Missed chances, errors cost Post 94

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on June 23, 2005 1:47 PM

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WASHINGTON -- Snow Hill Post 94 wasted two golden scoring opportunities and committed uncharacteristic late-inning errors in an 8-2 loss at Beaufort County Post 15 on Wednesday evening.

Post 94 put the lead-off runner on base in five of nine innings, but stranded 12 runners overall. Eight were left in scoring position, including six in the last five innings combined.

Snow Hill compounded its offensive futility with a disastrous seventh inning on defense. Three errors helped spark a five-run uprising for Post 15, which improved to 9-4 in Area I East Division play.

"We coached a very sorry game ... my fault," said veteran Post 94 coach James "Rabbit" Fulghum. "We sure should have had some more runs a couple of times, but I screwed up ... did a poor job of getting some people in.

"We'd get the runners on base, but mess up in between."

Tied at 2-2 after four innings, Snow Hill loaded the bases with no outs in the fifth. Drew Sowers hit a line drive at Post 15 first baseman Aaron Mobley, who caught the ball and then touched first to complete a double play.

Starting pitcher Patrick Williams, a right-hander from Pamlico County, induced a ground-ball out to end the inning.

Snow Hill threatened again in the seventh, but John Allen Conway got caught in a rundown between second and third to end that scoring chance. Post 94 put runners at first and second with no outs in the eighth, but reliever Peanut Chandler retired the next three batters he faced.

Chandler, a 16-year-old rising senior at Washington, tossed four shutout innings en route to the win. The right-hander struck out three, walked one and allowed just four hits.

"We could get no farther than second base on him," Fulghum said of Chandler. "He stopped us."

Beaufort County took control in the seventh.

Kevin Boyd drilled a lead-off single up the middle against Post 94 right-hander Blake Taylor, who suffered the loss. Chandler laid down a bunt, which Snow Hill misplayed defensively.

"We tried to milk him for one more out," Fulghum said of Taylor. "We play the bunt (well) and maybe it doesn't balloon on us."

An outfield error on Mike Eastwood's single allowed Boyd to score the game-winning run. But Post 15 wasn't done. Another error accounted for Beaufort's second run of the inning.

One out later, Post 94 reliever Brad Bagley hung a fast ball up in the strike zone and Aaron Mobley tattooed it over the center field fence. It was Mobley's third home run of the season and first since Post 15's victory against Wayne County on May 31.

"We really miscommunicated on the big boy," Fulghum said of Mobley. "We were going to walk him ... not intentionally. That was about as hard as you could hit it at this level ... a monster shot."

Boyd provided an RBI single in the eighth.

"They hit the ball awfully good early in the game and late in the game," Fulghum said of Beaufort's 10-hit attack. "They were hard to get out."

Snow Hill, which endured its second straight defeat, collected the game's initial run during its first at-bat. Hunter Chase slapped a 1-0 offering from Williams over the left-field fence for his third home run of the season.

Beaufort answered with two runs in its half of the first.

Taylor drilled a two-out single in the second to score Chase, who reached on a double. Chase and Taylor combined for five hits in 10 plate appearances.

Snow Hill (9-5, 6-5 Area I East) continues play at home Friday against Wilson Post 13. The contest begins a stretch of six games in an eight-day period.

"If we can peak at the right time ... the season isn't over," Fulghum said. "There is a lot of baseball left to play."