Raiders Pull Off Big Win Behind Strange's 14K's
In a battle for Dulles District supremacy Tuesday night, the Loudoun County Raiders came to Broad Run with one goal....to take over the top spot in the District standings. The Spartans, holding onto a slim one game lead over the Raiders, needed to find the offensive magic that was instrumental in their 5-0 start of the season, but has escaped them in the last 4 outings. With such an important game for each team, both coaches....Tom Lucero of the Raiders, the cagey veteran, and Pat Cassidy of the Spartans, the defensive strategist....would pull no punches on this night! Each team planted their aces on the hill...Cole Shain for the Spartans, and Joe Strange for the Raiders....in an attempt to minimize each other's offense. The strategy worked for both teams, until the mid way point.
After only allowing 2 hits and 2 walks in the 1st 3 innings, Strange got into trouble in the bottom of the 4th. After a lead-off strike out, Broad Run's Andrew Mann reached on an error. Chase Bartalone followed that up with a sharply hit single just out of the reach of the Loudoun County 2nd baseman. With runners on 1st and 2nd, Dustin Craig drew a controversial hit-by-pitch, to load the bases for the Spartan's top RBI man, Steven Hershey. And he did not disappoint the home crowd! Hershey proceeded to drive the 2nd pitch he saw right back up the middle, for a 2 run single, and the games first runs, and lead. Strange settled down from that point, and struck out the next 2 Spartan hitters to retire the inning. But the damage was done, and everyone knew, by the way these 2 pitchers were performing, that this could very well be the final outcome, as Shain, too, was sitting on a 2 hit shut out of his own! But the Raiders were not to be denied.....
In the top of the 5th inning, 1 error and 1 misplayed ball would be the Spartan's undoing. County's Eric Prinz ignited the spark for the Raiders, leading off with a hard hit single up the middle. After retiring the next batter, Taylor Lambke reached 1st base on the Spartan throwing error. Lead-off batter, and top Raider hitter, Bret Tagg then drove a looping single into shallow right field to load the bases. Shain then got Alex Anderson to fly out, and with 2 outs, Kevin Kabernagle hit the 3rd pitch he saw to the deepest part of the field, with a 2 run double. The 3rd run scored on the cut-off miscue, during the play, and Kabernagle advanced to 3rd, to give the Raiders the 1 run lead, which they would not relinquish the rest of the game.
The Spartans threatened to tie the game, or go ahead, in each of the 6th and 7th innings, but Strange would pitch out of both jams, to go the distance, and record the complete game victory. The County win puts both teams at 5-1 in the Dulles District standings, but with the win, the Raiders hold the head-to-head tie breaker, and the lead in the standings. Both teams play each other again, at Loudoun County, on May 11, 2 games before the Dulles District tournament, and could very well be for the regular season crown, going in.
Noteable Performers:
Loudoun County
Joe Strange - 7 innings pitched, 4 hits, 13 K's
Eric Prinz - 2-3, 1 run scored
Bret Tagg - 2-4, 1 run scored
Kevin Kabernagle - 2 RBI's
Broad Run
Steven Hershey - 2-4, 2 RBI's
Chase Bartalone - 1-3, 1 run scored
Ryan Diviney - 1-3
