Trojans pull away from Lake Taylor to secure regional championship appearance

Keegan Branch’s base hit in the third inning starts the cycle of scoring for the New Kent Trojans.

Robb Johnson photo

New Kent High School’s baseball team found themselves in a tight battle early on in a June 2 regional semifinal matchup against the visiting Lakeland Cavaliers. But when the runs started flowing, the scoring just kept on scoring.

New Kent broke open a close contest, Lakeland 9-1 in the final five innings of play to capture a 12-3 victory over the Cavaliers, earning a berth to the regional championship and state tournament.

Holding a mere 3-2 lead in the bottom of the third, Jakub Bowen’s connection pushed two runs across home plate to increase the Trojans’ lead to three. Jaxon Foreman followed suit, using his double to drive home two additional runs to stretch the home team’s lead to five (7-2).

Meanwhile, Jonah Sorrell commanded the mound for the Trojans. After surrendering three early runs, Sorrell calmed down and struck out nine batters in the contest. From there, New Kent added five more runs in the game to secure their spot in the championship contest.