CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — After 249 games across the Valley League over the course of a 70-day summer ball grind, the fight for the Jim Lineweaver Cup came down to nine innings of baseball at Charlottesville High School on Thursday night. In front of an energetic, blue-out crowd, the Charlottesville Tom Sox (30-15) earned the franchise’s fourth VBL Championship, knocking off the Purcellville Cannons (29-16) 9-5 in game three of what was a highly-competitive, back-and-forth championship series.
After a 21-8 rout of the ‘Sox in Purcellville on Wednesday evening, the Cannons picked up right where they left off in the deciding third game as Kyle Johnson gave the visitors an early 2-0 lead with a two-run bomb to right-center field in the top of the first inning. It was the fourth long ball of the series for Purcellville and the first time the Cannons struck first on the scoreboard.
Trailing early, the Tom Sox were able to put pressure on Purcellville starter Austin King with frequency but couldn’t convert on the scoreboard, stranding six runners on the base-paths through the first four frames.
The Cannons tacked on a couple more runs in the middle innings, knocking ‘Sox starter James Hays (Stetson) out of the ballgame in the fourth and extending their lead to 4-0 with a run off Chase Stryker (Coastal Carolina) in the fifth.
Hays’ night finished after 3.0+ innings pitched during which he surrendered three runs on four hits and four walks. Stryker was excellent in silencing the scorching Cannons’ lineup, hurling 2.2 innings of one-run middle relief while punching out four batters and allowing just one hit.
With its back against the wall down by four runs heading into the bottom of the fifth, the number one run-scoring offense in the South Division dialed in.
“It’s a matter of not quitting,” Head Coach Randy Tomlin said. “We’ve seen that from this team throughout the season … the offense is more than capable of coming back. One through nine, these guys have come up big all year and contributed so I’m just really proud.”
The fifth-inning party started with an Ethan Gibson (Virginia Tech) double followed by two walks to load the bases. Colby Wallace (East Carolina) and Caden Ferraro (Blinn College) then traded RBI singles to turn the tide and get the ‘Sox on the board.
The back half of the lineup capitalized on some Cannons’ command issues, keeping the line moving as the ‘Sox sent 12 batters to the plate in the inning and scored six runs on three hits and six free passes, flipping the ballgame on its head and taking a 6-4 lead.
“Whenever the guys pick you up, it’s the best feeling,” Stryker said. “You just get comfortable going out there throwing strikes and getting ahead of guys when your offense does that.”
“Let’s Go ‘Sox” reigned over Willie T. Barnett Baseball Field as Stryker guided the bullpen to the top of the sixth. From there, Ryan Grzesiak (Florida Southwestern) held the line on the mound as Ferraro scored on a passed ball in the bottom of the sixth to make it 7-4.
With two runners in scoring position in the top of the eighth, the Cannons put pressure on the Tom Sox with a line drive to center field via Kaleb Freeman that scored a run to cut the lead to two.
As everyone looked toward the ninth inning to close the game out, Cooper Blauser (Jacksonville State) gave Charlottesville some much-needed breathing room in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run bomb to deep center. Blauser’s third homer of the season — and second of the postseason — couldn’t have come at a better time.
Tomlin, with the title on the line, turned to his ace closer, Daniel Powell (Kennesaw State), to secure the final three outs. After a trio of strikeouts secured the 9-5 title-clinching victory, Powell was chased down and dog-piled behind the mound.
Hugs and cheers closed out the 2024 season for the Charlottesville Tom Sox, but no one put it better than Assistant Coach Coy Tomlin.
“The Tom Sox,” Tomlin said, are “champions.”
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- Charlottesville’s trend of winning biennial championships (excluding the 2020 COVID year) continued in 2024. The Tom Sox have now won championships in 2017, 2019, 2022, and 2024.
- The Tom Sox have won all four of their championships at home.
- The Tom Sox’s four championships are tied for the most in the Valley League since 1994 (when modern record tracking began). They did so in just seven seasons, the shortest span of any team.
- The Purcellville Cannons are the third different team that the Tom Sox have defeated to win a championship. They defeated the Strasburg Express in both 2017 and 2019 and the Woodstock River Bandits in 2022.
- Charlottesville’s four-run comeback is their largest this season in a win.
- After a 2-for-3 day with three runs scored, Caden Ferraro finished the playoffs with a team-leading .444 average, eight runs, seven RBI, and eight walks. He reached base in 17 of his 28 playoff plate appearances.
