The Turks (19-10) worked with premium efficiency on both sides of the ball as they defeated the Covington Lumberjacks (14-17) 10-0 in seven innings on Sunday. Harrisonburg will now play consecutive doubleheaders against Waynesboro and Culpeper before a seven-game stretch to finish the regular season. 

Turks starting pitcher Hudson Rowan brought his best in this game, keeping a perfect game through four innings and only allowing one hit in the fifth, while also throwing 10 strikeouts in just his second start of the summer

“I was able to throw the [fastball] anywhere I wanted,” Rowan said. “Off of that, I threw the breaking ball quite a bit and just executed pretty well.”

The Turks have made a living putting runs on the board early, and that formula continued to work in this game. Harrisonburg scored all 10 runs in the first three innings. Designated hitter Cam Nelson drove in three runs with a bases-loaded triple in the first inning before hitting a sacrifice fly to score left fielder Chris Katz in the second. Nelson led the Turks with four RBI.

First baseman Jack Cannizzaro drove in one run with an infield single in the second inning and was hit by two pitches later in the game. Cannizzaro has a .345 batting average this summer, third on the Turks, and has been hit by pitches a team-leading eight times.

Even with the summer season nearing its close, many rosters around the league are still shuffling. Harrisonburg center fielder Anthony Zarlingo made his summer debut for the Turks in this game replacing shortstop Jack Torbett. In addition, pitchers Joshua Davis, Owen Riley and Brandon White all joined the team this week. Despite the turmoil, head coach Bob Wease remains confident that his team can face the challenges in front of them.

“It happens every year, all over the Valley League,” Wease said. “After the All-Star game, the kids start wanting to go home. Kids play 90 games between the college season and the summer season, players get tired. [The players who stay] are the ones that often go on to play professional baseball.”

The Turk will begin the first of their two doubleheaders when they visit the Waynesboro generals at 5 p.m. The second game will begin approximately 45 minutes after the conclusion of the first.