Elder Carpenter’s walk-off RBI single stuns Lafayette, New Kent wins 6-5 in eight innings

New Kent players rush to congratulate Michael Carpenter (2) on his eighth inning single that drove in the winning run for a 6-5 decision over league leader Lafayette.

Alan Chamberlain photos

New Kent’s Michael Carpenter didn’t take kindly to the decision by Lafayette’s baseball coaching staff to issue an intentional walk to his younger brother in order to get to him. And he would make them pay.

With the game knotted 5-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, the host Trojans had an opportunity to end today’s (Wednesday) affair after Ram relief pitcher Matt Keane missed inside on a 3-2 curve ball to walk leadoff hitter Clay Simpson. Simpson then stole second and stood in scoring position with no outs.

Keane, however, struck out the next two batters, bringing Michael’s brother, Steven, to the plate. And with first base open, the Rams opted for issuing an intentional walk, setting up a force play at any base for the third out that would send the contest into the ninth.

“To be honest, it made me a little mad,” Michael Carpenter said. “But I was excited to be in a situation to win the game.”

Carpenter jumped on an inside fastball from Keane, stroking a sharp line drive along the left field line.

“I was thinking, ‘Get down, get down,’” he said, recalling as he watched the ball drift toward the foul line. Luckily, it landed in fair ground — just barely.

“It was real close,” he added.

Simpson, meanwhile, sprinted home for the winning run in a 6-5 decision, touching off a wild celebration with teammates first mobbing him before rushing to hug Carpenter who never stopped running until he reached second base.

“In the back of my mind,” said New Kent coach Ronnie Cox, “I felt [Lafayette] had kicked the cage and made a big mistake by walking little brother [Steven is a sophomore] to get to older brother [Michael is a senior]. Michael is very intense and responds to situations like this.”

Carpenter’s heroics enabled the Trojans to post their third win in as many days and raise their overall record to 8-3.

“All three wins have been by one run,” Cox said. “Maybe this will be a special year. Things seem to be going our way so far.”

“This is good momentum for our team,” Carpenter added. “It’s been a real team effort this week to get the momentum going, and I hope we can keep it going.”

To help lessen wear and tear on his pitching staff, Cox brought up a pair of JV players, Brennan Gray and Bryan Brooks, to assume some of the relief-pitching load, if needed. Both earned their baptism under fire against a Lafayette team that entered today in first place in the conference standings with an 8-1 record. Also, Cox reached deep into his pitching rotation to give Austin Pierce his first start.

“I told Austin to throw strikes and keep us close,” the coach said. “And he did a great job. He kept us in the game.”

Lafayette, however, roughed up Pierce in the first, taking a 2-0 lead. But the Trojan offense answered after loading the bases in the bottom of the frame on Ram starter Luke Lipcius. Trey Cox drove in the first Trojan run, and Chris Beshai followed with a two-run single for a 3-2 lead.

Lafayette evened the affair in the third, but New Kent vaulted back on top on Trey Cox’s second attempt at a squeeze bunt in the fifth.

“The cardinal rule is you don’t try the squeeze a second time, but it worked,” coach Cox said. “I pulled every baseball rabbit out of the hat that you could.”

The Rams responded in the sixth to move in front 5-4, but Steven Carpenter’s RBI triple to the centerfield fence in the bottom of the sixth would set up the extra inning scenario.

Lafayette, meanwhile, squandered an opportunity to win the game in the seventh and final frame of regulation. Gray, who came on in relief, got the first two outs, but walked the next three batters.

Enter Brooks who would entice the next hitter, Steven Howard, to loft a towering fly gloved by leftfielder Tyler Robertson thus ending the threat. After the game, Brooks learned that he is headed back down to JV, but his first varsity win on the mound is under his belt.

“I told my assistants we have four games this week [Jamestown visits New Kent on Friday] and if we get two I’ll be happy,” coach Cox said. “Now we’ve won three in a row.”

Teammates mob Clay Simpson after he scored the
game-winning run on Michael Carpenter’s single.

Reliever and winning pitcher Bryan Brooks accepts congratulations after getting out of a bases loaded jam in the seventh inning.