The Salem and Glenvar High baseball teams played nine and half innings without declaring a winner last Thursday as “darkness” won out in the annual crosstown rivalry. The second game of the spring series was played at Glenvar’s Larry Wood Field, which does not have lights, and darkness ended the game after nine complete innings resulting in a 6-6 tie.
“It’s not a win but it’s better than a loss,” said Glenvar coach Jeremy Cromer. “We’ll still get half the points.”
The “points” were important to the Highlanders, who are battling for position in next week’s Region 2C tournament. A win over a Class 4 team, Salem, would have been good for a bunch of points in the region rating system. With the tie Glenvar got half the points and was still second behind Appomattox in the region coming into this week.
Salem won the first meeting between the two, 3-2, way back on March 19 and the Highlanders were itching to get another shot at the Spartans. Glenvar got off to a fast start with two runs in the first inning on singles by Cam Feazell and Cale Vaughan. Glenvar then made it 6-0 in the bottom of the second on a double by Feazell, a single by Camden Summerville and an infield error.
The Spartans battled back against Glenvar lefty Gray Hutchison in the top of the third. Jack Stroud beat out an infield single and Try Dent drew a one out walk. Mason Hale’s sacrifice fly to deep left brought Stroud home and Aiden Poff drilled a two run homer off the leftfield scoreboard to make it 6-3. It was Poff’s sixth home run of the season, breaking a record current SHS principal Jamie Garst had held for 27 years. More on that later.
Salem tied the game in the top of the fifth. Stroud singled to start the rally again. After Feazell, who was now pitching for Glenvar, retired the next two batters Hale worked a single and Poff and Zach Bocock hit back-to-back doubles to tie the game at 6-6.
That’s the way it stood through nine innings on a cloudy day at Glenvar. Salem starter Mason Brown was relieved on the mound by Chase Rutledge with two outs in the fifth while Vaughan took over for Feazell for Glenvar and allowed just one hit from the seventh inning through the ninth as the game remained tied at 6-6. Brayden White relieved Rutledge to start the bottom of the ninth and pitched a clean inning.
After nine full Salem coach Jimmy Winterer and Glenvar coach Cromer huddled with the umpires. It was 8 o’clock by this point but the sun had crept out from behind the clouds and it was decided to play another inning. Vaughan retired the meat of Salem’s order in the top of the 10 and White came out to pitch the bottom of the inning. His second pitch sailed by catcher Poff, untouched, and the home plate umpire called the game at that point announcing it was too dark and he didn’t want someone to get hurt. The game reverted to the score after nine complete and it was declared a tie.
Thursday’s game was the third of four straight for the Spartans, who beat Patrick Henry in Roanoke on Tuesday, 15-8, and Lord Botetourt on Wednesday at Salem’s Billy Sample Field, 11-6, in a game shortened to six innings due to lightning. Ian Stump picked up the win on the mound in relief of Ben Farber and Salem got doubles by Rutledge and Hale and a triple by Poff to spark the offense.
Salem was at Glenvar on Thursday and back home Friday at Kiwanis Park to host Pulaski County in the last game of the regular season. Winterer saved Zach Bocock to pitch the River Ridge District game and Zach delivered, pitching a six inning complete(slaughter rule) game with seven strikeouts in an 11-1 Salem win.
The big news was two more home runs by Poff, who upped his SHS season record to eight with the post-season still to come. In his first at bat he hit a towering shot over the leftfield scoreboard to stake Salem to an early 2-0 lead. Then, in the fourth inning, he hit one over the leftfield wall. In four games last week Poff, a sophomore, was seven for 14 at bat with a single, a double, a triple and four home runs. He’s hitting .389 for the season with 23 runs batted in. Aiden already has the school record for career home runs, nine, with two seasons to go.
“I’ve coached high school baseball for 18 seasons, and I have not seen many kids who can hit the ball as hard as Aiden Poff,” said Winterer. “He’s worked hard to build strength in the off-season, and it has been on full display this year. I’m excited to see him get even better over the next two years, and I expect him to see a lot of interest from college coaches this summer.
It was Senior Night for the Spartans and they all had a hand in the win. Hale had three hits, including two doubles, and drove in four. Rutledge scored twice, White had a double and two RBIs, Brown drew three walks and scored a run, Stroud had two hits and scored twice and Bocock had a big night on the mound and also had a hit and an RBI.
Salem, now 13-8-1, is off this week. The Spartans will open Region 4D play next week, most likely at Blacksburg on Wednesday, May 27.
Glenvar did not play again until Tuesday of this week at Floyd. The Highlanders got a complete game from Feazell and took a 4-1 win. Cam did not allow an earned run and fanned half a dozen Buffaloes. Daniel Summerville had two hits and Feazell and Vaughan drove in runs.
The win gave the Highlanders a 14-5-1 record and a 9-2 record in Three Rivers District games, clinching the district championship.
“It’s always great to win the district championship,” said Cromer.
Glenvar had a home game with Patrick County on Wednesday that was too late for press deadlines. With Region 2C teams playing this week tournament rankings won’t be decided until all regular season games are through, but the Highlanders have clinched a home game to open the post-season and will most likely be the number two seed behind Appomattox.
