RIVER BANDITS CLINCH REGULAR SEASON TITLE WITH 18 – 3 WIN OVER SEA DOGS

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TARBORO7023510XX18162

July 28, 2022 – Tarboro, NC

Tarboro’s River Bandits (22-9, 14-5) clinched the Premier Collegiate League (PCL) regular season championship with an 18-3 rout of the Virginia Beach Sea Dogs (5-9, 7-9)  that was shortened by a surprise downpour as the Bandits were getting ready to bat in the bottom of the seventh.

The game also featured a triple play — that wound up being taken off the books after River Bandits Grant Crosby made an appeal to the umpiring crew. Tarboro started with back-to-back hits as Tyler Dunn (Bucknell) and Dane Hoggard (Seton Hall) led off with singles to left center.

With runners on first and second, Roy Jones hit a liner to the first baseman, who caught the ball, stepped on first to double up Hoggard, and then threw to second to force Dunn, who was caught off the base. “The base umpire just plain out lied to me,” Virginia Beach coach and PCL Commissioner Michael Dooley said. “He said he dropped the ball and he signaled it, but I just looked at the video and he didn’t signal anything. ”Indeed, a review of the game on the Bandits’ live stream after the game shows a clean catch by first baseman T.J. McGowan (Virginia Wesleyan) to start what should have been one of baseball’s rarest plays.

The River Bandits’ broadcast crew — who was interviewing Bandits’ slugger Jarrett May (Mercer County CC) at the time — acknowledged the play, with Jarrett actually pointing out that it was a triple play. “That’s a triple play … oh, my gosh,” May said. “That’s a triple play turned by Virginia Beach. Wow! ”Jarrett called the triple play at the 1:25:55 mark of the broadcast as the Sea Dogs ran off the field. About five minutes later, the umpiring crew reversed itself and placed Dunn on third and Hoggard on second and the triple play was no more — existing only on the live stream video.

It’s not that the call changed the outcome of the game, as Tarboro led 9-3 at the time. It did, however, impact the score as Tarboro scored three in the fourth, added five in the fifth, and ended the night with a single run in the sixth.


While the Bandits scored 18 runs on 15 hits, starting pitcher Lee Watson (Transylvania)  and reliever Dalton Wiggins (Ferrum) combined for a four-hitter.

Watson, who got the win, allowed a first-inning home run and a third-inning single while striking out six and walking four. He allowed three unearned runs. Wiggins, who came in to start the fifth, allowed two single while striking out six, walking two, and hitting one batter.

The Bandits blew the game open in the first as they sent 12 batters to the plate and scored seven runs. The first seven Bandits to bat reached base, with six of them scoring. James Moses (Towson) opened with a walk, then stole second and advanced to third when the catcher’s throw to second sailed into the outfield. Hunter McClean (UT-Martin) then singled into right field to plate Moses. McClean took second on a passed ball, followed by a walk to Chase Heath (Central Missouri) — bringing Liam McFadden-Ackman (Northern Kentucky) to the plate.

McFadden-Ackman took pitcher Millis Becouvorakis (Bryant & Stratton) yard to left-center, driving in three and making the score 4-0.Tyler Dunn (Bucknell) and Dane Hoggard both singled through the left side of the infield and eventually came around to score. The Bandits had several players with multiple-hit games, led by Heath, who went three-for-five and scored three runs. McClean, McFadden-Ackman, Dunn, and Hoggard each had two hits.

Hoggard’s hits were a continuation of a slump-busting pair of games that started on Wednesday night, when he also had two hits in an 8-2 win over Edenton’s Steamers on the road — the Bandits’ eighth win in 11 games over their rivals.

Story by John Walker, sports writer, Rocky Mount Telegram

BOX SCORE

Sea Dogs
LineupABRHRBIBBSO
Tre Keels110031
Morris Ford401002
Sammy Canela411102
Bryce Lane401102
TJ McGowan Jr.100011
Lincoln Lubsen301000
Jordan Daddio200012
Dominic Younger301001
Emmet Jefferson210011
Mills Becouvarakis
Danny Padilla
Christopher Sinclair
Totals24352612

Batting HR: Sammy Canela
TB: Sammy Canela 4, Morris Ford, Bryce Lane, Lincoln Lubsen, Dominic Younger
RBI: Sammy Canela, Bryce Lane
HBP: TJ McGowan Jr.
CS: TJ McGowan Jr.
Totals Team QAB: 18 (58.06%)
Sammy Canela 3, Jordan Daddio 2, Morris Ford 4, Emmet Jefferson 2, Tre Keels 3, Bryce Lane, Lincoln Lubsen, TJ McGowan Jr., Dominic Younger

Team LOB: 7 Fielding E: Emmet Jefferson, Bryce Lane, Dominic Younger

River Bandits
LineupABRHRBIBBSO
James Moses221230
Hunter McClean524300
Chase Heath423110
LIam McFadden-Ackman422411
Tyler Dunn431000
Dane Hoggard522000
Kevin Jones321110
Jordan Overton131330
Zeek Hilton402300
Lee Watson
Dawson Wiggins
Totals3218171791

Batting 2B: Chase Heath, Zeek Hilton, Hunter McClean
HR: LIam McFadden-Ackman
TB: Tyler Dunn, Chase Heath 4, Zeek Hilton 3, Dane Hoggard 2, Hunter McClean 5, LIam McFadden-Ackman 5, James Moses, Jordan Overton, Kevin Jones
RBI: Chase Heath, Zeek Hilton 3, Hunter McClean 3, LIam McFadden-Ackman 4, James Moses 2, Jordan Overton 3, Kevin Jones
ROE: Tyler Dunn, James Moses
HBP: Tyler Dunn
SB: Tyler Dunn, Chase Heath, Zeek Hilton, Dane Hoggard
CS: James Moses
Totals Team QAB: 23 (54.76%)
Tyler Dunn 2, Chase Heath 2, Zeek Hilton, Dane Hoggard 3, Hunter McClean 2, LIam McFadden-Ackman 2, James Moses 5, Jordan Overton 3, Kevin Jones 3

Team LOB: 6 Fielding E: Jordan Overton 2

Sea Dogs
PitchingIP#PS%HRERSOBBHR
Mills Becouvarakis3.095.474899171
Christopher Sinclair3.067.612897020
Danny Padilla0.00.000000000
Totals6.0162.531161816191

Pitching HBP: Christopher Sinclair
WP: Mills Becouvarakis, Christopher Sinclair
Pitches-Strikes: Mills Becouvarakis 95-45, Danny Padilla 0-0, Christopher Sinclair 67-41
Groundouts-Flyouts: Mills Becouvarakis 3-3, Danny Padilla 0-0, Christopher Sinclair 4-3
First pitch strikes-Batters faced: Mills Becouvarakis 6-22, Danny Padilla 0-0, Christopher Sinclair 11-20

River Bandits
PitchingIP#PS%HRERSOBBHR
Lee Watson4.072.597332641
Dawson Wiggins3.062.532200620
Totals7.0134.5675321261

Pitching HBP: Dawson Wiggins
WP: Dawson Wiggins
Pitches-Strikes: Lee Watson 72-43, Dawson Wiggins 62-33
Groundouts-Flyouts: Lee Watson 2-2, Dawson Wiggins 1-2
First pitch strikes-Batters faced: Lee Watson 7-17, Dawson Wiggins 3-14

Key

  • AB: At bats
  • R: Runs scored
  • H: Hits
  • RBI: Runs batted in
  • BB: Base on balls (walks)
  • SO: Strikeouts
  • 2B: Doubles
  • 3B: Triples
  • HR: Home runs
  • Grand slam: Grand slam home runs
  • TB: Total bases
  • RBI: Runs batted in
  • SAC: Sacrifice hits & bunts
  • SF: Sacrifice flies
  • ROE: Reached on error
  • FC: Hit into fielder’s choice
  • HBP: Hit by pitch
  • CI: Batter advances on catcher’s interference
  • GIDP: Hit into double play
  • GITP: Hit into triple play
  • SB: Stolen bases
  • CS: Caught stealing
  • PIK: Picked off
  • QAB: Quality at bats (any one of: 3 pitches after 2 strikes, 6+ pitch ABs, XBH, HHB, BB, SAC Bunt, SAC Fly)
  • QAB%: Quality at bats per plate appearance
  • LOB: Runners left on base at the end of an inning
  • E: Errors
  • DP: Double Plays
  • TP: Triple Plays
  • IP: Innings Pitched
  • #P: Total pitches
  • S%: Strike percentage
  • H: Hits allowed
  • R: Runs allowed
  • ER: Earned runs allowed
  • SO: Strikeouts
  • BB: Base on balls (walks)
  • HR: Home runs allowed
  • W: Wins
  • L: Losses
  • SV: Saves
  • BS: Blown saves
  • HBP: Hit batters
  • WP: Wild pitches
  • BK: Balks