New Kent bats pound Tabb 10-4; Lady Trojans drop third straight

New Kent base runner Jacob Stout dives safely back to the bag as the ball eludes Tabb first baseman Jake Berrena on a fourth inning pick-off play.

Alan Chamberlain photo

New Kent’s Trojans pounded out a dozen hits and took advantage of nine walks issued by Tabb pitching on the way to a 10-4 baseball triumph over the visiting Tigers.

Friday’s affair closed out a three-game, season opening home stand for the Trojans. The decision also marked the hosts’ third straight win.

“That was a big win for us,” said Trojan coach Michael Kuper. “We battled at the plate and strung together some walks and hits. We had good base running and the fielding was great so it was a good all-around game.”

Walks contributed to New Kent moving in front to stay. Steven Carpenter led off the Trojan first with a walk and later scored on a Christian Hamby infield single.

The hosts added two in the second. Winning pitcher Mitchell Metheny bounced a single up the middle to lead off. Courtesy runner Cameron Downer pulled into third on Jacob Stout’s double to right. Sacrifices by Shawn Cousins and Bryan Brooks upped the advantage to 3-0.

Tabb scored twice in the third to pull within one, but Brooks singled in a run in the fourth and Blake Frye drove in Hamby (double) in the fifth to create a 5-2 lead. Then in the sixth, the hosts got a double from Carpenter followed by five straight walks and another Brooks RBI single to push across five more runs.

Metheny, meanwhile, scattered four hits while striking out seven in five innings of work. Aaron Wiggins finished up in relief, surrendering just two hits and striking out one over the final two frames.

“It was a really good outing by Metheny,” Kuper said. “He got himself in a couple of jams, but he made the big pitches and got himself out of it when it counted.”

In softball, New Kent’s Lady Trojans came close to registering their first win of the season, but Tabb managed to hold on for a 5-4 win, dropping the hosts to 0-3.

Tabb took a 1-0 lead in the first, but the Lady Trojans pulled even on Peyton Slater’s double that scored Paige Simpson (single).

The Tigers held a 4-1 advantage heading into the bottom of the fifth when the hosts again battled back. Jada Evans drew a two-out walk and scored on Slater’s second double of the game. Slater raced home on Haley Cleaver’s double into the gap in right-center to pull the hosts within one.

Tabb got one back in the sixth before New Kent scored in the seventh on Cleaver’s sacrifice that drove in Evans (walk). The hosts, however, could not get another runner aboard.

“I think we had a little bit better morale going today,” said Lady Trojan coach Nicole O’Bier. “They brought their stuff today, I guess you would say. I saw a bit more fire under them today. They want to win.”