Pitching and defense were the difference as the James River baseball team opened their Three Rivers District schedule with a win over Radford Friday. The Knights took a 7-4 win over the visiting Bobcats in Springwood.
“Cam Saunders got us off to a great start, stacking zeroes after giving up one in the first,” said River coach Chance Henry. “He’s a bulldog on the mound. He really tries to go after guys and be aggressive in the zone and he was able to do that.”
River took the lead with three runs in the bottom of the fourth, only to have Radford answer with three in the top of the fifth. However, the Knights hung two on the board in the bottom of the fifth, then added two insurance runs in the sixth. Levi Peck relieved Saunders with two outs in the fifth and finished up, picking up the win in the process.
“Levi finished it off for us and honestly I can’t say enough about how he’s done so far in the mound,” said Henry. “He attacks with multiple pitches. He had some extra zip on it for sure, and when he’s like that there’s not many teams we play who will be able to do damage against either one of our guys when they throw like they have been.”
Saunders struck out eight Bobcats and Peck fanned six, and the two combined for just three walks. Radford had five hits.
River was led by Evan Joyce with two hits and two runs scored. Evan Byers drove in two runs.
“Offensively, we were in a daze early,” said Henry. “Radford’s pitcher did a great job of staying on the corners and he took advantage of that. I felt like if we just managed to put the ball in play enough good things would happen and eventually it did.
Photos by Brian Hoffman
“Evan Joyce and Evan Byers continued to be a force in the middle of our lineup, but really it was just stringing together some tough at bats and being active on the bases that put us in a good position to score. I’ve always tried to be big on the little things, it was how I was taught and I’ve seen too many times where multiple little things coming together can cause a team to lose. Right now we’re doing well with the little things and forcing the issue with our opponents and not ourselves. I’m just proud of the work our team keeps putting and I’m excited for the guys that we’re starting to see results.”
The Knights ran into a buzz saw Monday, falling 15-1 to Riverheads in a non-district game. They’re now 2-2 and will host Lord Botetourt on Thursday followed by a district game at Glenvar on Friday.
