Waynesboro Generals rally, stun Harrisonburg, 4-3, to take series

Harrisonburg swept the regular-season series with Waynesboro. The Generals swept the series that mattered.

A two-out, two-run single by Kevin Fagan lifted Waynesboro to an improbable 4-3 win over the Harrisonburg Turks Monday night in Waynesboro. The victory gave the Generals a two-game playoff-series sweep over the Turks, the 2013 regular-season champs, who had outscored Waynesboro 44-14 in the six-game regular-season series sweep.

Waynesboro had just blown a 2-0 lead that had come on the strength of a two-run first on an RBI double by Tyler Bocock (sophomore, Stetson) and an RBI single by Anthony Iacomini (junior, Cortland State). That was all starting pitcher Corey Armentrout (sophomore, Bridgewater) needed to keep the lead into the late innings. Armentrout put up six and two-thirds scoreless innings, giving up five hits, striking out five and walking four.

But Harrisonburg rallied for three runs in the eighth, getting a game-tying two-run double from Eric Kalbfleisch and a tie-breaking RBI single by Joe Napolitano to lead 3-2.

Waynesboro loaded the bases with nobody out in the ninth, but reliever Adam Cherry got pinch-hitter Ben Boykin (junior, College of Charleston) to line out and then struck out Corbin Lucas (sophomore, Shenandoah), putting the game on the bat of Fagan (freshman, Stetson), who had gone 0-for-11 at the plate in limited action in Waynesboro in 2013.

Fagan lined a 1-1 pitch past Harrisonburg second baseman Andy Perez, scoring Iacomini from third with the tying run and scoring pinch-runner Jeff Conley (junior, Alderson-Broaddus) with the winning run, setting off a delirious celebration among the home crowd.

Sean Bucholz (junior, Southern Miss) picked up the win with two innings of scoreless relief.

With the win, Waynesboro advances to the VBL semifinals. The Generals will open the semifinal round on the road at the winner of the New Market-Staunton series on Wednesday. The Rebels and Braves are tied at one game apiece in their best-of-three series, with the deciding Game 3 set for Tuesday in New Market.

More information online at www.WaynesboroGenerals.net.