September 20, 2024
SENIOR LEAGUE BASEBALL WORLD SER

Brown, Wagner spark U.S. South Loss motivates Virginia to win

BANGOR – The key development for Tuesday’s Senior League World Series victory by Yorktown, Va., may have come before the game even started.

What the U.S. South region champ’s coaches and players saw as a subpar effort in an 8-2 loss to Pearl City, Hawaii, Monday night served as strong motivation in Tuesday’s contest.

Yorktown looked highly motivated as it defeated Asia Pacific champion Makati City, Philippines, 12-1 in a mercy rule-shortened game on a bright and balmy afternoon at Mansfield Stadium.

Yorktown improves its record to 1-1 in Pool A competition and will next meet Bangor at 5 p.m. today. The 1-2 Philippines team plays Regina, Saskatchewan, at 1 p.m.

“We didn’t play our best yesterday, but we came back strong hitting today,” said leadoff hitter Ryan Wagner. “Our backs were against the wall. We lost once in districts and won every game since then, so we do good under pressure.”

Yorktown’s second baseman certainly does. Wagner celebrated his 17th birthday in fine fashion by hitting a triple, a double, a single, and a sacrifice fly while scoring three runs and stealing a base.

Cody Brown showed why he was recently moved up in the batting order by going 2-for-4 with a double, a single, three RBIs and a run.

“I changed the lineup a little bit today,” said Yorktown manager Tommy Bayse. “Cody Brown’s been hitting in the sixth spot and he’s been getting a lot of hits and killing the ball, so I moved him up to the 2 spot, and Ryan’s been hitting the ball really good and that leadoff triple got us started.”

Wagner found the gap and the warning track in right center on the third pitch of the game and Brown hit the first he saw to shallow right center to drive Wagner home.

Yorktown broke things open with six runs in the third as it sent 11 batters to the plate. Although it only got four hits from them, Yorktown made Makati City pay for four errors and two walks with timely hitting, the most timely of which was David Everhart’s two-run triple into the right-field corner which knocked starter Gian Jimenez off the mound. Back-to-back doubles by Wagner and Brown got things rolling.

The extra insurance wasn’t needed, but Yorktown plated five more runs in the fifth, via Sam Hawkins’ leadoff single, Evan Yeo’s RBI triple, John Bayse’s second RBI single of the game, a one-out RBI groundout by Brown, a two-out RBI single by Adam McConnell, and another single by Hawkins – this one for an RBI.

Pitcher Chad Guy gutted out four strong innings despite coming in as a question mark. He threw 56 pitches, allowing two hits while notching five strikeouts and no walks.

“He took a ball in the calf muscle during warmups at first base and last night, he could hardly walk,” said Bayse. “We got some Icy-Hot on it and didn’t know if he’d be able to go today, but he was about 80 percent and did really well.

“He didn’t have his full power because he got his push-off leg injured, so that forced him to throw more offspeed pitches and locate them well.”

Makati City’s only run came in the bottom of the first as C.J. Concepcion reached on a fielding error, was bunted to second, and scored on Luke Bernardo’s single to shallow left.

US SOUTH 12, ASIA PACIFIC 1

Yorktown, Va. (1-1) Makati, Philippines (1-2)

Player AB R H BI Player AB R H BI

Wagner, 2b 3 3 3 1 Concepcion, 2b 3 1 0

Brown, 1b-rf 4 1 2 3 Mallari, ss 1 0 0

McConnell, ss 4 1 1 1 Laurel, 3b 2 0

Guy, p-1b 4 0 1 0 Brias, 3b 0 0 0

Hornsby, ph 0 1 0 0 Bernardo, c 2 0 1

Everhart, c 3 1 1 2 Reyes, pr 0 0 0

Hawkins, cf 2 0 2 0 Jimenez, p-lf 2 0 0

Maldonado, cf 1 2 1 1 Gabay, rf 2 0

Yeo, lf 2 2 1 1 Esguerra, lf 1 0 0

Clark, ph 1 0 0 0 Uichico, p 1 0 0

Bayse, 3b 3 0 2 2 De Mesa, 1b 2 0 0

Dent, rf-p 2 1 0 0 Jalaneoni, cf 2 0 0

Barber, rf 1 0 0 0

Totals 30 12 14 11 Totals 18 1 3 1

Virginia 106 05 – 12

Philippines 100 00 – 1

E-McConnell; Concepcion, Laurel 2, Bernardo, Jalaneoni; LOB-Virginia 7; Philippines 4; 2B-Wagner, Brown; 3B-Wagner, Everhart; DP-Philippines; S-Mallari; SF-Wagner; SB-Wagner, Maldonado 2, Yeo, Dent; Jalaneoni

Virginia IP H R ER BB SO

Guy (W, 1-0) 4 2 1 0 0 6

Dent 1 1 0 0 0 1

Philippines IP H R ER BB SO

Jimenez (L, 0-1) 2 1/3 6 5 4 0 2

Uichico 2 2/3 8 7 5 3 1

HBP-by Guy (Mallari); BK-Jimenez; T-1:50; ATT-400


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