HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL: Abingdon's Turnaround Continues

WARDELL, Va. – Since starting the season 2-4, Abingdon’s baseball team has rattled off 14 wins in 16 games with a rotating cast of heroes.

The list Thursday was headed by Bobby Webb and Zach Witt, who hit and pitched the Falcons to an 8-2 decision over Tazewell in the Southwest District Tournament semifinals at Southwest Virginia Community College.

Second-seeded Abingdon (16-6) earned a trip to Friday’s 5 p.m. title game with unbeaten Richlands, as well as a home game Tuesday night in the Region IV quarterfinals.

Webb was in the middle of two big Falcon rallies, stroking a one-out double in the second that kicked off a three-run outburst, then singling home the first of four runs in the bottom of the third inning.

“Coach [Mark Francisco] came up to me and told me I was DHing today, so I had to get it done,” Webb said. “I felt like I had to drive the ball and find the gaps; do something to help out the team.”

Meanwhile, Witt (6-2) continued his solid sophomore year with six good innings, allowing just five hits and one earned run while striking out six.

“Zach has pitched real well for us,” Francisco said. “He battled there at the end when he got tired, but he was able to get through it.”

Witt didn’t overpower hitters, but got a slew of first and second-pitch outs against a lineup which simply didn’t bother to work the pitcher except for a two-run third inning and a 30-pitch sixth inning.

Outside of those two bothersome innings, Witt needed just 32 pitches to get through his other four innings.

“Our guys got caught in that trap of feeling like one swing could change the game,” Bulldogs coach Lou Peery said. “You can’t do that in baseball. You have to play as a team.”

Third-seeded Tazewell (13-8) again failed to pack its gloves, committing four errors. In three losses to Abingdon, the Bulldogs have made a whopping 13 miscues and allowed 30 runs.

“You’ve got to play well in all three phases of the game – offense, defense and pitching – to win games,” Peery said. “You can have a chance if you do one or two really well. We’ve got to get better at it.”

The Falcons aced all three facets yesterday, finishing with 10 hits, getting a combined six-hitter from Witt and Taylor Read and committing only one error.

It’s the kind of performance Francisco has consistently seen from his team since its sputtering start.

“We’ve played better baseball,” he said. “The kids have been working hard all year and hopefully, we can keep putting it together.”

Matt Rasnake doubled twice and scored a run for Abingdon, while Josh Barker went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Dustin Dean belted a pair of doubles to lead Tazewell’s offense, while Trey Lambert added two singles.

Richlands 3, Carroll County 2

Christian Hearl continued his unexpected power surge in most dramatic fashion for the top-seeded Blue Tornadoes.

Seemingly headed for extra innings against a team which has given it fits all year, Richlands instead walked off with its 21st straight win when Hearl launched a two-out solo homer to left field in the bottom of the seventh inning.

It was Hearl’s fifth homer of the season. The junior infielder hadn’t hit one in his career until this month.

The blast made a winner out of senior Jordan Barnett, who picked up the last two outs in relief of starter Ethain Keene. Barnett also hit two doubles and drove in a run hours after learning of the death of his uncle.

The No. 4 Cavaliers (12-10) used the Blues’ only error to knot the score at 2-2 in the top of the seventh. Carroll County pitchers Brent Hall and Jarrod McCombs allowed only seven hits to the potent Richlands lineup.

Of the Cavaliers’ three losses to Richlands, two were one-run decisions and the third was a 5-3 verdict.

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