BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
NAUGATUCK, W.Va. — Austin Smith fired a one-hitter as Tug Valley downed Van 10-0 on Senior Night at Don Spence Field at Naugatuck, Tuesday, May 6.
In a special moment, the senior players played catch with their fathers during warmups. A great idea by first-year head coach LeeAnn Blankenship.
All the senior players, in another special postgame ceremony, rounded the bases one more time and scooped up a handful of home plate dirt for a souvenir.
“We had the best Senior Night! Our boys played a real good game and walked away with the win against Van. We are so proud of our boys and thankful we could celebrate our seniors,” Coach Blankenship said.
Smith, Connar Gillman, Hayden Brumfield, Jacob Jones, Elijah Fluty and Aiden Bosserman (manager) were the seniors honored for Tug Valley.
Gage Whitt led the Panthers with two hits including a double. Connar Gillman also smacked a double and Jacob Jones belted a triple for TVHS.
The Panthers had eight total hits and drew 13 walks against the Bulldogs pitchers.
Matt Gagnon got the lone hit for Van. E. Moore was the losing hurler on the mound for the Bulldogs.
Belfry edges Panthers 7-6
GOODY, Ky. — The Belfry Pirates took Wednesday’s (May 7) home game against Tug Valley by walk-off fashion, 7-6.
The game was tied at six in the bottom of the seventh when an error scored the winning run.
The two teams combined for 26 hits, 14 by the Panthers and 12 by the Pirates. Belfry also drew seven walks in the game.
Tug Valley trailed 5-0 heading into the top of the fifth and scored a pair of runs to cut the lead to 5-2.
The Panthers plated four runs in the top of the sixth frame to take a one-run lead.
A sacrifice bunt by David Michael Hagy put Belfry Pirates on the board in the bottom of the first.
Tug Valley Panthers captured the lead, 6-5, in the top of the sixth when Dawson Richardson doubled, bringing home two runs and Elijah Fluty drew a walk, scoring another run.
Tug Valley Panthers made the score 6-5 in the top of the sixth after Dawson Richardson doubled, scoring two runs; Gage Whitt singled, scoring one run; and Elijah Fluty drew a walk, scoring one run.
Michael Hagy singled, which helped Belfry tie the game at six in the bottom of the sixth.
Richardson, the starting pitcher, led Tug Valley with two runs batted in. He went 2-for-5 on the day. Gavin Fitzpatrick, Chandler Copley and Connar Gillman each collected multiple hits for the Panthers.
Zach Fite and Garrett Maynard each collected three hits for Belfry. Dante Davis led Belfry with two runs batted in. Eli Caudill and Hagy each collected multiple hits for Belfry. Bryce Hagy smacked a double for one of his team’s big hits.
Defensively, Kobe Puckett had the most chances in the field with eight for BHS.
Whitt took the loss for the Panthers on the hill in relief, while Maynard got the win for the Pirates in relief. Eli Jones was the starting pitcher for BHS.
The 11-team, Class A Region 4 baseball tournament in West Virginia is set to begin this week. Tug Valley has the No. 8 seed and is set to open up at home against No. 9 rival Tolsia on Monday.