Warriors move to second round of tournament

By Tray Mason
Correspondent

Ty Brown pitched a shutout through six innings, and Nansemond River used a five-run fourth inning to cruise to a 10-2 victory over Granby High School in the first round of the Eastern Region Tournament on Monday.

The Warriors got off to a rough start when shortstop Brandon Lowe committed a rare fielding error in the first at-bat of the game.

But Nansemond River would turn a double play in the next at-bat, which got the team rolling, and it never looked back.

The Warriors wasted no time putting runs on the board. A double from Kyle Moore in the first inning hit the left field wall and scored Brown and pinch runner Willie Gillus, to give Nansemond River a 2-0 lead.

In the next inning, Trevor Riggs hit a ball to the same spot to bring home Blake Eure, who had reached first base on an error, and Nansemond River extended its lead to 3-0.

Riggs also provided the defensive highlight of the game in the fourth inning. When Riggs couldn’t get to a fly ball that dropped just inside of the first base foul line, Granby’s David Schulte tried to stretch the hit into a triple, but Riggs threw a rocket to third base that got there just before Schulte, who was tagged out.

In the fourth inning, the Warriors began to ice the Comets. It started with singles from Ryan O’Hara, Eure, and Riggs, setting up a bases-loaded situation.

Brown hit a double to right field, which brought home O’Hara, although Riggs was called out at second base on a base running miscommunication. 
Travis Johnson hit a single that loaded the bases again, and then Lowe came to the plate and hit a triple that brought home all three runners, giving Nansemond River a 7-0 lead.

With a Zach Vann single that brought Lowe home, the Warriors had recorded eight hits in the inning, scored five runs, and increased its lead to 8-0.

Moore topped the game off with a two-run home run in the sixth inning. He finished 3 for 4 with four RBI’s and a homerun.

“We played a good game and hit the ball hard all day,” Moore said. “We got key hits in RBI situations and played good defense.”

With an eight-run scoring differential and 12 extra base hits in the game, the Warriors’ offense overshadowed a great pitching performance from Brown.

He pitched a complete game with six strikeouts and four walks and had a shutout going into the ninth inning before giving up two runs.

“We hit the ball really well today, but the best thing was Ty filled the zone up and the defense was strong behind him,” Nansemond River head coach Mark Stuffell said.

The win advances the Warriors to the tournament’s semifinals round for the second straight season.

They will take on Menchville of the Peninsula District on Wednesday. Game time is 5 p.m. at Old Dominion University.