Generals Take Down Braves With Stellar Offense
The Generals exploded Saturday night for 13 runs on 15 hits to take down one of the top teams in the South Division by a score of 13-5.
The scoring didn’t start until the third inning, but once the seal was broken, runs came in bunches. The top of the third belonged to the Braves as they tallied their first run. After they loaded the bases after two singles and a walk, Eli Davis hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield to get the Braves out in front.
The Generals would then bat around in the bottom half of the inning to regain the lead. Kobe Lopez (Florida International) would start things with a one-out single. His college teammate, Seth Cannady (Florida International) would also single. Elijah Quiceno (Gannon U) would hit a double down the left field line to bring in Lopez. Wes Clarke (South Carolina) would follow it up with a double of his own to bring in Cannady. Jackson Tate (Alabama) would drive one deep to right for a sacrifice fly to bring in Quiceno and allow Clarke to move into third base. Santiago Garcia (Alabama St) drilled a single in to centerfield to keep the line moving. Bryson Worrell (East Carolina) would pick up his first hit in a Generals uniform and would move into second base as the centerfielder tried to throw out Garcia at third base. After a dropped third strike, all the Braves needed to do to stop the bleeding was a throw from the catcher to first base. The throw was a wild one from the catcher and that allowed Garcia to score the final run of the inning. In total, the third inning saw the Gens score five runs on six hits and a Braves error to take the lead 5-1.
The scoring would halt again until the bottom of the 6th. The Generals got back on the scoreboard in a big way. Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast) would start things with a single. After a Kobe Lopez walk and a Seth Cannady single, the bases were loaded with nobody out. Elijah Quiceno would come up huge again, this time with a bases clearing double into left center. But the scoring wasn’t done there. Jack Murphy (St. Mary’s) got a pinch-hit opportunity and took the most of it by smoking a sinking liner into right field. It was enough to bring in Quiceno from second base for the final run of the inning. The Generals scored four runs to make the score 9-1.
The Braves would bounce back in the top of the 7th. They scored two off of reliever Zach Blankenship (Valdosta St) after not having much success of the lefty. Ryan McCarty would start things off with a lead-off triple to left center. He would be followed up nicely by newly-inserted Chet Moore, who drilled a double to right center. Chet would later come in to score on an RBI groundout. After 7 innings, the score would sit at 9-3.
The Gens would add some much needed insurance in the bottom of the 8th. They would score four runs, mostly off of RBI bases loaded walks to get the score to 13-3. But the Braves would score 2 runs in the top of the 9th to pull the score a bit closer, but that’s all they could muster. 13-5 was the final score.
Key Performers for Staunton:
Devon Adams: 2-2, BB, R
Chet Moore: 1-2, 2B, RBI, 2 R
Kent Rooklin: 1-4, RBI, BB
Key Performers for Waynesboro:
Elijah Quiceno (Gannon): 2-5, 2 2B, 5 RBI
Wes Clarke (South Carolina): 3-4, 2B, RBI
Seth Cannady (Florida International): 2-5, RBI, 2 R
Santi Garcia (Alabama St): 2-3, RBI, R
Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast): 2-4, R, RBI
Bryson Worrell (East Carolina): 2-4, R, RBI
The win moved the Generals to 6-3 while the loss dropped the Braves to 9-4. The Generals will be back in action on Sunday when they welcome the New Market Rebels for a double header tomorrow afternoon starting at 4 pm at Integrity Home Mortgage Park at Kate Collins Field.
Generals Move to 4-1 With Win Over New Market
A pair of four run innings broke things open in the early going for Waynesboro and they never really looked back. The Gens managed to score in six out of their nine offensive frames.
The first four run inning came in the very first frame. Kobe Lopez (Florida International) would get things started with a walk. Elijah Quiceno (Gannon U) would follow it up with a walk of his own, and Seth Cannady (Florida International) would load the bases with an infield single with nobody out in the inning. Wes Clarke (South Carolina) would get the scoring underway with an RBI single up the middle that the second baseman made a diving stab on but wasn’t able to come up with it cleanly. After a passed ball scored the second run of the inning, Jack Murphy (St. Mary’s) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to left field to drive in Cannady. Ethan Cady (East Tennessee State) would drive in the final run of the first inning to make the score 4-0.
After a quiet couple of innings, Waynesboro would get their second four run inning in the fourth. After a strikeout, single, and a fielder’s choice, the Gens had a runner on first and two outs. Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast) would single, Kobe Lopez would walk, and Elijah Quiceno would also draw a walk to bring in the first run of the inning. It also kept the bases loaded for Seth Cannady. Cannady drove one deep into the right centerfield gap to bring in all three runners to make the score 8-0 in favor of the Gens.
The outburst of runs would cause a pitching change for the Rebels, who wouldn’t completely lay down. In fact, they’d respond with a run in the bottom of the 4th inning. After a single and an error, by Brady Harju, Alvaro Valdez would drive in a run for the Rebels to make the score 8-1.
The top of the 5th came around and Waynesboro would make it 3 of the first 5 innings with runs scored. Jackson Tate (Alabama) would start things off with a 0ne-out double and a steal of third. That’s all Jackson Greene (Florida State) would need. He would hit a deep fly ball to left field for a sacrifice fly to get the Generals’ lead back to eight runs.
The Rebels answered once again in the bottom of the 5th. After a leadoff single and then two quick outs, they were able to put together a nice rally. The Generals would walk a batter, hit another with a pitch, and finally give up a run on an error. Alvaro Valdez would then be hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to bring in the second run of the inning. After 5 complete innings, the Generals held a 9-3 lead.
In the 6th inning, the Gens remained relentless. After two walks to lead off the inning, Wes Clarke (South Carolina) would drive in a run with another single. Later in that inning, Joe Kinker (Florida Gulf Coast) would pick up another run with an RBI groundout to shortstop. The score after 6 read 11-3.
The 7th inning would prove to be another inning with a run for the Generals. Christian Proffitt would pick up a one-out double down the right field line and would be moved to third later in the inning on a fielder’s choice. He was brought in by Seth Cannady’s second double of the ball game to make the score 12-3 in Rebel Field.
The 8th inning would mark the fifth straight inning that the Generals would score. After two walks and a hit-by-pitch loaded the bases with nobody out, Jackson Greene hit his second sacrifice fly of the ball game to get the Generals to the 13-3 mark. The Rebels would add two in the bottom of the 9th to make the score a bit more respectable, but it just seemed to be the Generals’ night.
Key Performers for New Market:
Alvaro Valdez: 1-2, HBP, 2 RBI
David Smith: 1-2, 2 BB, 2 R
Ramon Machado: 1-4, 2B, RBI, R
Key Performers for Waynesboro:
Seth Cannady (Florida International): 3-4, 2 2B, 4 RBI, 2 R
Wes Clarke (South Carolina): 3-5, 2 RBI, R
Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast): 3-4, 2B, 2 R
Jackson Tate (Alabama): 2-4, 2B, SB
Christian Dearman (Florida International): 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
The Generals move to 4-1 on the season and will be back in action Friday night when they travel to Charlottesville to take on the TomSox at C-VILLE Weekly Ballpark. First pitch is set for 7 PM.
Gens Suffer First Loss
Covington churned out nine runs on 12 hits to hand Waynesboro their first loss of the season Tuesday night in front of a nice crowd at Integrity Home Mortgage Park at Kate Collins Field.
Covington jumped out to a very early lead by scoring one in the top of the first inning. Christian Torres would sting a single to center field, move to second on a wild pitch, and score on a Matthew Cocciadiferro single to center. It was the first of four RBI on the night for Cocciadiferro.
Waynesboro would respond quickly in the bottom of the frame to tie the game at one. Kobe Lopez (Florida International) would lead off with a single that just got over the leaping second baseman. After the first out was recorded on a pop fly, Kobe would steal second base to get into scoring position. After a strikeout by Covington’s starter Bo Brutti, Wes Clarke (South Carolina) would deliver, like he has so many other times already this season, with a single up the middle to drive in Lopez.
The game remained close even after Covington scored a run in both the 3rd and 4th innings. In the 3rd, back-to-back singles and a runner moving up on a throw would have runners at second and third with one out. Christian Torres would drive in a run with a ground out to the second baseman. In the 4th, Tom Caufield would come up with a 2-out RBI single to get the score to 3-1.
Unfortunately for the Gens, the 5th inning was really the deciding factor. After a single and a walk to lead the inning off, a Matthew Cocciadiferro double into the left field corner drove in both runs. Cocciadiferro proceeded to steal third base and would be brought home on a single by Tyler Sanfilipo. Sanfilipo would be brought around to score on a double by Joe Fortin for the 4th run of the inning. Finally, Tom Caufield would come up with another 2-out RBI single to get the score to 8-1.
For good measure, Covington would add one more in the sixth inning to make it four straight frames with a run. Christian Torres would double, move to third on a wild pitch, and score on another RBI by Cocciadiferro. That brought the score to 9-1 after six complete innings.
Finally in the bottom of the 7th, the Generals were able to crack the code of Bo Brutti a bit. Elijah Quiceno (Gannon U) would lead off the inning getting hit by a pitch. Santiago Garcia (Alabama St.) would walk to get runners at first and second. Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast) then drilled a single to center field to drive in Quiceno for the first run of the inning. A few batters later, Seth Cannady (Florida International) would triple in two more runs to get the score to its final tally of 9-4.
Key Performers for Covington:
Matthew Cocciadiferro: 2-4, 2B, 4 RBI, SB
Christian Torres: 2-3, 2B, RBI, 3 R
Tom Caufield: 2-4, 2 RBI
Michael Rotenberry: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K
Key Performers for Waynesboro:
Wes Clarke (South Carolina): 3-4, 2B, RBI
Seth Cannady (Florida International): 1-2, 3B, 2 RBI
Christian Proffitt (Florida Gulf Coast): 1-2, RBI, 2 BB
Dylan Nix (Young Harris): 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K
Daniel Casto (Memphis): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
The Generals have Wednesday night off but will be back in action on Thursday night when they travel to Rebel Park to take on the Rebels. It will be the first time that head coach Zac Cole has been back to the field where he won the 2018 VBL Championship. First pitch is set for 7:30.
Offense Explodes for 12 Runs On 14 Hits
The Generals jumped all over Purcellville’s pitching staff tonight for 12 runs. The pitching staff for Waynesboro was equally impressive with 16 strikeouts.
After a clean top of the first, the Gens wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Kobe Lopez (Florida International) led off the game with a walk, worked his way to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a single by the second hitter, Joe Kinker (Florida Gulf Coast). Kinker would steal second base two pitches later and would move to third on an infield single by Elijah Quiceno (Gannon U) and then throwing error. Jackson Tate (Alabama) would ground into an RBI fielder’s choice to tack on the second run of the inning.
Purcellville would bounce back in the third inning with a run of their own. Things got started with a lead-off double by Kyle Hayes. He would be brought in to score two batters later on a single by Michael Brewer. Not to be outdone, the Generals would get the run right back in the bottom of the third. When Jackson Tate grounded into a fielder’s choice for the second out of the inning, it looked as if the Gens would go quietly. However, Wes Clarke (South Carolina) hit an RBI triple to deep centerfield. That brought the score back to a 2 run cushion of 3-1.
The game remained close until the bottom of the 5th. The Generals would strike for 5 runs to blow the game open. Cole Jackson (Young Harris) would start things out with an infield single. Jackson Tate would double down the left field line to put runners on second and third. Wes Clarke then singled to bring both runners in for the first 2 runs of the inning. After a fielder’s choice, a Cannons error, and a strikeout, Kobe Lopez would double off the wall in left field to bring both runners in. Kobe would score a few pitches later on a single by Joe Kinker again. The score now read 8-1.
The Generals would tack on another run in the 6th. Cole Jackson started things off with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch. After Wes Clarke walked, Jack Murphy (St. Mary’s) grounded into a fielder’s choice to bring in Cole Jackson.
The 7th inning proved to be another fruitful one for Waynesboro as they put up three more runs. Kobe Lopez would get a one-out infield single and would steal second when there was nobody around to cover the bag. Joe Kinker would reach on an error by the shortstop. Santiago Garcia (Alabama St.) stepped up in his pinch hit opportunity and drilled a two RBI single to right field after the right fielder missed the ball, allowing two runs and Garcia to get to third base. Cole Jackson would pick up his 3rd hit of the night to drive in Garcia to make the score 12-1.
The Cannons would add 3 runs in the top of the 8th, but overall, the pitching staff for the Gens was impressive as well. Eric Sapp (Gannon U) led the way with 5 strong innings where he struck out nine batters and picked up his first win of the season.
Key Performers for Purcellville:
Michael Brewer: 3-4, RBI, R
Jose Gutierrez: 2-4, 3B, 3 RBI
Key Performers for Waynesboro:
Kobe Lopez (Florida International): 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI, 3 R
Joe Kinker (Florida Gulf Coast): 2-4, 2 RBI, 2 R
Cole Jackson (Young Harris): 3-3, 2B, RBI, 2 R
Wes Clarke (South Carolina): 2-3, 3B, 3 RBI, 2 BB
Eric Sapp (Gannon U): W (1-0), 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K
Dylan Nix (Young Harris): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 K
The Generals will take tomorrow off but will be back in action at Integrity Home Mortgage Park at Kate Collins Field on Tuesday when the Covington Lumberjacks come back to town.
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.
Opening Night Win for Gens
After some early offensive struggles, the Gens pushed across 3 huge runs in the 5th inning to take the lead for good in their Opening Night win over Covington.
The Lumberjacks wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. After Waynesboro starter Deven Judy (Gannon University) walked 2 out of his first 3 hitters, Matthew Cocciadiferro drilled a single to right field to bring Pedro Nazario in to score. The lead for the Jacks was at 1-0 after one inning.
Both pitchers had the strikeout pitch working early on. Kristopher Davidson for Covington had six strikeouts in his first four innings, while Judy also struck out six in four innings.
The score stayed the same until the bottom of the 5th. After the first batter of the inning was retired, Jackson Tate (U of Alabama) singled to start things out. After Jackson Greene (Florida St.) was hit by a pitch and Kobe Lopez (Florida International) walked, Nick Neville (South Carolina) hit a bases loaded, two RBI single to left field. On the very next pitch, Joe Kinker (Florida Gulf Coast) singled to right center to drive in Kobe Lopez. The score after 5 complete innings read Waynesboro on top, 3-1.
That’s all reliever Zach Blankenship (Valdosta State) would need. He fired three innings, gave up an unearned run and struck out two to pick up his first win of the season.
The offense would continue to shine in the 6th. Elijah Quiceno (Gannon University) would hit a one-out single to right field. After moving to second on a wild pitch, Quiceno would be brought in to score on a double by Jackson Tate.
Needing an answer, the Lumberjacks would score an unearned run to pull the score back to 4-2. Jeff Taylor tapped a ball back to Blankenship on the mound, who airmailed first base and allowed Taylor to move into second base. Pedro Nazario would then single to center to drive in Taylor.
Unfortunately for Jacks fans, the General offense would continue to tack on runs in the bottom half of the 7th. After Joe Kinker walked to lead off the inning and moved to second on a ground out, Elijah Quiceno would come up with a 2-out single to score Kinker. That brought the score to 5-2 after seven complete innings.
McLain Harris (Young Harris College) would then come in and shut the door with a six out save. Four of the six outs he recorded were via the punch out.
Key Performers for Covington:
- Pedro Nazario: 1-2, 2 BB, R, RBI
- Kristopher Davidson: L (0-1), 5 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
Key Performers for Waynesboro:
- Jackson Tate (Alabama): 3-4, 2B, R, RBI, 2 SB
- Elijah Quiceno (Gannon): 2-4, R, RBI
- Deven Judy (Gannon): ND, 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K
- Zach Blankenship (Valdosta St): W (1-0), 3 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
- McLain Harris (Young Harris Col): SV (1), 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
Head Coach Zac Cole and his team will be back in action tomorrow night on the road vs. Harrisonburg.
