Baseball

Blue Jay Bats Wake Up, Move Above .500

The Jefferson Blue Jays take down Arcadia Valley and Crystal City before falling to St. Vincent this week.

The Jefferson R7 Blue Jays put together a nice week, going 2-1 in their three games, and showing off their offensive prowess that had eluded them for a stretch.

The bats woke up against Arcadia Valley on Monday as the Blue Jays cruised to a 13-1 victory before dispatching Crystal City the next day by a score of 7-1. They lost a nail-biter to St. Vincent on Wednesday 5-3, but the two wins this week got Jefferson back over .500 for the season with a record of 10-9.

In the game against Arcadia Valley, the Blue Jays poured it on early and often, starting with five runs in the first inning. RBI singles from Max Schnitzler and Garrett Lalumondier got things started, Sam Stokes stole home and Camren Johnson blasted a run-scoring double to right.

The Tigers got one run back in the bottom of the first, but Jefferson answered in the third with a Wyatt McDaniel RBI base knock. Then the kid gloves came off. The Blue Jays tacked on three more in the fourth and four in the fifth, giving them a 10-run lead to put the mercy rule in play. Stokes had a big double to score a run, Cole Robinson drove in one with a single (eventually stealing home) and Jefferson took advantage of walks and errors to plate the rest of the runs.

AJ Ciliberto was on the mound for the 13-1 victory and was brilliant, pitching all five innings and allowing just one unearned run. He allowed only one hit and one walk while striking out eight and earning the victory.

Robinson had a big day going 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI and three runs scored. Stokes, Lalumondier and Johnson all had two hits and an RBI in a game where the Jays ran wild. As a team they stole 16 bases, including two swipes of home.

Wins of that caliber can create a wave of momentum, and Jefferson rode it into Crystal City. Starting out hot once again, the Jays scored at least a run in each of the first six innings. Robinson got things going with an RBI base hit in the first.

Blake Hampton drove in another with sharp single to center in the second, and then Gavin Theodoro unloaded in the third with a towering home run to center. Not to be outdone, Lalumondier cranked a liner into left center that cleared the wall as well and after five, R7 was up 6-0.

Robinson provided an insurance run in the sixth with an RBI single and the Blue Jays held on to win 7-1. It was fitting that Robinson drove in the last run to put and exclamation point on his performance. He was on the mound as well in this one, and cruised through 6.2 innings. He didn’t allow an earned run and fanned nine while allowing just six hits and a lone walk. He was also 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBI.

McDaniel had a nice day with three hits in four trips, and of course Lalumondier and Theodoro had the two big flies. The Jays ran wild again with 15 more steals. Cooper Frisk led the way with four.

That win made the Jays 10-8 on the season and they appeared to be rolling, but they ran into a buzzsaw in the St. Vincent Indians the next day. Jefferson struck first with two runs in the opening inning, taking advantage of a couple errors and a wild pitch.

The Indians would strike back though. They put up two runs in the second and then three more in the third to go up 5-1. McDaniel got a run back in the fourth with an RBI single, but that was as close as the Jays would get. Five errors really hurt them in this one, and they fell 5-3.

Theodoro was on the bump, and struggled a bit, having to pitch around the defensive miscues. He allowed five runs over three innings, but only one was earned. Schnitzler and Robinson each had two hits in the loss.

Despite the recent defeat, it was still a solid week for the Blue Jays, They will look to get back in the win column and stay above .500 next Tuesday when their road trip continues against St. Pius X. Blue Jay Bats Wake Up, Move Above .500

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