Generals Advance to VBL Finals with 2-0 Win Over Covington
The Waynesboro Generals have advanced to the Valley League Championship after a 2-0 road victory over the Covington Lumberjacks. With the win, the Generals sweep the Lumberjacks in the South Division Championship series two games to zero.
Vince Braman pitched a complete game shutout, the second by a Generals’ pitcher this postseason, on his way to earning his sixth win in as many starts this summer.
The offense for the Generals was held mostly in check as the team was only able to muster two runs in the top of the seventh inning. After a single by Andrew Bullock and a double by Kyle Jackson, a wild pitch allowed Bullock to score the game’s first run. T.J. Condon followed with an RBI single, Waynesboro’s lone RBI on the night, to score Jackson and make it 2-0 Waynesboro. The slim two run lead would hold for the road team as they would escape with the game and series victory.
Braman held the Covington offense completely in check throughout the evening, allowing only five hits in the game. He also finished with just one walk and six performances in his dominating performance.
UP NEXT: The Generals await the winner of the North Division Championship series between Front Royal and Strasburg. Game 1 will take place the day after their series concludes.
Six Generals Named to All-Valley League Team, Sterry Named VBL MVP
Six Generals were named to the All-Valley League team, including Zach Sterry who was named Valley League MVP.
Six Waynesboro Generals have been honored as members of the All-Valley League Team that was announced Monday. Zach Sterry (1st Team), T.J. Condon (1st), Tanner Poole (1st), Vince Braman (2nd), Campbell Scholl (2nd), and Zach Neff (2nd) were the six players that represented Waynesboro on the team.
Sterry was also named the league MVP after the first baseman finished the year fourth in batting with a .350 average and leading the league in home runs (13), doubles (14), RBIs (41), and slugging percentage (.734).
Catcher T.J. Condon finished the year with a .307 batting average, 3 home runs, and 15 RBIs. He also committed only three errors behind the plate all season. Center Fielder Tanner Poole was second on the team with a .333 batting average and six home runs, while leading the team in runs scored (49), hits (52), triples (5), and stolen bases (21).
Starting pitcher Vince Braman was 5-0 in five starts during the summer and had a 3.37 ERA. Campbell Scholl, also a starting pitcher, was 2-0 in six starts and was tied for the league lead with a 1.04 ERA. Reliever Zach Neff was 4-1 in his eight appearances out of the bullpen with one save while also striking out 18 batters.
Waynesboro led all teams with six selections to the All-Valley League team, followed by the Strasburg Express with five.
Generals Top Turks at Home 10-3
Vince Braman had a strong eight inning start in the 10-3 victory over Harrisonburg.
The Waynesboro Generals (24-10) defeated the Harrisonburg Turks (23-12) Monday night at home by a score of 10-3.
The Generals scored their ten runs using eighteen hits where all but one starter had a base hit in the game. With the win, the Generals extend their South division lead to 1.5 games.
Harrisonburg struck first in the top of the first inning after back to back doubles put them ahead 1-0. The lead did not last long, though, as the Generals tied the game in the bottom of the inning. Tanner Poole led off with a single, and a misplay by the center fielder allowed him to advance to third. Sam Palensky drove him home with an RBI single to tie the game at 1 a piece.
Waynesboro would break the tie quickly in the bottom of the second, exploding for six runs to make it 7-1. After Eli Putnam reached on a single, Kyle Jackson hit an RBI triple to give the team a 2-1 lead. T.J. Condon followed with an RBI double to score Jackson to make it 3-1. Then, a throwing error by Harrisonburg pitcher Donte Lindsay on a Tanner Poole bunt allowed two more General runs to score. Trey Stine had an RBI single later in the inning and another misplay by the center fielder allowed another run to score stretching the lead to 7-1.
More Harrisonburg miscues would allow two more Waynesboro runs to score in the bottom of the third. A throwing error on a double play attempt allowed Brent Sakurai to score, and Stine delivered another RBI single to make the score 9-1.
Mason George would hit a two-run home run in the seventh for Harrisonburg to cut the lead to 9-3, and Charles Zaloumis delivered an RBI single in the eighth, making the final score 10-3.
Vince Braman had a strong start on the mound, going eight full innings while only allowing three runs on five hits. He walked two and struck out eight batters in earning the victory. Vazquez pitched a perfect ninth inning with one strikeout.
Coach Williams’ Player of the Game: SP Vince Braman (8.0 IP, 3 R, 5 H, 2 BB, 8 SO)
UP NEXT: The Generals are off on Tuesday before traveling to Covington Wednesday to face the Lumberjacks.
