The Lynchburg Hillcats are headed to the Carolina League Championship Series after knocking off the Fredericksburg Nationals 3-0 in the deciding Game 3 on Friday.
The Hillcats were carried by an excellent week of pitching, capped off with a one-hit shutout victory against the Nationals on Friday afternoon.
After a scoreless first inning, the Hillcats were able to get on the board in the second inning as Isaiah Greene reached first with a single. He would advance from first-to-third on a pickoff throw that went awry. Richard Paz would drive him home on a single with two outs to give the Hillcats the early lead.
Lynchburg would strike again in the fourth when Junior Sanquintin would lead off to begin the fourth inning with a single. He would work his way over to third over the course of the frame before coming home on a wild pitch to move the lead to two.
In the fifth, the Hillcats would get another leadoff batter aboard when Jake Fox walked before stealing second. Sanquintin would single to left field that drove him home to put the Hillcats up 3-0.
From there, the pitching staff would combine for an impressive playoff performance that only saw one hit. The lone hit came to lead off the eighth inning. No Fredericksburg National ever reached scoring position in the ballgame.
Zach Pettway would close the door shut in the ninth on a line drive to Fox and the celebration began. Players poured out of the dugout and bullpen to celebrate the opportunity to compete for a Carolina League Championship.
The Hillcats will now turn their attention to the Charleston RiverDogs, who defeated the Myrtle Beach Pelicans earlier this week. The series will begin on Sunday down in Charleston, with the first pitch scheduled for 5:05 p.m.
Games two and three (if necessary) will take place at Bank of the James Stadium on Tuesday and Wednesday. Both games are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the championship series are available online at Lynchburg-hillcats.com or by stopping at the box office.
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Chris Graham
