It’s not easy beating anyone when you have just two hits. Monticello had to be aggressive and creative with its base runners since it was dealing with a dialed-in performance from Orange County’s Bradley Hanner. The Mustangs had nine base runners all game and found a way to plate nearly half of them to beat the Hornets 4-3.
“The guys scratched across runs against one of the best pitchers if not the best in our district, area, state,” said Mustangs coach Corey Hunt. “That’s a big win and for it to come with one guy picking up another, that’s always a huge deal for our club.”
Monticello took the lead in the first when Reid Huffman earned a leadoff walk, stole second and reached third on an error and scored on a wild pitch. Then after a walk to Kevin Jarrell, Bryce McGlothlin came up with a 2-out RBI double to make it 2-0.
Orange answered the top of the third with Keenan Williams driving in Matt James with an RBI single. Williams scored soon after on a passed ball to even things up at 2-2.
Monticello picked up a pair of runs in the third. It started when Tristan Wynn reached on a strike out in the dirt. After Jarrell reached on an error in the next at-bat, Wynn scored on a passed ball. Then Jarrell reached home on a wild pitch and it was 4-2 for the hosts.
“We knew were facing a great pitcher so we knew we had to find a way to get runners on base, put together quality at-bats and just work for it,” Jarrell said. “That’s something we practice, steal breaks, steal reads and just fly around.”
The rest of the game belonged to Hanner. The junior wound up with a complete game, and did not surrender an earned run while striking out 16 batters and seven of the last eight he faced. After the third, he allowed just two base runners and he did not give up a hit after the second inning.
Orange cut the lead to 4-3 in the fifth with Trevon Smith reaching on a fielder’s choice. He was driven in by Christian Boswell who came through with an RBI double. The Hornets got a lead off single to start the sixth.
“We had our opportunities but just didn’t capitalize on them and you have to do that against a team as good as Monticello with a coach like Corey who does a great job — you can’t have those little errors because they’ll bite you,” said Orange couch Dave Rabe. “Losing 1-run games hurts and heading into the playoffs we have to be better. We left base runners on and you can’t do that going ahead.”
After an error put a runner on third with no outs though, Monticello’s defense came up with it’s best play of the game. There, Mustangs pitcher Carter Lee snagged a comebacker to the left side of the mound and put the Hornets in a pickle, one that Wynn, the catcher, ended.
“We work on (pitcher fielding practice) all the time,” Hunt said. “If you watch MLB baseball, that’s what they work on in spring training. For a veteran guy like Carter to be on the mound there, play catch and get the out — sometimes you’ve got to pitch and defend your way out of an inning and he was able to do that.”
In the seventh, Orange loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh. Needing just one out, Monitcello went to Ben Riley in relief and the junior came up with a game ending strikeout.
“Ben came in and just threw strikes which was huge,” Hunt said. “Lee got us to that point though, that was a heckuva start.”
Lee earned the win for Monticello. He gave up just one earned run and struck out eight batters.
Orange hosts Charlottesville while Monticello travels to Fluvanna, both games on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Heinemann throws out first pitch on senior night
Parker Heinemann’s high school baseball career sadly ended just days before the season began. The Monticello senior was injured in a scary car accident in March but he returned to the mound on Monday to throw out the first pitch — something that rarely happens at the high school level. Heinemann was an integral part of last year’s run to the Group 3A tournament and the staff ace coming into the season. He was in the ICU at the University of Virginia Hospital the day season began, and Monday night he drew a solid ovation from the crowd as he threw one last pitch for Monticello.
