Virginia’s bats too much for Bangor Yorktown rolls in five innings

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BANGOR – Early on in Wednesday’s Senior League World Series game against Maine District 1 champ Bangor, Yorktown, Va., manager Tommy Bayse noticed something that proved helpful.

“What surprised me was how shallow they were playing us in the outfield because we’ve got some good pop on this team,” said Bayse. “So I told [cleanup hitter] Chad Guy to hit one over their heads.”

Well, Guy didn’t, but with two outs in the first inning and runners at second and third, David Everhart did. Yorktown’s No. 5 hitter drove in two runs and lit the fuse on an offense that burned Bangor for nine hits (only four of them singles) in a 13-3, mercy rule-shortened win on a picturesque afternoon at Mansfield Stadium.

The U.S. South region champions are now 2-1 as they prepare for a 10 a.m. game against Canadian champ Regina, Saskatchewan today. Bangor will take on U.S. West champ Pearl City, Hawaii at 5 p.m.

Adam McConnell led Yorktown’s attack by going 3-for-3 with a triple, two singles, a walk, four RBIs, three runs and a stolen base.

“We hit the ball hard and it went to the right places almost every time. We weren’t trying to hit the gaps, but just hit it hard,” said McConnell, who said this team is not the same one that started out with an 8-2 loss on Monday.

“It’s the old York now,” he said. “This is how we played through districts, states and regionals. I think we got our first game jitters out and we’ve just been relaxed the last two games. We’re pretty confident.”

Virginia took a 3-0 lead in the first courtesy of Everhart’s double and an RBI triple by Sam Hawkins.

Bangor got a run back in the second on Ryan LaRochelle’s leadoff single, a Jordan Clark walk, a Mack Susi single, and Josh Hansen’s sacrifice fly, but Virginia quickly seized momentum back with a six-run third inning.

Yorktown scored six with just three hits – the biggest of which were McConnell’s RBI single and Guy’s RBI double (this time, he did hit it over their heads). John Bayse added a double, but the other runs scored on a fielding error, a sacrifice fly, and a hit batter with the bases loaded. Yorktown also benefited from two walks and two wild pitches.

“I threw knuckle balls, curveballs, fastballs, but they were just timing it up really well and getting the bats on the ball,” said Bangor starting pitcher Josh Hansen, who left the game with one out in the second. “They were hitting ’em right over our heads.”

Yorktown added three in the third on McConnell’s two-run triple and Guy’s RBI groundout. The last run came on McConnell’s bases-loaded walk with two outs in the fourth.

Bangor scored twice in the fourth with just one hit, taking advantage of a hit batter (one of six in the game), a wild pitch, and a double steal by Ryan LaRochelle and Chad Kelley.

John Bayse rebounded from a bad start Monday to throw three innings of two-hit ball and notch the win. He walked one and struck out three while throwing 42 pitches.

“Our pitching’s been much better since that first game, and it starts out with pitching” said Tommy Bayse. “If that’s going good, hitting seems to follow and we’re hitting all the way through the lineup right now.”

U.S. SOUTH 13, MAINE 3

Bangor (1-2) Yorktown, Va. (2-1)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Gray, rf-p-1b 3 0 0 0 Wagner, 2b-p 1 0

Brookings, c 2 0 0 0 Barber, 2b 0 1 0

McDade, c 1 0 0 0 Brown, 3b-2b-ss 2 2 1

Gallant, ss-p 2 0 0 0 McConnell, ss-p 3 4

R.LaRochelle, cf 1 2 1 0 Guy, 1b 3 0 2

Clarke, 3b 0 0 0 0 Clark, pr-ph 1 1 0

Kelley, 3b-ss 1 1 1 0 Everhart, c 1 2

Susi, 2b 1 0 1 0 Hornsby, pr 0 1 0

Duff, 2b 1 0 0 1 Dent, rf 0 0 0

Hansen, p 0 0 0 1 Hawkins, rf 2 0 1

Masters, rf 0 0 0 0 Yeo, lf 2 0 0 1

Cox, p-3b 1 0 0 0 Bayse, p-3b 2 2 1

Dionne, rf 2 0 0 0 Maldonado, cf 2 1 0

C.LaRchelle,1b-p 2 0 0 0

Totals 17 3 3 2 Totals 19 13 9 12

Bangor 010 20 – 3

Yorktown 363 1x – 13

E-Susi; Everhart; LOB-Bangor 2; Yorktown 6; 2B-Guy, Everhart, Bayse; 3B-McConnell, Hawkins; S-Maldonado; SF-R.LaRochelle; Bayse; SB-R. LaRochelle, Kelley; Brown, Everhart, McConnell

Bangor IP H R ER BB SO

Hansen (L,0-1) 1 1/3 6 8 7 1 0

Gray 0 0 1 0 1 0

C.LaRochelle 2/3 0 0 0 0 0

Cox 1 1 3 3 1 0

Gallant 1 2 1 1 2 0

Yorktown IP H R ER BB SO

Bayse (W,1-1) 3 2 1 1 1 3

Hornsby 0 0 0 0 0 0

Wagner 1 1 2 1 0 2

McConnell 1 0 0 0 0 2

HBP-R.LaRochelle (by Wagner); Brown (by Hansen), Everhart (by Gray), Hawkins by C. LaRochelle, Yeo (by Cox), Brown (by Cox); WP-Wagner; Hansen, Gray, Cox; T-1:32; ATT-850 (est.)