WAYNESBORO, Va. – Playing their fifth consecutive game away from home, the Charlottesville Tom Sox (30-16, 4-0 Playoffs) defeated the Waynesboro Generals (28-19, 2-3 Playoffs) 13-4 to win the South Division Championship and advance to the VBL Championship for the fourth time in five seasons.
It was a record-setting day for the ‘Sox. Kalvin Alexander (Florida Southwestern) blasted a 2-run home run in the sixth for Charlottesville’s 30th home run of the season, setting a new team record. Cole Wagner (Georgia) hit a single in the eighth to reach base for the 36th straight game, surpassing Michael Wielansky for the longest on-base streak in team history. Braden Halladay (High Point) struck out nine batters in relief, tied for the fourth-most by a Tom Sox pitcher all-time and the second-most by a ‘Sox reliever. And the ‘Sox became the first team in VBL History to advance to the championship series without playing a single home playoff game.
The first two innings were quiet for the Tom Sox and the Generals. The ‘Sox’s bats came alive in the third inning when Christian Martin (Virginia Tech) hit a single to right field then immediately reached second on a wild pitch. Shortly after, Carter Cunningham (East Carolina) hit a single to bring Martin home. Cunningham then stole second and was able to score on a throwing error by catcher Garrett Bogart. The score at the end of the third was 2-0.
The Generals got one back in the bottom half of the frame on a wild pitch by ‘Sox starter Fisher Jameson (Florida).
In the top of the fourth, Garrett Spikes (Georgia) hit a single which moved Trey Yunger (Wofford) to third. Kalvin Alexander then hit a sacrifice fly to left center, allowing Yunger to tag up and score. Spikes was able to score on the very next pitch on an RBI groundout by Logan Amiss (VCU).
Waynesboro once again responded in the bottom half with a run. After Garrett Bogart and Kasey Caras reached to put runners on first and third, manager Zac Cole called for a successful double steal to make it 4-2.
The teams traded runs again in the fifth. In the top half, with Martin on first after his second hit of the night, Cunningham hit a double to left center field to make it 5-3. In the home half, Joseph Sullivan hit a triple to score one and once again make it a 2-run game.
Fisher Jameson started on the mound for the Tom Sox and was relieved following Sullivan’s triple. In 4+ innings pitched, Jameson allowed four hits, two earned runs, and struck out and walked three batters apiece. He was relieved by Braden Halladay, who tossed the final five innings.
The Tom Sox put away any doubt of a slump in the sixth, scoring eight runs on six hits to put the game away. The first three batters of the inning reached to load the bases for 9-hole hitter Brody Moss (Auburn), who hit an RBI single to send Alexander home. Martin then hit another single to bring in Amiss. The next batter, Cunningham, hit his second double of the day to drive in two more. Cole Wagner hit a sac fly to right center field to score Martin, then Yunger hit a single to center field to score Cunningham for the sixth run of the inning. Just to top it off, Alexander hit an absolute monster 2-run home run over the left field wall to bring the score at the end of the inning to 13-3.
After a tough hop to shortstop, and a runner on third, the Generals were able to bring in one run in the bottom of the seventh. It would be the final run of the game by either team, as the ‘Sox were able to lock it down to advance. Halladay finished the day allowing only two hits and one run in five innings, walking two and striking out a season-high nine batters. It was Halladay’s second-straight appearance of 5+ innings after throwing a maximum of two innings over his first eight outings.
From Head Coach Ramon Garza: “It’s always great to put yourself in the position to win a championship and the guys did that tonight to take care of business in game two. Our arms came out and set the tone and anytime you have the bats swinging like that, you put yourself in a position to win. The job’s not finished; nobody cares about the team that made the championship. You’ve got to go win it and I think we’ve got the arms to do it; bats are swinging it so I’m excited to see what this group does.”
The Tom Sox will have a day off on Sunday while they await the result of the North Division Championship between the Woodstock River Bandits and Purcellville Cannons. If the River Bandits win tonight, they will host game one of the Valley League Championship on Monday night. If the Cannons win, it will take until Tuesday to play the first game.
Additional Notes
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The Tom Sox have advanced to the VBL Championship in all four seasons that they have made the semifinals.
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Charlottesville moves to 6-3 all-time against Waynesboro in the playoffs.
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Halladay’s nine strikeouts are the most by a Tom Sox pitcher this season, surpassing Trey Yesavage and Shane Stossel’s eight apiece last week.
