Emory…Playing on a sunny and pleasant afternoon at Emory & Henry College, the Fort Chiswell Pioneers’ bats went cold and their season came to an end by a score of 6-1, losing to the Eastside Spartans.

The Spartans scored three runs in the top of the second on four hits. Austin Smallwood started the inning with a double to right center. Logan Porter hit a single to left, sending Smallwood to third. Blake Rhoten then tripled to left center to score both Smallwood and Porter. Payton Pope’s single to left scored Rhoten for a three run uprising. Those are all the runs Eastside’s starting pitcher Austin Rittenberry would need. He allowed only two hits as he pitched a complete game. He allowed one run, struck out eight and walked only one batter. The run he allowed was unearned as he shut down the Pioneer batters.

Up 3-0 after five innings the Spartans (18-6) would push three more runs across in the sixth. Porter doubled; Rhoten singled him in. Tyler Elam and Drew Richards both walked to load the bases and then Adam Ketron would knock in two with a sharp single to right center to make it 6-0.

Fort Chiswell (18-4) would score their only run in the bottom of the sixth as Chance Davis would single to left with two outs. Tanner Bailey would then hit a deep fly to center that was dropped and Davis scored coming all the way from first. The Pioneers then went three up and three down in the seventh as their season came to a halt. Davis and Bailey had the only two hits for Fort Chiswell and they had only five guys to actually reach base. Two of those were by error and the other by a base on balls.

“We just didn’t step up to the occasion today,“ said a very dejected Fort Chiswell head coach Derrick Jackson. “Give Eastside’s pitcher a lot of credit he pitched a heck of a game. You’re not going to beat a good team like they are with just two hits.” Coach then added, ”I’m so very proud of this team of mine. I hate it for them and for the two seniors. Most people wouldn’t have thought or given us much of a chance to be playing here today at the start of the season with only two seniors. To win 18 games and be conference champions is a great accomplishment for this team. We are going to miss the two seniors, Dallas Beasley and Jacob Coake.”

Eastside was led by Rhoten who went two for three, scored twice and knocked in three. Ketron had two RBIs and Pope had one . Porter scored twice to go with his two hits in four at bats.

Tanner Bailey took the loss on the mound for the Pioneers as he went five innings, struck out four and walked no one. He deserved a better outcome but the Pioneer bats were just too silent.

 

 

R H E LOB

Eastside 6 9 2 6

Fort Chiswell 1 2 1 3

 

 

Eastside – WP- Rittenberry

Fort Chiswell – LP – Bailey – (2-1)