07/07/2008 – Valley Baseball League Newsroom
COVINGTON, Va., July 6, 2008 – Harrisonburg first baseman Michael Precise (Troy) hit a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth to clinch a 5-5 tie in the 2008 Valley Baseball League All-Star Game at Covington’s Casey Field. VBL rules do not allow extra innings in all-star games. The tie is the second in the last three years as the 2006 contest was also a tie. The exhibition affair featured 30 total position players and 21 pitchers. Haymarket’s Joe Conforti (Wagner) was the North Most Valuable Player, hitting a two-run home run in his only at bat. Marcus Nidiffer (Kentucky) of Covington was the South MVP with a two-run homer and an RBI single for a game-high three RBIs. Front Royal’s Jesse Henry (Shenandoah) was the only North player with multiple hits, going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Winchester first baseman Tyler Townsend (Florida International) hit a solo home run. Precise finished his day going 4-for-5 as the only player with more than two hits on either team. The South got on the board first in the bottom of the first on Nidiffer’s RBI single. The North tied the game in the third on Townsend’s solo bomb and took the lead in the fourth on Henry’s RBI single and a sacrifice fly by Winchester’s Mickey Wiswall (Boston College). The South got both runs back in the bottom of the fourth on Nidiffer’s two-run shot. The North pulled away again for a 5-3 lead on Conforti’s two-run home run in the seventh. That set the stage for the ninth-inning rally by the South. The home squad loaded the bases with no outs before an infield popup. That brought up Precise, who singled with one out to plate two runs and tie the score. A flyout to right and a foulout to right ended the game with no further advancement to complete the 5-5 tie. In other festivities, Woodstock second baseman Adalberto Santos (New Mexico J.C.) was the 60-yard dash champion and Luray outfielder Jeff Jefferson (Liberty) won the home run derby by beating out Waynesboro’s Jacke Healey (Potomac State) in the final round. http://www.valleyleaguebaseball.com/Stats/12/co0706.htm