** This first appeared on All Things Valley League **

By John Leonard

So while we’re feverishly preparing for the All-Star game, five games were played tonight! (And hang on to your hats- TEN games are on tap for tonight!)

Results

-Strasburg 11, Woodstock 6- Express now 8-2 in last 10, leads North by two games
-Covington 6, Harrisonburg 3
-New Market 16, Purcellville 5
-Winchester 14, Front Royal 8- First three hitters for Royals- Furman, Bulman, and Long- went 10-19, with eight runs scored, nine RBIs, five doubles, and two home runs. Whoa.
-Staunton 14, Charlottesville 13 (10 innings)- 17 runs, 36 hits, 12 walks, 18 K’s, Cole Foster hit an RBI single with two outs in the top of the ninth to tie it at 14; Ryan McCarty scored in the bottom of the 10th inning on a wild pitch to win it.

Hitter of the Day

Sooooo many to choose from! Well, you know ATVL loves home runs, so the hitter of the day is Winchester’s Will Long! Last night, he went 3-6, with three runs scored, two home runs, a walk, and six RBIs. Long is on a tear of biblical proportions- the senior from Tennessee Tech is 10-19 in his last four games, with nine runs and 19 RBIs. He has multiple hits and at least one home in each of those four. Overall this summer, he’s hitting .377/.500/.725, with six doubles, six home runs, 34 RBIs, and a 17/13 BB/K ratio. He’s tied for the league lead in RBIs (with Austin Bulman, his teammate).

Others of Note

-Ryan Galanie, Strasburg: 2-5, two runs, four RBIs, home run
-Tripp McKinlay, Strasburg: 4-5, run, two RBIs
-Chad Fairey, Strasburg: 4-5, run, RBI, two doubles, two stolen bases
-Cameron Clonch, Strasburg: 2-4, two runs, RBI, walk
-James McCoy, Strasburg: 2-4, run, walk, stolen base
-Aidan Nagle, Woodstock: 2-4, two runs, RBI, double
-Jacob Starling, New Market: 2-3, four runs, two walks
-Robert Antonetti, New Market: 2-5, two runs, two RBIs, walk, stolen base
-Jackson Lancaster, New Market: 2-3, two runs, two RBIs, walk, home run
-Nate Furman, Winchester: 3-7, two runs, two RBIs, two doubles
-Austin Bulman, Winchester: 4-6, three runs, three RBIs, walk, three doubles
-Cristopher De Guzman, Winchester: 2-6, run, three RBIs, home run
-Austin Turner, Winchester: 2-4, two runs, two walks, stolen base
-Niko Amory, Front Royal: 2-2, two runs, two RBIs, walk, double
-Jack Krause, Front Royal: 2-3, run, RBI, two walks, double, stolen base
-Pierce Bennett, Charlottesville: 2-5, run, RBI, two walks
-Logan Amiss, Charlottesville: 4-6, run, RBI
-Adam Cecere, Charlottesville: 3-4, two runs, RBI, two walks
-Garrett Spikes, Charlottesville: 3-6, three runs, three RBIs, double
-Cole Foster, Charlottesville: 3-4, three runs, RBI, two walks
-Ryan McCarty, Staunton: 4-6, three runs, RBI, home run, stolen base
-Ian Diaz, Staunton: 3-4, four runs, RBI, double
-Luke Trainer, Staunton: 2-3, two runs, four RBIs, home run

Pitcher of the Day

While the HOD was tough to choose, the POD was not; it’s pretty clearly New Market’s Reed Mascolo, who fired 6 2/3 excellent innings against Purcellville. He allowed one hit, three unearned runs, walked four, and struck out seven to earn the win and a game score of 69 (dude). The righthander from Wake Forest was perfect through five innings, and lost the no-hitter in the seventh. He’s 4-1, 2.51 in 28 2/3 innings this summer, with 37 K’s (which leads the league).

Others of Note

-Braden Ostrander, Strasburg: Six innings, three hits, one run, two walks, six K’s, win
-James O’Neal, Woodstock: Four innings, three hits, no runs, one walk, seven K’s
-Cade Henry, Covington: Nine innings, 11 hits, three runs, no walks, six K’s, win (GS: 59)
-Will Mercer, Harrisonburg: Five innings, three hits, two runs, one earned, one walk, three K’s, loss (GS: 57)

Tonight’s Games

-Woodstock at Waynesboro 3, 5:30 PM
-Winchester at Staunton 5, 7:30 PM
-Front Royal at Covington 5:30, 8 PM
-Harrisonburg at Strasburg 5:30, 8 PM
-Charlottesville at New Market 6, 8:30 PM