All they needed to do was go to the bench.In front of 1,521 fans at Capital City Stadium in Columbia, SC, the National All-Stars defeated the American All-Stars 9-3 on Tuesday night, thanks to a powerful bench that produced five runs in the sixth inning to secure the victory. The starters had played to a 3-3 tie after five, but the National squad broke it open in the top of the sixth.
”In my opinion, this is one of the top three summer leagues in the country,” said National Manager Ryan McCurry. “With the way the reserves played, it showed that.”
The sixth inning began with a walk to Rich Poythress, a third baseman who plays collegiately at the University of Georgia. With Poythress on first, Kevin Mattison (UNC-Asheville) ripped a triple into the gap, which would begin a string of five straight hits. On the following pitch, Kyle Bowley, who would receive Player of the Game honors, smacked a ground-rule double to score Mattison.
After a single and a passed ball moved the runners up to second and third, National shortstop Brent Weiss, a George Mason product, stroked a two-RBI single into center. Weiss advanced to second on the throw home, and was quickly picked up by Wes Hobson, the National designated hitter, who smacked a single to left.
The outburst gave the National team an 8-3 lead, which they carried all the way to a 9-3 victory. Casey Hodges, a junior from Mount Olive, pitched two innings of scoreless ball, earning the game’s Defensive Player of the Game award. Hodges, who picked up the victory, allowed only one hit in his two frames, striking out three.
On Monday night, the CPL had it’s annual Home Run Derby, which was won by a landslide by Northeaster junior third baseman Michael Lyon. Using the wood bat, Lyon smacked seven home runs, and added one dinger with the aluminum for good measure.