By Lonnie Turner
Dillon Meat Center’s #13 pitches to the Justice Rangers on Thursday night. (Photos by Johnnie Daniels/THE DILLON HERALD.)
In the Minor League, the Pepsi-Cola Blue Jays (5-1) can clinch the regular season championship with a win over the McLeod Health Marlins (2-4) Monday evening or the Burger King Blue Jays on Thursday. The second place Physicians Healthcare Pirates (4-2) are one game behind the Jays in the loss column and will play the True Value Tigers on Thursday and Burger King Braves on Friday.
Here’s a summary of the last week’s action at the Kiwanis/Lecholop Park:
MAJOR LEAGUE
Thursday, May 23
Dillon Meat Center Reds 4, Internal Medicine Hurricanes 3
The Reds scored two runs in the fifth to break a 2-2 tie and held on to defeat the Hurricanes, 4-3, in Thursday’s Minor League game. Barnes Causey started rally for the Reds with a base hit and scored on an error after Noah Henderson beat out a bunt single. Collin Hamilton followed with a ground out that sent Henderson home to take a 4-2 lead. For the Canes, Ryan Stephens singled to lead off the bottom of the fifth and scored on Dray Thompson’s ground out to second base to end the game. It was Dray Thompson who hit his fourth home run of the season and Jared Darmon who singled and scored to tie the game at the end of four. Hunter Pittman had an RBI single and back to back singles by Jerdarius McDaniel and Micah Garcia highlighted the fourth inning for the Reds. McDaniel had another hit to go 2 for 2 and for the Hurricanes Keith Rippy added a base hit. Pittman was the winning pitcher and Darmon took the loss.
Friday, May 24
Hurricanes 4, James Lockemy Rangers 2
Jackson pitched and hit his way to a 4-2 victory over the Rangers in five innings in Friday’s first Major League game. His two run homer in the bottom of the fifth seled the victory after the Rangers had tied the game in the second. Jackson allowed only 2 hits in relief of Jared Darmon, who left the mound leading 2-0. Kobe King’s 2-run double drove home Cooper Schilsky and Richard Alderman to tie the game for the Rangers, John Rourke and Tristian Brigman also had hits in a losing cause. Jackson also had a double to drive in the first run of the game and Dee Brown was a perfect 2 for 2 for the Canes. Ryan Stephens had an RBI single and Darmon added a double in three trips to the plate. Joseph Desser also cotributed a single for the winners
Dillon Family Dental Giants 2, Reds 1
The Giants defeated the Reds in a nail-biter in the late game on Friday in another great pitchers duel between Nick Evans and Noah Henderson. Darmon threw a no-hitter throuugh six innings allowing only six base runners of which three were bases on balls, while Henderson allowed only one hit, coming in the first inning. In fact all the scoring in the game was done in the first at bat for each team. Mason Bailey reached first on an error and scored the first run for the Giants on a fielder’s choice Corbin Wethington’s ground out later in the inning scored Hunter Lane, who had walked. The only hit in the game was by Evans in the first.
Monday, May 27
Hurricanes 8, Giants 7
The Hurricanes scored 4 times in the last inning to go ahead of the Giants, 8-5, but the Giants battled back in the bottom of the inning falling a run short of tying the game. Mason Bailey, who had three hits for the Giants, hit his third single with Chandler Matthews on board and Hunter Lane sent him home with a solid double. Lane was called out at third trying to stretch the two-bagger into a triple. Jackson Hayes, the winning pitcher, settled down to get the final out with two winning runners still on base. Lading hitters for the Hurricanes were Dray Thompson (Double, 2 RBIs), Hayes (Single), Dee Brown (Single, 2 RBIs) and Keith Rippy (Single, RBI). In addition to Bailey’s three hits, Lane connected for two doubles and Corbin Wethington added an in the park home run with two Mates on board.
Thursday, May 30
Reds 4, Rangers 1
Hunter Pittman threw a three hitter at the Rangers while his teammates were doing their thing at the plate in the Reds’ 4-1 win on Thursday. Consecutive hits by Barnes Causey, Noah Henderson and Chase Dudney led to four runs in the first inning. Collin Hamilton was on base after being hit by a pitch when Dudney singled. The Rangers picked away at the lead with a run in the first and two in the third, but Hunter Pittman struck out two of the four batters that he faced in the fourth to get the win. Jared Ive added a single for the winners and with one hit apiece for the Rangers were John Rourke (Single, 2 RBIs), Cooper Schilsky and Richard Alderman with singles. Bobe King, starting pitcher for the Rangers, was he losing pitcher.
Friday, May 31
Rangers 16, Giants 0
The Rangers up-ended the Giants, 16-0, in five innings on Friday pounding out nine hits and taking advantage of eight bases on balls. Cooper Schilsky led the hitting attack with three hits, including an RBI triple and Richard Alderman also tripled and singled to drive in two more runs. Tristian Brigman pitched four perfect innings facing the minimum of 12 batters, but had to leave the mound because his weekly innings ran out on him. Pitchers in DYB are only allowed to pitch six innings in a week, unless a game goes seven innings. John Rourke issued a walk to Carson Sloan in relief, but struck out the other three he faced in the final inning falling one batter short of a perfect game. Others hitting safely for the Rangers were Kolby Watts (Double, 2 RBIs), Rourke (Single, RBI), Josh Sessions (Single) and Kobe King (Single).
Reds 10, Hurricanes 4
The Reds had their hitting shoes on in Friday’s second game as they belted out 13 hits, including five extra base hits in a 10-4 win over the Hurricanes. JerDarius McDaniel had his most productive game of the season with his bat hitting a double and an RBI single in two trips to the plate. Malachi Bember was also perfect with two hits in two at-bats and Barnes Causey was 2 for 3 with an RBI in his lead-off position. Other Reds with hits were Jamarius “Endzone” Bethea (Triple, 2 RBIs),Micah Garcia (Triple 2 RBIs), Jared Ivey (Triple), Chase Dudney (Single, 2 RBIs), Noah Henderson (Single), Collin Hamilton (Single, RBI) and Connor Hyatt (Double). For the Huricanes Dray Tompson and Jared Darmon were 2 for 2 and Dee Brown collected a two-run double to lead the way. Trent McNeill also singled for the Canes. Henderson was the winning pitcherand Darmon was tagged with the loss.
Photos by Johnnie Daniels/THE DILLON HERALD. Click images below to view at full size!
