Larsen Leads Valley To 10th Straight Win
PURCELLVILLE, VA - After two road victories in the past two days, the Vikings were back in the friendly confines of Fireman's Field. The Vikes made it ten in a row as they defeated the Culpeper Blue Devils 10-2.
Junior Carl Larsen was on the bump to get the win. Larsen pitched five complete innings not allowing a hit until the 5th inning. He allowed two runs (only one earned) on three hits while striking out four Culpeper hitters. Senior Daniel Burke pitched the final two innings. Burke gave up two hits and struck out three hitters. Both Larsen and Burke have provided quality innings to the Viking pitching staff during the second half of the season.
The Viking offense put up three runs in the bottom of the 1st inning. Senior Iain Mottice led off with a triple down the right field line. Senior Wes Walker hit a hard grounder to shortstop to plate Mottice. The Vikings added two more runs when starting pitcher Matt Norkowski walked the next six of seven hitters for a 3-0 Valley lead.
In the bottom of the 2nd inning, the Vikings would add another run on back to back doubles from junior Alex Owens and freshman Matt Reed.
In the bottom of the 3rd inning, the Vikings broke the game open scoring four more runs. With one out, junior Daniel Fleming hit a double down the left field line. Senior Tyler Huffman followed with an RBI single to score Fleming. Mottice followed with a single and both Huffman and Mottice would advance into scoring position on a wild pitch. Walker hit a sacrifice fly RBI scoring Huffman. Owens followed with a double to centerfield scoring Mottice and Reed hit an RBI single to score Owens for an 8-0 Valley lead.
With a comfortable lead, Coach Wayne Todd made several substitutions in the field. In the bottom of the 4th inning, senior Trey Clark would reach on a walk. Freshman JJ Sarty followed with a single. Huffman got his second hit of the night plating Clark. With runners on 1st and 3rd base, junior Alexander Barr hit into a fielder's choice to score Fleming from 3rd base for a 10-0 Valley lead.
The Vikings end their 2009 regular season on a ten game winning streak as they prepare for the district playoffs which begin on Monday, May 18. The Vikings improve to 13-7 and 9-5 in the Cedar Run District. The Vikings are currently tied for second place with Osbourn High School who has an identical record.
A few other teams still have a couple of games remaining so the district playoff pairings are to still to be determined. The top four teams in the district will play their first playoff game at home with the semifinals and finals being played at Battlefield High School. Only two teams from the district will advance to the Northwest Region playoffs. Having won the regular season title, Osbourn Park receives an automatic bid.
VIKING HIGHLIGHTS:
Junior Carl Larsen: 5 IP, 4K's, 3 hits, 1 ER, 2BB
Senior Daniel Burke: 2 IP, 3K's, 2 hits
Senior Iain Mottice : 2-3, triple, 2 runs
Senior Tyler Huffman: 2-4, 1 run, 2 RBI's
Senior Trey Clark: 1-1, walk, 1 run
Junior Alex Owens: 2-2, 2 doubles, BB, 3 runs
Junior Daniel Fleming: 1-1, double, BB, 1 run
Freshman Matt Reed: 2-3, double, BB, 1 run, 2 RBI's
Freshman JJ Sarty: 1-2, 1 run, SB
