By Randy Arrington
SHENANDOAH, June 1 — The two softball teams many believe to be the best in the region met in a semifinal matchup on Thursday rather than the Region 2B title game set for Friday. Somehow, the Eagles of East Rockingham found themselves at a No. 5 seeding and had to defeat No. 4 Buckingham, 8-4, on the road Wednesday in a weather-delayed quarterfinal. Page County left no doubt about their top seeding with a five-inning, 12-0 win over No. 8 Madison on Monday…and then they awaited a third meeting with East Rock.
The Eagles handed the Panthers their only loss to a Class 2 team this season on April 18 by a score of 7-1. However, Page got revenge on May 19, when they captured a 4-3, walk-off win over East Rock to take the Bull Run District regular season title. Thursday’s matchup was the lowest-scoring of the three games between the neighboring rivals this season, and it provided fans with a nail-biting defensive battle that saw no errors committed on the field by either team. In fact, stellar defense was key for both teams.
Page County struck first as they got their first two batters on base by way of a hit batter and a walk. Sophomore Emma Lucas then belted an RBI-double to right-center field to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead that they would hold most of the game.
Bull Run District “Player of the Year” Bailee Gaskins retired the first 12 batters she faced before allowing a walk to lead-off the fifth. East Rock senior Ashlyn Herring then broke up the no-hitter with a single to center field. That would be the only two Eagles to reach base during the game…however, Herring did get on base again in the top of the seventh on a double to centerfield. Gaskins finished the seven-inning, complete game shutout allowing only two hits, while striking out five and walking one.
Junior Savannah Shifflett tacked on the insurance run in the bottom of the sixth off an RBI-double down the left field line. That gave Page a 2-0 lead and capped off the scoring.
Lucas lead the Panthers at the plate going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Page got five hits and stranded six runners, including runners on second and third with one out in the first. East Rock stranded three and threatened to have a big inning in the fifth with two on and no outs, until Gaskins struck out two of the next three batters and got the third to fly out.
With the win, Page County (22-3) advances to the Region 2B championship and will host No. 7 Strasburg (16-7) at 6 p.m. on Friday, June 2. The Rams went on the road to defeat No. 6 Central, 10-6, on Wednesday in Woodstock — both teams pulled off “upsets” in the quarterfinal round. The Rams upended No. 2 Stuarts Draft, 2-1, while Central upset No. 3 Clarke, 5-1.
One year ago, the Panthers overcame a four-run deficit to beat East Rock, 10-7, to win the region title on a streak that ended in a 1-0 loss to Appomattox in the state championship.
Page County already has a ticket punched for the quarterfinal round of the VHSL Class 2 state tournament, which gets underway Tuesday, June 6. Who they will play and where they will play will be determined by Friday’s outcome.
BASEBALL
BUCKINGHAM COUNTY, June 1 — While both teams had five hits on Thursday, Buckingham was able to edge Page County out of the playoffs, 3-1, in a weather-delayed Region 2B semifinal.
The Knights earned a run in the second, third and sixth innings to hold a 3-0 lead going into the seventh. The Panthers picked up a run and threatened to get more in their final at-bat, but the comeback would fall short. Page was lead at the plate by senior catcher Everett Foltz, who went 2-for-3. Only one error was committed during the game by both teams combined.
The real story of the day was Buckingham’s junior pitcher Justin Gunter, who struck out 14 of the 21 Page batters he faced. Entering the Region 2B tournament as the James River District champions, Gunter has been a big part of the Knight’s success this season. Now, Buckingham (16-2) hosts No.2 East Rockingham (19-4) on Friday for the Region 2B championship.
Both teams have earned a spot in next week’s VHSL Class 2 state tournament, which get underway Tuesday, June 6.
SOCCER
LURAY, May 31 — The Luray girls soccer team ended their 2023 season on Wednesday at Bulldog Field after a hard-fought, double-overtime, 2-1 loss to Central of Woodstock in a Region 2B semifinal.
Central scored around the 13:30 mark of the first half and took a 1-0 lead into halftime. The Falcons took 12 shots on goal in the first 40 minutes, compared to only six for Luray. The Bulldogs’ senior goalie Trinity Hasse recorded seven saves in the first half alone.
The scored remained 1-0 until Luray’s sophomore forward Kate Taglauer scored off an assist from junior midfielder Hazel Parlett with just under four minutes remaining in the second half to tie the match at 1-1. With seconds left, a corner kick by Luray was deflected just over the top crossbar of the goal, and the region semifinal ended regulation tied.
The first overtime did not resolve the issue, but a minute into double-overtime Central ended the sudden death period with a game-winning goal. The Bulldogs (14-7) ended their season one-game shy of qualifying for the state tournament.
Third-seeded Central (14-10) will now travel to No. 1 Clarke (20-0) for the Region 2B championship on Friday, June 2. Both teams have qualified for next week’s VHSL Class 2 state tournament, which gets underway Tuesday, June 2.
For full schedules, rosters and standings — check out the Bull Run District website.
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