THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 15, 1994 TAG: 9406150648
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBIN BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: 940615 LENGTH: MECHANICSVILLE, VA.
Clover Hill (25-1), ranked seventh in the nation by USA Today, squeezed home a run with one out in the bottom of the seventh to beat the Patriots, 1-0, in a Group AAA semifinal at Atlee High.
{REST} Second baseman Ben Bradford put down the bunt off relief pitcher Steve Johnson with runners on second and third and one out.
By the time Johnson fielded the ball, leftfielder Tony Lastrapes was two steps from the plate and scored easily to secure the Cavaliers' 22nd consecutive win.
``It came to mind,'' that they might squeeze, Johnson said. ``But there was nothing I could do about it.''
First Colonial's Jamie Booth carried a two-hitter into the seventh against a team that had been averaging 10 runs per game.
Forced for one of the few times all season to manufacture a run, Clover Hill sent four batters to the plate in the seventh. All bunted.
Lastrapes led off with a bunt single down the first base line.
Shortstop Wes Barrow followed with a bunt off the plate. Catcher Ryan Dunbar fielded it on one bounce and threw to shortstop Pat Cecchini covering second, but Lastrapes was safe on a close play.
Johnson relieved Booth and centerfielder Chris Creswell sacrificed for the first out, moving the runners to second and third.
First Colonial coach Norbie Wilson then overruled his coaches, who wanted to intentionally walk Bradshaw and load the bases.
The Patriots brought an outfielder in to play third and had the third baseman crowd the plate.
But that meant pitching to lefthanded hitting first baseman Jake Anthony, the Cavaliers' best hitter, and Wilson preferred a righty-righty matchup between Johnson and Bradshaw.
The count went to 1-and-1 when Bradshaw somehow managed to get his bat on a high, tight fastball.
``Steve threw it right at his ear,'' Wilson said. ``It was just a great bunt.''
Clover Hill coach Tim Lowery said it was only the second time all season the Cavaliers have resorted to the squeeze play.
There were a lot of big-time plays in this game,'' Lowery said. ``You have to do what you can to get one (run) across.''
The run made a winner of Robbie Preston, who checked First Colonial on two singles by third A.T. Vasta. Preston held the Patriots hitless until Vasta blooped a single to right with one out in the fifth.
First Colonial (19-8) mounted its best threat in the sixth. Dave Winter reached on an error by Bradshaw and was sacrificed to secondby Cecchini.
Another error by Bradshaw, on Booth's slow roller, put runners on first and third with one out. Brad Tetlow then lifted a fly to short rightfield. Winter tagged up and tried to score, but was thrown out on a perfect peg to the plate by Jason Putney.
First Colonial threatened again in the seventh. Vasta singled with one out, was sacrificed to second by Tom Horvath and stole third. But Jason Bozard popped out to second.
Booth, a junior who lasted only 1 2/3 innings in the semifinals against L.C. Bird, survived another shaky first inning in which he hit two batters and walked one.
He helped himself by picking Bradford off first and got Putney on a grounder with the bases loaded and two outs. Clover Hill didn't get more than one runner on base again until the sixth.
``Jamie was the perfect pitcher to throw against them,'' Wilson said. ``This was a tough one to lose.''
by CNB