CHESNEE, SC - The Chesnee baseball team opened their new renovated Dean Jones Stadium in impressive fashion as they defeated Blacksburg 8-1 to open region play on Thursday night.
"We are trying to do things the right way and play as a team," said senior Landon Thompson. Chesnee's Tucker Johnson kept Blacksburg off the scoreboard in the top of the first inning after a pair of two out base runners were able to reach base. After the top of the first inning, Johnson seemed to be on cruise control for the rest of the outing as he pitched five and two-thirds innings of scoreless baseball. "I found the zone and got in a rhythm," said Johnson. "I had the support from my teammates behind me." Johnson, just a sophomore, only had three runners reach second base while striking out six including back-to-back batters in the fourth inning. "He is only a sophomore but he is gritty," said Chesnee head coach Scott Wease. "He has been good for us in every start this year and someone that makes us proud." The Eagle offense had Johnson's back early as they plated three runs in the bottom of the first inning. "That was really big for us," said Wease about his team's first inning performance. "It allowed our guys to swing the bats with confidence after having success early." Landon Thompson and Jonah Epps led off the game with back-to-back singles and Thompson scored on a Davis Rising's RBI double. Ethan Lawson drove in a run after lining out to the centerfielder before Carson Williamson delivered the final blow of the inning with a RBI single. The Eagles continued to tack on runs in the second inning as they plated five runs and sent eleven batters to the plate. Johnson helped his own cause with a leadoff double before later scoring on a Landon Thompson RBI single. Jonah Epps, Davis Rising, and Ethan Lawson also drove in runs for the Eagles while Tucker Johnson helped himself once again with a bases loaded walk. "They gave us insurance and had my back," said Johnson. "They did their thing which in turn allowed me to do mine." Jordan Fitch pitched the final inning and a third for the Eagles as he struck out three batters. Blacksburg scratched across a run in the seventh inning as Kolby Capps scored on a Chesnee error. Chesnee got an excellent performance from the top four in the batting order as Landon Thompson, Jonah Epps, Davis Rising, and Ethan Lawson went a combined 8 of 12 with two doubles while also scoring six runs along with six RBIs. "It's good to know we can pick each other up," said Thompson. "One of us can get on base and feel confident someone will drive them in." The two teams will be back in action on Friday in another pivotal Region II-AA game when Chesnee travels to Blacksburg with the first pitch scheduled for 7:30 PM. Comments are closed.
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