New Kent baseball remains hot, takes down Glen Allen in tournament finale

New Kent’s Keegan Branch (left) slides safely under the tag attempt by Glen Allen’s Daniel Nienaber (right) for a score.

Robb Johnson photo

Behind a strong performance at the plate, New Kent’s Trojans showed that they are ready to take on stronger competition. Such was the case Tuesday afternoon during the finale of a three-game Spring Break showcase.

New Kent crushed the Glen Allen Jaguars 12-2 in the final game of the Deep Run Tournament, finishing the series with a 2-1 record.

New Kent’s batter frustrated Glen Allen starting pitcher Jake Bratton. The Trojans scored runs thanks to base hits from Michael Hetzel, Tyler Warren, and Jonathan Hochman. Already trailing 6-0, the Jaguars opted to bring in University of Virginia commit Daniel Nienaber to command the mound. And even when he did take the hill, New Kent did not let up.

In the top of the fourth, Hetzel and Warren reached base by walk when Keegan Branch’s single loaded the plate. From there, Hochman’s base knock drove in two more Trojan runners, upping New Kent’s advantage to 8-0. From there, New Kent would capture the victory once again by mercy rule, retiring the side in the bottom of the sixth inning to emerge with a 12-2 victory.

After the contest, New Kent Head Coach Trevor Ronan spoke about his team’s performance against top competition.

“Our confidence is huge,” he commented. “Even after their main guy (Nienaber) came in, we scored three runs.

“Everyone is playing great ball and they are getting along,” Ronan continued. “This year, it is a 100-percent team effort, and the guys are having fun while they are doing it.”

New Kent’s record improves to 6-1 overall.