THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 10, 1995 TAG: 9506100426
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
Clutch hitting proved to be the difference in the Group AA state baseball semifinals Friday. Courtland got it, Nansemond River didn't.
No. 9 hitter Jason Ogle lined a Jason Taylor 0-2 fastball into leftfield for a two-run single, lifting the Cougars to a 5-3 victory over the Warriors at Nansemond River.
The Eagles (23-2) will host today's Amherst-Brookfield winner on Tuesday in the state final. Nansemond River, in the state semifinals for the first time in the school's five-year history, finished 20-6.
Ogle's RBI single erased a 2-1 Nansemond River lead and was cited as the turning point by Nansemond River coach Phil Braswell.
``That really hurt,'' he said.
The hit was especially sweet for Ogle, who said after the game he hadn't been hitting much of anything of late.
``I'd really been in a slump,'' he said. ``I guess I'm out of it now.''
The Eagles added two more runs in the fifth, then relied on the pitching of Jeff Kepler (11-1), who didn't have his best stuff but went the distance and limited the Warriors to just four hits.
``The only pitch I could get over was my fastball,'' Kepler said. ``But as long as I got it down, I knew I had my defense behind me. ``Our defense is the best in the state.''
The Warriors, on the other hand, had an off day in the field. Usually reliable shortstop J.C. Caperton committed two errors, or one more than he made in 61 chances during the regular season.
And two of the Eagles runs scored on wild pitches, one by Taylor and another by reliever Brad Little.
But it was at the plate where Nansemond River really struggled. The Warriors got the leadoff man on in every inning except the fifth, but continually failed to deliver with men on base. The Warriors stranded nine baserunners and twice failed to capitalize with runners on second and third and only one out.
``We got the guys on,'' Nansemond River coach Phil Braswell said. ``We just couldn't get the hits when we needed them.''
Warriors rightfielder John Drames was the exception, as he contributed a pair of RBI singles.
``We didn't come out here ready to play,'' Drames said. ``We were kind of lazy. Then we fell apart until the last inning.''
Trailing, 5-2, the Warriors got the first two runners on in the final inning. One out later, Drames drove in Donald Turner to cut the Eagles' lead to two. But Kevin McCormick bounced out to Kepler, and Mike Byrum flied out to medium-deep center to end the game.
Turner, a first-team all-region pick, scored all three Nansemond River runs.
Taylor (5-2) went 4 2/3 innings and was charged with all five runs. He left with two runners on in the fifth. One scored when reliever Brad Little uncorked a wild pitch. Little then walked No. 8 hitter Joel Bencs with the bases loaded to force in the other run.
Cody Flowers took over for Little in the sixth and pitched the final two innings for the Warriors without allowing a run, but the damage was already done. MEMO: Game summary/C5
ILLUSTRATION: GARY C. KNAPP
Joel Bencs of Courtland reaches for the ball as Donald Turner of
Nansemond River reaches first base safely. Courtland advanced to the
Group AA state baseball final on Tuesday.
by CNB