April 16, 2011

By Robert Stocks       

WINCHESTER- When James Wood's Daniel Garber grounded out to end the sixth inning Friday night, it was the first time Millbrook kept the Colonels' first baseman off the bases all game.

And at that point, Garber had already done his part to fill up the scorebook.

The senior went 3 for 4 with a walk and drove in five runs, and senior pitcher Matt Copley limited the Pioneers to just four hits in an 11-2 Northwestern District win at R. Charles Hott Field.

The victory snapped a four-game skid for the Colonels (3-6, 1-1), who hadn't won since a 10-6 home win over Hedgesville (W.Va.) on March 25.

"I'm just glad we won," Garber said. "That's the most important thing, to get off this losing streak. Overall, I think it was a good team win. Everyone contributed. The defense played well, and Copley got us out of some jams."

The Colonels led 4-2 through four innings, and then they broke the game open in the fifth.

Frank Minor led off the inning with a single, and Tyler Murphy followed with a double to right-center. A.J. Eubank got hit by a pitch from Millbrook starter Brady Baker (0-2) to load the bases, prompting Pioneers coach Brian Burke to bring in reliever Nick Strosnyder.

Copley got jammed by Strosynder, sending a slow grounder down the first base line, and the Pioneers forced out Minor at the plate for the second out. With the bases still loaded, Strosnyder walked Garret Cunningham to bring home Murphy.

Garber followed with a single, scoring Eubank and Copley to stretch the Colonels' lead to 7-2. Strosynder exited after walking Scott Johnson, and Daniel Nawrocki entered as the third pitcher in the inning for the Pioneers (0-8, 0-1).

Tyler Dick lifted a blooper down the right field line that dropped in, plating Cunningham and courtesy runner Kyle Hevner for a 9-2 lead.

Johnson scored after a wild pitch from Nawrocki, and Dick later scored on a bases-loaded walk to make it 11-2.

The Colonels sent 13 batters to the plate in the fifth, scoring seven runs (all of which came with two outs). James Wood left 10 runners on base, but that was the result of the Colonels loading the bases seven times.

"We've been struggling with getting runners in, and we tell them 'Get on, get them over, and get them in,'" James Wood coach Jared Mounts said. "We've left a lot of runners in scoring position [this year]. It's all about timely hitting, and we did that tonight."

Garber certainly took care of the timely hits when it was his turn. After singling to put James Wood ahead 2-0 in the bottom of the first, he drove in two more runs with a single in the second inning to stake James Wood to a 4-0 lead.

When Garber grounded out to end the bottom of the sixth, Mounts said he asked him what was wrong.

"With his last at bat there he got out and I asked if he needed runners on for him to get a hit," Mounts joked. "He was clutch tonight. Daniel was definitely clutch tonight. That's what we look for in our seniors, to come through like that."

While Garber provided the offensive leadership, Copley (2-2) proved to be just as tough on the mound. He went the distance, allowing just two unearned runs and striking out seven.

"Millbook was a great hitting team, and they knocked me around for probably about seven runs last year in a game," said Copley, who went 1 for 4 at the plate and scored two runs. "I was coming in the game expecting them to crush the ball, so I knew I had to hit my spots and keep it low. Otherwise, they'll take advantage of it. I think I did a pretty good job of keeping [the ball] down tonight."

Mounts said it was nice to see his team get the clutch hits, especially with Copley on the mound.

"Matt has always been a competitor but he's had tough luck," Mounts said. "It seems like every time he's been on the mound the last two years we've not given him run support and not made plays behind him. But he continues to go out and battle and throw hard, so we were glad to see him throw a complete game tonight."

Millbrook's three pitchers combined for five walks and three hit-batsmen, and the Pioneers' defense committed four errors.

"The wheels definitely came off in the fifth inning, and I'm embarrassed by the way we played in the fifth inning," Burke said. "This team just folds under pressure right now. It's been tough."

Junior Jeremiah Eaton went 2 for 3 and scored both runs for the Pioneers. Baker and Nawrocki each added a double.

"Hats off to [James Wood]. They battled at the plate, they were disciplined at the plate, and they knew to hit strikes, and that's the difference between a good team and a bad team," Burke said. "Right now, we're far from being a good team.

"... There's still a long way to go in district play and it can still be anyone's district. We can be down all we want, but we have to remember we have a lot of district games left to play."

The Colonels finished with 10 hits. Murphy went 2 for 3 with a walk, an RBI and two runs, and Minor went 2 for 4. Eubank went 1 for 4 from the leadoff spot, but he got on base three times (after an error and being hit by a pitch) and scored three runs.