The Lions improve to 7-1 on the season after a tremendous win over the Albemarle Patriots on Tuesday. Tristan Snyder started on the mound for Louisa, while sophomore Chris Cook got the call for the Patriots.
The game got off to a fast start with a 1-2-3 top of the first to bring Louisa up to the plate. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Lliam Grubbs drew a walk and advanced to third on a single from Jack McDonald. Louisa stranded two runners to end the inning.
Albemarle scored their first run in the top of the second on an RBI single from junior Chase Miller. After giving up two hits to Albemarle offense, Snyder finished the inning with back-to-back strikeouts. Louisa’s offense had a strong second inning, collecting six hits. Tyler Earley and Tristan Snyder led off the inning with back-to-back singles. Snyder was brought in on an RBI double from J.B. Lamb to tie the game 1-1. RBI’s from Austin Nicholas, Matt West, Lliam Grubbs, and Jack McDonald gave Louisa a 5-1 lead in the bottom of the second.
Albemarle scored another run in the top of the third on singles from Conner Moriaty and Scott Reid, however Snyder recorded three quick outs to end the inning. Louisa’s offense only had one baserunner in the bottom of the third after a walk to Blue Taylor. Sophomore Jett Shue took the mound for the Patriots in the bottom of the fourth and allowed two runs on errors committed by Albemarle’s offense.
Snyder continued his dominance in the top of the fifth recording another 1-2-3 inning with three quick groundouts to end the inning. In the bottom of the fifth, Louisa failed to score a run after getting two runners in scoring position.
Snyder was back on the mound for the sixth and seventh innings, allowing three hits, no runs, and no walks. Snyder secured the 7-2 win over Albemarle while the Lions improve to 8-1. Catcher, Garrett Duerson played a key role in strike calls with his framing and hard work behind the plate. When asked about Snyder's performance, Duerson responded, “He threw the ball really hard. He commanded the breaking ball very well and his offspeed command really helped a lot.”
Louisa is set to face Western Albemarle at 6:30 pm on Thursday at Western and will play Fluvanna on Friday at 7:00 pm at home. “We’ve got to keep trucking along,” said Duerson. “They’re the two best teams that we will play all year. We’ve got to ride that horse.” Let’s go Lions!
