06/21/2009 – Turks Tidbits

Written by Matthew Vanover James Madison University Intern The Turks fell behind early and could not pull out another late game comeback as they fell on Father’s Day, 7-5.

Starting pitcher Aaron Lucterhand (Ipswich, Australia/Redlands C.C.) pitched six and a third innings giving up nine hits and six runs with four of those runs being earned.

After a shaky second inning where he gave up four runs, Lucterhand settled in to give himself a solid start. The second inning, which proved to be the difference in the game was a tough one to swallow.

Haymarket recorded four hits in the inning, but three of them were weakly hit balls that found openings in the Turks defense. The Senators manufactured two runs off of their first three hits. Their final hit in the inning opened the game up when center fielder Andrew Lawrence (Richmond, Va/Boston College) hit a two run home run to right center.

The Turks trailed 6-2 when they went to bat in the bottom of the eighth. Mike Schwartz (Tampa, Flahttps://harrisonburgturks.com/NewsManager/Tampa) singled to center to lead off the inning. Shaun Cooper (Tucson, AZhttps://harrisonburgturks.com/NewsManager/Arizona) followed that up with a walk. Nathan Weglarz (Homewood, Illhttps://harrisonburgturks.com/NewsManager/St. Joseph’s) loaded the bases when he singled to left center. Bases loaded with no outs once again set the stage for a Turks comeback. The next two batters were able to draw walks which cut the deficit to 6-4. With no outs and the bases still loaded, the Turks could not get that breakthrough base hit they so desperately needed. The inning ended with a series of infield putouts.

Both teams put up one run in the ninth to make the final score 7-5.

The Turks are back at Long Field Mauck Stadium this Friday at 5 p.m. when they host the Front Royal Cardinals.