By Randy Arrington
LURAY, April 18 — The Luray Bulldogs were tangled up in a tight game with the Eagles of Clarke on Tuesday evening until a fifth-inning rally broke the game open and gave Luray its first win in nearly a month.
Luray jumped out to a 2-0 lead after posting runs in the first and second inning. However, a few Eagle hits combined with a few Bulldog errors gave the visitors four runs in the top of the third to take a 4-2 lead.
The home team missed an opportunity to answer back in the bottom of the third when a Luray runner was called out for interference with a play, even though the runner never left the base path. That final out of the inning negated a run that had crossed the plate during the play.
Luray was then lucky to keep Clarke scoreless in the fourth. LHS junior Cameron Weaver had a full count on Clarke senior Theodore Wood before recording the third out via strikeout, stranding Clarke runners on second and third.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Bulldogs were able to add a run off an Eagle error, but missed an opportunity to add more runs when a play at the plate abruptly ended the short rally. A Luray runner went for home on a passed ball and was tagged out, leaving two runners still on base (while the batter would have faced a 3-0 count with bases loaded). The score stood at 4-3, in favor of Clarke, until the next inning.
In the bottom of the fifth, Luray’s bats lit up and produced an amazing offensive display that ended up defining the game. The Bulldogs sent 15 batters to the plate to face three different pitchers during the inning, producing nine runs off six hits and four errors. All nine runs, and four of the six hits, came with two outs on the scoreboard. Five of the runs were unearned, with two scoring on passed balls.
That big inning closed out the scoring for the game. Luray claimed a 12-4 Bull Run District victory over Clarke and recorded their third win of season — their first since March 23 at Central.
Luray now stands at 3-10 overall on the season and 2-7 in the Bull Run. With seven games remaining in the regular season, the Bulldogs currently sit one game back of Central (2-10, 2-6), who’s holding on to eighth place and the final spot in the district tournament.
Next up, Luray takes a week off before hosting Central in a key matchup at 7:30 p.m. next Tuesday, April 25 at Bulldog Field. Clarke travels to Rappahannock this Friday, April 21.
For full schedules, rosters and standings — check out the Bull Run District website.
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