With the game tied in the bottom of the sixth the communication between Fluvanna County coach Mike Sheridan and Nolan Radcliff was simple but comical. Sheridan gave the sign to Radcliff, who was on second base with two outs and represented the go ahead run. Why not try and steal on a two strike count, right? What could go wrong? For the Flucos nothing did. Radcliff took off for third on a ball, slid into third, watched the throw to the hot corner sail over third base and easily waltzed home to give his team a permanent lead. It was all that Fluvanna starter Brock Harris needed as he was able to close out a 2-1 win in the top of the seventh over Goochland.
“We just battled,” Sheridan said. “We didn’t catch a lot of breaks tonight. We hit some balls hard but they made some great plays on. Those two (pitchers) went out and threw the ball as good as you can throw. After that first inning when we made (Austin) Goyne threw 27 pitches, what a great job he did of settling in and just throwing. Brock Harris went out and threw his rear end off (for us).”
In a game where two of the three total runs were unearned, it was a rare pitcher’s duel between two Jefferson District teams, both of them being left handed.
Bulldogs southpaw Goyne pitched a wonderful game, but walks and a hit batsmen in the first inning allowed Kyle Pillow to give the Flucos a 1-0 lead in the first.
An inning and a half later in the top of the lead, an error and a double from Cody Johnson allowed Goochland to tie the game though. Johnson also had the defensive highlight of the game with a spectacular diving catch in left field in the fourth.
Until the bottom of the sixth it was Goye and Harris and their respective defenses that dominated.
“I went out there to throw strikes and hope the defense could make plays,” Harris said. “They usually help me out and I depend on them.”
Both teams hit the ball hard but with the outfields from the two squads playing well, no runs were exchanged until Radcliff reached second base in the sixth before scoring.
“I had two strikes on me,” Radcliff said of getting on base. “I knew all we needed was on and just put the bat on the ball and hoped it would drop or make an error, sure enough they made an error.”
Goye settled in after the first and allowed only four hits in the entire contest and Harris worked himself out of the biggest jam in the game in the fourth with the bases loaded in the top of the fourth.
Goochland tried to manufacture a run with a leadoff walk in the top of the seventh. The Bulldogs put a runner on second thanks to a sacrifice bunt, and ground out later that runner was on third. But a pop fly to deep center with two outs was hauled in by the Flucos to preserve the win.
“It was one of those nights where both pitchers were throwing well and it’s been one of those years where we can’t get our bats going,” said Bulldogs coach Wes Farkas. “We’re losing a lot of games by one or two runs this year and its tough. We’re right there, so we could be dangerous if we get hot. We just need to get our hitters some confidence.”
Goochland (6-11, 4-8) hosts Louisa County on Friday at 6 p.m.
Fluvanna (7-7, 6-4) resumes a postponed game with Louisa County today in Mineral at 7 p.m.
Monticello edges Western
Trailing by two in the top of the seventh, Monticello rallied for a 5-4 win over Western on Tuesday night.
The Mustangs watched a walk to Kevin Cotrell, a hit from Max Mann, another walk, a Tyler Moneymaker sacrifice fly, a fielders choice and a Derek Knight base hit produce a trio of runs to take the lead.
Josh Malm threw the complete game victory for Monticello and struck out 10 batters.
Western’s Tanner Knight had a 3-run home run to left field. Teammates Scott Wakely and Parker Morris each had a pair of hits.
The Mustangs (10-6, 8-4) travel to Charlottesville on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
The Warriors (5-11, 5-7) head to Charlottesville on Thursday to play William Monroe at 7 p.m.
Monroe does work late to top Orange
The freshly crowned JD regular season champs get their pristine record intact with an 8-3 against Orange County.
William Monroe’s Logan Forloines, Lamar Nelson and Ryan Morris worked together on the mound to put together the win with Nelson collecting the win and Morris earning the save.
Zach Reninger had an inside the park 2-run home run for the Hornets, and his team lead the Greene Dragons 3-2 until the fifth.
After his team took the lead, Forloines had an RBI triple in the seventh to tack on some insurance. Austin Batten also had a triple for Monroe. Nelson was 1 for 1 at the plate and drew three walks.
The Dragons had their fair share of runners but could not bring them in early on. Monroe stranded seven runners in the first three innings and 13 overall, but came through in the latter innings to pull away.
The Dragons (15-1, 12-0) play Western Albemarle at Charlottesville for their senior night on Thursday at 7 p.m.
