would push one run across. They did their damage with two outs in the inning just as they had done in the 6th. This time it was Wes Clarke with a two-out double. He would move to third on a wild pitch and then come in to score on a Seth Cannady single to make the score 6-0.

The Turks would add a run in the bottom of the 9th to make it 6-1, but for Harrisonburg it was a story of missed opportunities. They pumped out seven hits, they were walked seven times, and they also had one hit batsman. Not only did they just get runners on, they also got them into scoring position plenty of times. They stole two bases and only struck out four times as a team. They just could never come up with that situational hit, so a ton of credit has to go to the pitching staff for working through pressure packed situations all night.

Key Performers for Harrisonburg:

Travis Reifsnider: 2-2, BB, HBP

McCann Mellett: 1-3, RBI, SB

Key Performers for Waynesboro:

Kobe Lopez (FIU): 2-4, RBI, BB

Wes Clarke (South Carolina): 2-3, 2B, HR, RBI, 3 R

Seth Cannady (FIU): 2-4, RBI

Alex Tyson (Valdosta St): 4 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB

Bailey Wimberley (Memphis): 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K

The Generals are back in action Sunday night when they welcome the Purcellville Cannons to Integrity Home Mortgage Park at Kate Collins Field. First pitch is set for 7 pm.