Royals win second straight, crush Lumberjacks

By Jerry Holsworth -- sports@nvdaily.com

WINCHESTER -- After a five-game losing streak, the Winchester Royals have come storming back to take two Valley Baseball League games in a row. After beating Waynesboro by 10 runs Tuesday, the Royals dominated Covington on Wednesday 8-2 at Bridgeforth Field.

"Tonight I think that it was pitching and defense that was the key," Winchester manager John Lowery Jr. said. "Of course, we also got a couple of keys hits, too. But, when we get our pitchers throwing strikes, and our defense making big plays like they did tonight, good things are going to happen."

The Royals got a solid performance on the mound from starter Adam Adkins, who out-pitched Lumberjack starter Mike Kaczmarck in a battle of southpaws.

Adkins allowed just two runs on four hits through 6 2/3 innings on the mound. He struck out seven and walked just three Covington batters.

The Tennessee freshman, however, got a lot of support from his defense, and the Royals bats. Winchester turned three double plays for the night, shutting down three potential scoring opportunities for the Lumberjacks.

"I was really happy to get the win," Adkins said. "Our defense really gave me the support I needed, and it always helps when the offense keeps putting up runs."

Winchester batters clubbed three homers for the night, giving Adkins and reliever Bryan Garcia a comfortable lead almost from the beginning of the game.

"Adkins kept his ball down and gave us a chance to win," Lowery said. "Bryan [Garcia] did a great job in relief. All of our pitchers have improved over the summer. They're gaining confidence, and I think it's a sign of good things to come."

Garcia relieved Adkins with two outs in the seventh with runners on first and third. He quickly got Lumberjack batter Jairo Acevado to ground out to second, ending the inning. The Florida International sophomore then got Covington out in order over the last two innings to preserve the win.

While Winchester pitching and defense were keeping the Lumberjacks off the scoreboard, the Royals' bats were sealing the victory at the plate.

Dave Fallon started the scoring for the Royals with an RBI single that scored Aaron Dudley in the bottom of the first. Bobby Rauh followed in the second with a towering two-run homer over the left-field fence to put Winchester up 3-0.

In the third, it was Jordan Steranka who got the big hit, a two-run homer over the left-field fence to put the Royals up 5-0.

"We really approach hitting as a team," Rauh said. "We try to see what the pitcher is throwing early in the game, and also try to get his pitch count up. Sometimes you get runners in scoring position and get them home and sometimes you don't. Tonight, we got the key hits that got our runners home."

Despite the fact that Lumberjacks catcher Andrew Caron threw out three Winchester runners attempting to steal, Rauh was still able to add to his league-leading stolen base total during the game. Rauh got the jump on Caron in the eighth and made second without a throw for his 33rd stolen base of the season.

"It's really getting harder to steal," Rauh said. "The pitchers are getting better with their pick-off moves. I just try to pick my time and go."

Fallon, who finished the game 4-for-4 at the plate with two RBIs, drove the ball over the right-field fence in the fifth for Winchester's third home run of the game.

Kaczmarck took the loss for Covington, giving up six runs on eight hits in five innings on the mound.