CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – On a balmy Saturday afternoon, the Charlottesville Tom Sox (2-5) fell in a four-hour back-and-forth affair to the visiting Waynesboro Generals, 11-9. The Generals (2-5) avenged their 10-9 loss to the ‘Sox on Tuesday night with a gutty performance at the plate and on the mound.
‘Sox starter Tim Lawson (North Carolina) went 1.1 innings while giving up three runs, all unearned. A six-run second inning, that resulted in 12 Generals coming to the plate, put the Tom Sox in an early hole.
All six runs came across unearned as the Generals capitalized on errors with timely hitting and plate discipline, using four free passes and four base hits to build the early lead. The second inning came to an end after an hour of play following a two-run response in the bottom of the inning, courtesy of an Andrew Mannelly (Wofford) double and a Kaegan Costa (Paul D. Camp) sacrifice fly.
Down four runs, Addison Stockham (Eastern Kentucky) delivered 2.1 innings of work on the rubber, surrendering one run but allowing the ‘Sox to fight back.
Following a scoreless fourth from Stockham, the Tom Sox plated five runs to tie the game at seven apiece. 10 batters came to the plate, highlighted by a James Nunnallee (Virginia) single in his first game back in the ‘Ville, an RBI single from Mannelly, and a bases-clearing double from Tanner Schaedel (Old Dominion).
The pitching couldn’t hold the lead for the ‘Sox though, as Waynesboro answered with a two-run fifth off of new face Raphael Schneider. That lead held until the bottom of the seventh thanks to three strong innings from Dawson Newman (Coastal Carolina), who added in two strikeouts into the nine outs he recorded.
With a 9-7 deficit in the bottom of the 7th, Mannelly led off the inning with his first home run of the season, driving an inside pitch well over the right field wall at CHO Airport Field. Then, after walks loaded up the bases, Patrick Niehus (Gardner-Webb) watched ball four go by to bring in a run for the ‘Sox and even up the game at 9-9.
Lane Duff (James Madison) entered for the eighth, giving up two runs on a two-out poke up the middle after working himself into some trouble, and that’s all Waynesboro’s closer Jim Douthat needed to finish things off.
The ‘Sox threatened with runners on second and third with one out in the eighth, but Douthat got out of it without allowing a run. Nunnallee worked his way to second in the ninth, but Douthat closed things out to preserve the 11-9 win.
UP NEXT:
The ‘Sox return to action on the road tomorrow at 7 p.m. in Winchester. Eli DeRossi-Cytron (Mount St. Mary’s) is expected to make his second start of the season.
