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Williamstown baseball cruises past Golden Eagles

Yellowjackets make it eight wins in a row

Photo by Tyler Bennett Williamstown’s Trip Barkley (33) slides safely into second base as Belpre’s Logan Adams attempts to field a throw during a high school baseball game Wednesday.

WILLIAMSTOWN — Williamstown’s Ryan Brown didn’t get off to a hot start, allowing an early 1-0 Belpre lead after the top of the first.

But the Yellowjackets’ offense gave Brown plenty of support, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the first, ending with 10 base hits and a 9-1 win over the Golden Eagles for the ‘Jackets eighth straight victory Wednesday evening.

Brady Ankrom, Leewood Molessa, Trent Lynch and Trip Barkley, who each had two hits, combined for eight out of the 10 Yellowjackets base knocks.

“We went after their pitcher (Jerimiah Stitt) early. We had a couple of hits and scored seven in the first. A couple of them were gifts, but he shut us down after the first,” Williamstown head coach Terry Smith said.

Already trailing when coming up to plate for the first time, a single by Ankrom and a fielding error by Belpre’s second basemen Noah Fullerton, the Yellowjackets (13-2) took the lead with a bases-clearing double from Molessa.

With the runners on the corners after a fielder’s choice, Williamstown scored one run with a Barkley RBI single and once again put runners on first and third.

Stitt loaded up the bases after walking Caleb Stansberry before two crossed home plate off a Baylor Haught base hit.

A double steal that ended with Stansberry stealing home and an Ankrom RBI single made it a 7-1 Yellowjackets lead in the bottom of the first.

After his rocky start, Brown was more in control with his pitches from the hill.

Starting in the second inning, Brown got nine consecutive Belpre batters out. Belpre finally got another baserunner in the fifth when Logan Adams drew a walk with two outs.

Brown only gave up one more hit and walked two batters before getting relieved by Haught in the sixth.

Haught had the same success as Brown, not facing much of a threat until loading up the bases with two outs in the seventh. He got a popout to end the game.

“Ryan sometimes gets a little hairy with his different pitches, but he is all in for us. I’m just glad Ryan came through and Baylor threw strikes for the win,” Smith said.

Going up early with a Foster Brand RBI double in the first, the Golden Eagles (4-10) struggled in the batters box, only coming up with one hit and leaving seven runners on base after the first.

“We just didn’t play defense behind Stitt in the first inning. He did his job after the first, but we just didn’t hit,” Belpre head coach Terry Mullen said. “That’s not going to win many high school baseball games.”

Adams was the only Golden Eagle with multiple hits, going 2 for 2 from the leadoff spot.

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