The Waynesboro Generals used solid pitching from Ben Krusen, some longball and a little late-inning magic to sweep a doubleheader from Covington, taking game one 7-2 and winning the nightcap by a 4-3 final.
Krusen (1-1) had a rough go of it at the outset of the opener, forcing a run in on a bases-loaded walk to Dustin Arrowood with one out in the first inning to give Covington the early 1-0 lead. But the freshman righthander from North Central struck out Sean O’Brien and Brant Valach to get out of the inning with no further damage, and didn’t give up a hit the rest of the way in a six-inning stint in which he struck out nine ‘Jacks hitters.
The Generals didn’t get the offense going until the fourth, and when it got going, it was with the long ball. After Brandon Murray walked to lead off the inning, Rob Amaro hit the first pitch he saw from Tyler Redding (2-4) over the fence in left-center for his first homer of the season to give the Generals a 2-1 lead. Anthony Iacomini followed up one out later with his third homer of the season to make it 3-1 Waynesboro, which scored twice more in the inning on an RBI double by Bradley Noland and a passed ball that allowed Jeff Conley to score.
Waynesboro got some insurance in the sixth on a two-out, two-run homer by Julian Ridings, his sixth of the season.
Covington seemed to have game two in hand behind solid pitching from Corey Rhoney (0-5), who had given up a run on two hits and struck out nine through five as the ‘Jacks built a 3-1 lead.
The Generals rallied for two in the bottom of the sixth, with an RBI single by Jacob Hoyle and a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch with Ryan Breen at the plate that forced the tying run in. With the bases still loaded and one down, though, Brandon Glazer grounded into a double play, ending that scoring threat.
After Kyle Allen (2-2) pitched a perfect top of the seventh, Waynesboro got to Rhoney again in the seventh. After Iacomini flew out to the warning track, Jeb Weymouth reached after getting hit by a pitch, and then JoJo Woods scorched a double to the gap in left-center, scoring Weymouth with the winning run.
It was the third game-winning hit of the season for Woods, and his second walkoff hit in the past eight days.
The win was Waynesboro’s eighth in a row, and with Harrisonburg splitting a doubleheader with New Market, the Generals now own a three-and-a-half-game lead over the Turks in the South Division with five games left in the 2012 regular season.
The doubleheader was Waynesboro’s last home appearance of the 2012 regular season. The Generals play two at New Market Sunday night and then go back out on the road Monday night at Harrisonburg before finishing up on Wednesday with a doubleheader at Rockbridge.
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Chris Graham
