WINCHESTER, Va. – The number 17 Shenandoah Hornets welcomed the leaders of the ODAC into Winchester for an important conference doubleheader. The Hornets took game one by a score of 10-4 before falling in the nightcap 8-4.
Connor Houser led the way offensively for the Hornets with five hits in the day.
Jaime Padilla had two hits with a big fly in game two to dead center.
Kyle Garrett picked up three hits on the afternoon making the start in right.
Jacob Bell went 6 innings in game one to pick up the win with
Joey Mitchell getting securing the final four outs of the game.
Nick Bell started game two and went 5.1 innings in the loss giving up seven runs,
Parker Farrington came in for the next 3.1 innings and gave up one run and four hits.
Game One:
Winning Pitcher:
Jacob Bell (5-2)
Losing Pitcher: Wyatt Stanley (2-2)
Top Numbers:
Haden Madagan: 3-5, 2 RBI, 1 SB
Chandler Ballenger: 2-5, 2 runs scored, 4 RBI, 1 home run
Pearce Bucher: 2-5, 1 run scored, 1 RBI
Connor Houser: 2-4, 1 run scored, 1 RBI
Kyle Garrett: 2-5, 1 run scored, 1 double
Jacob Bell: winning pitcher, 6 IP, 7 hits, 4 R, 4 ER, 6 strikeouts, 2 walks
Ricky Snyder: 1.1 IP, 2 hits
Joey Mitchell: 1.1 IP, 0 hits, 3 strikeouts
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Jacob Bell got the start for the Hornets cruised through the top of the Yellow Jackets lineup and retired all three batters in order.
- In the bottom of the first, Frankie Ritter and Jaime Padilla got hit by pitches before Chandler Ballenger singled through the right side to load the bases. However, the Yellow Jacket pitcher got the next three Hornets to strike out to end the inning.
- Randolph-Macon struck first with a leadoff home run in the second, but Bell settled down to retire the next three batters.
- The Hornets put a crooked number up in their half of the second, with one out, Kyle Garrett singled through the right side. A pitch hit Luke Keister before Frankie Ritter walked to load the bases. Jaime Padilla flew out to center but scored Garrett to tie the game. Chandler Ballenger blasted a shot to right to clear the bases and give the Hornets a 4-1 lead. Pearce Bucher and Haden Madagan singled before Connor Houser singled to right center to score Bucher.
- In the third, Bell surrendered a leadoff single but then got the next batter to strike out looking. Macon then hit a double down the line to put runners on second and third with one out. Bell got a line out to center, not deep enough to score the run, but then gave up a first-pitch single to score two. With two outs, Bell gave up his first walk of the game to put two runners on, a single brought home another run to make it a 5-4 game, but Bell got a much-needed strikeout to end the inning.
- Macon got the shutdown inning they needed, giving up a single to Luke Keister, but the Hornets could not get anything else going and left the runner stranded.
- Randolph-Macon picked up a leadoff single in the fourth, but a ground ball double play to Ritter erased that threat. Bell easily got the last out to get out of the inning.
- After surrendering a one-out single, Bell induced an around-the-horn double play ball to escape any further damage.
- The Hornets batted around in the fifth starting with Connor Houser leading off with a single and his second hit of the game. Brody Pickette followed that with a single. Ritter was hit for the second time to load the bases. Padilla singled to center field to score a run. Ballenger reached on an error to third as another run came across. Back-to-back hits from Bucher and Madagan made it a 10-4 game.
- Bell gave up a one-out walk in the sixth but then got the next two batters to get out of the inning. He ended his day with 6 innings pitched, seven hits, four runs, and six strikeouts.
- Kyle Garrett led the sixth off with a double that bounced off the wall. Matt House sacrificed him to third before Jaime Padilla walked, but Chandler Ballenger was robbed of extra bases on a line out to center.
- Ricky Snyder came in for relief for Jacob Bell and after giving up a leadoff single, got a ground ball double play and an easy fly out to left to end the inning.
- Haden Madagan blasted his third hit of the game through the left side and stole second base, but was left stranded in scoring position as the Hornets still led 10-4.
- Ricky Snyder gave a hit in the eighth and then retired the next batter before giving way to Jackson Sherman. Sherman got a deep fly out to right field before walking the next batter to put two on with two outs. Sherman walked the bases loaded before giving way to Joey Mitchell who threw four pitches to leave the bases loaded.
- Mitchell completed the four-out save and retired the Yellow Jackets in order to finish the game.
Game Two
Winning Pitcher: Drew Ramos (6-0)
Losing Pitcher:
Nick Bell (2-2)
Save: Sam Slevin (6)
Top Numbers:
Connor Houser: 3-4, 1 RBI
Jaime Padilla: 1-2, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI, 1 home run, 2 walks, 1 HBP
Frankie Ritter: 1-5, 1 RBI
Pearce Bucher: 0-3, 1 RBI, 1 walk, 1 sac fly
Parker Farrington: 3.1 innings pitch, 4 hits, 1 R, 1 ER
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Nick Bell got the start for the Hornets and walked the first two batters, and after back-to-back fly outs to right, the Yellow Jackets grabbed a 1-0 lead. Bell got the last out of the inning with a strikeout and escaped further damage.
- Macon got the Hornets to retire in their half of the first in order, and Macon took a 1-0 lead heading to the second.
- Macon led the second off with a ground-rule double to left center, and that runner advanced to third on a wild pitch. A walk, put two runners on, before a ground out to third. However, a double to left field plated both runners. Another single up the middle made it a 4-0 game.
- Connor Houser was a two-out base runner with a single through the right side but was left stranded at first.
- Bell worked around a walk and a hit in the third, highlighted by picking the batter he walked off at first in a run-down, Bell to Ballenger to Ritter, and back to Ballenger for the tag.
- Bell got the first batter in the fourth to strikeout, before surrendering a double down the line. Bell got the next batter to strikeout, but he reached first on a wild pitch, the run came around to score on an error and it was a 5-1 game.
- Jaime Padilla led the Hornets off in the fourth with a monster shot to center field that went 104 mph off the bat and went 401 feet over the center field fence. Chandler Ballenger followed that up with a deep drive to center that the center fielder was able to track down. Macon got out of the inning with just the one run on two balls drilled up the middle, but the pitcher speared both of them to retire the side.
- Macon picked up a hit in the fifth, but that runner was erased trying to steal second.
- Connor Houser picked up his second hit of the game in the fifth and moved to second on the single from Brody Pickette. Jackson Foreman came as a pinch hitter and stayed in the game to play second, but went down on strikes. Frankie Ritter popped a ball up to no man's land in center, but the second baseman tracked down to end the threat.
- Nick Bell started the sixth, walked the leadoff man, and then on the sacrifice bunt attempt, the runner beat the throw to put two on with no outs. Macon then sacrificed the next batter to put the runners in scoring position. Nick Bell was lifted for Parker Farrington. Farrington got the first batter to fly to center, but the next batter cleared the bases with a two-out triple to the ally in right center.
- In the sixth, the Hornets got two runners on with walks from Jaime Padilla and Pearce Bucher. Connor Houser picked up an RBI single with his third hit of the game through the right side, but that was all Shenandoah could get. Heading to the seventh, it was 7-2 Randolph-Macon.
- Farrington breezed through the Yellow Jackets in the seventh to retire the side in order, highlighted by a beautiful play by Farrington on a swinging bunt by Macon.
- Brody Pickette led the seventh off with a full-count walk, Jackson Foreman, who entered as a pinch hitter, singled to right center as Pickette went to third. Frankie Ritter lined a ball to left field to score Pickette, as two runners were on with nobody out, forcing Macon to go to the bullpen. Jaime Padilla drew a four-pitch watch to load the bases. Pearce Bucher lined out to center, but deep enough to score Foreman.
- Parker Farrington worked around two walks in the eighth but stranded both of those runners and escaped any more runs from the Yellow Jackets.
- Kyle Garrett singled with an out in the bottom of the eighth, but back-to-back strikeouts ended the threat for the Hornets.
- Macon had three straight singles in the ninth with two outs before Farrington walked a batter giving way to Jacob Gilbert. On Gilbert's second pitch, it went all the way to backstop but bounced right back to Pickette who chased the runner down to end the inning.
- In the ninth, Frankie Ritter led off with a sinking line drive to left, that was caught. Jaime Padilla got hit by a pitch before Chandler Ballenger singled to left field to put two runners on. Pearce Bucher grounded back to the pitcher, who had the ball kick off him, but still made the play at first, but advanced the runners. Macon got the final out of the game on a strikeout, and the Hornets fell in game two 8-4.
UP NEXT:
It's a quick turnaround for the Hornets as they will hit the road tomorrow for a non-conference game with Elizabethtown. First pitch for that game will be at 3:30 pm.
#GoSUHornets
