Two big innings propel the Cardinals to victory

After a 2-6 loss on the road to the Lumberjacks, the Cardinals came back Wednesday night to earn a 4-8 victory over the Winchester Royals. Cardinal’s starting pitcher, Shane Scott, threw another solid game for the team. He pitched 7.2 innings, striking out five while walking only one, and allowed only three earned runs. Two big offensive innings for the Cardinals made the difference in the game.

Going into the fifth inning, the Cardinals trailed the Royals 1-0. Cardinals’ Tre Dabney started the home half of the inning with a single, followed by a walk earned by right fielder, Trip Willis. Dylan Menhennett, who had started the game with a bang, slapping a double on the first pitch he saw in the first inning, hit into a fielder’s choice that was flubbed by the Royals, and allowed two runs to score. Later in the inning, Matt Cooper hit a sacrifice fly to center field that scored Menhennett, and Patrick Baggett hit a single to score Derek Orndorff. When the inning was over, the Cardinals had earned a 3 run lead.

The Royals threatened the Cardinals’ lead in the top of the eighth inning, when the Cardinals pitching staff gave up two singles, two walks and hit a batter, allowing the Royals to score two additional runs and cut the Cardinals lead to one run. Cardinals’ determination came back strong in the bottom of the eighth, when a Menhennet single scored two runs, and Derek Orndorff sailed a homerun over the left field net to score two more runs. The final score of the game was 8-4, in favor of the Cardinals.

Coach Hurla continues to be proud of his team’s moxie, saying, “Shane Scott continues to pitch lights out for us, and we had a good night offensively. Perez was clutch at shortstop and made several tough plays. It was good to break out there at the plate in the bottom of the eighth after Winchester tightened things up. Orndorff’s homerun really gave us breathing room.

The Cardinals play the Waynesboro Generals on Friday, when they celebrate Christmas in July at Bing Crosby Stadium. The Cardinals are hoping to stuff their bus with donations for Loaves and Fishes, a local food pantry, so fans who bring donations of non-perishable food items receive discounted admission. There will be a visit from Santa himself, and plenty of fun and games for the kids. First pitch it at 7:00 pm.