On a bright, sunny day at Westgate Park, Falls Church Kiwanis Little League launched its 62nd season, with Delegate Jim Scott and Mayor Robin Gardner on-hand to throw out the ceremonial first pitches as family members and supporters cheered on more than 450 boys and girls (ages 5 through 12) who assembled on the field. Following the opening pitches and inspirational words of encouragement, teams played at fields across the region.
Rattlers 8 – Ironbirds 0
Rattler hitters broke open a tight contest in the third with five runs, and the Rattlers won 8-0. Rixon Webb led the Rattlers by going three-for-three, while Josh Meighan and Benjamin Shannon each had two hits. Calvin Maddox went two-for-two. For the Ironbirds, Nicholas Costa had two hits.
Bees 11 – Muckdogs 4
Zach Otley’s line-drive double to start the second helped carry the Bees to an 11-4 victory. For the Bees, Mark Barakat and Tommy Ferrick each had three hits. For the Muckdogs, Grace Grossmann went two-for-two and scored a run.
Mudcats 8 – Redwings 4
Mudcats Nick Bradford, Jimmy Alverson and Evan Lawrence each had two hits and scored twice as the ’Cats beat the ’Wings 8-4. Rebecca Stern added two hits for the winners, and Ethan Siebel and Mark Comstock contributed RBIs. Jackson Leary, Joseph Lokke, Gabriel Rike, Trey Robinson and Ian Tracy all had two hits for the ’Wings.
Rockhounds 5 – Sidewinders 5
The ’Hounds and the ’Winders started the season with a tie. The ’Winders came out swinging in the first, scoring four. But the ’Hounds’ D held and their offense rallied in the second and third. For the Sidewinders, Katie Mills had a base hit to center, as did Evan Jones, whose hit drove in Adam Janicki to tie the game in the fourth. Josh Post started the Rockhounds’ hitting with a base hit in the second, adding a two RBI triple in the third. John Schooner had two RBIs for the Rockhounds.
Sand Gnats 6 – Storm 5
In the bottom of the second inning, Alexander Savinski scored the first run of the season for the Sand Gnats in this closely-contested game. Gnat reliever Lucas Barthel held back the threatening Storm, with the game deadlocked at five. In the bottom of the sixth, facing a full count, Corey Lauer drove in his third run of the game, giving the Gnats a narrow win.
Pirates 13 – Angles 10
The Pirates jumped out to an early 4-0 lead while starting pitcher Liam Strobel sent down seven Angels. But the Angels came alive in the third, taking an 8-4 lead with a triple by Caden Blum and strong pitching by Peter McComb. The Pirates pulled even on David Miller’s two-RBI triple and went ahead on a run by Craig Fischer. Pirates’ pitcher Miller closed out the game, getting five of the final six outs on strikeouts. The Angels’ Erik Martin went two-for-two.
MAJORS
Nationals 10 – Red Sox 4
Key hits for the Nationals included a single by Chris Meador, a triple by Casey Lauer, and a double and single from Tavon Brown. Meador pitched five strong innings, with Noah Anderson coming in to close the game. The Red Sox’s Ted Terwilliger went two-for-three with a double and a home run.
Nationals 8 – A’s 3
Anderson went two-for-three as the Nats won again. Nationals pitcher, Stanley Skocki went nearly five innings, giving up four hits and two walks.
Cubs 11 – A’s 1
The Cubs prevailed in a game which began as a pitching duel between two of the league’s fireballers, Logan Nesson of the A’s and Daniel Schlitt of the Cubs. Nesson struck out seven, while Schlitt dropped 13. For the A’s, Michael Parrella had two hits. The Cubs’ offense was powered by Ned Quill, who blasted a bases-loaded double, driving in three runners, Johnny Peterson, who ripped a two-RBI double, and Schlitt, who also had two RBIs.
Cubs 14 – Yankees 0
Hits by Ned Quill, Thomas Beddow, Jacob Plata and Matt Livingston led to four first-inning runs for the Cubs, who added seven runs in the second. Leading off the third inning, Daniel Schlitt blasted a solo homer. Johnny Peterson added two hits for the Cubs. Cubs’ pitchers Peterson, Quill and Beddow combined for the shutout.
Orioles 20 – Yankees 5
Nine different Orioles collected hits, and the team enjoyed three strong innings of pitching by Jake Abruzzi.