Post One Starts Season With Big Win
Kim North Trending
WEIRTON - Not bad for an opener.
Wheeling Post 1 scored a dozen runs, belted out 13 hits and played flawless defense in its season-opening, 12-2, victory over Wellsburg Post 34 Tuesday night in six innings on Edwin J. Bowman Field.
"We made the routine plays and put the ball in play, especially with two strikes," Wheeling assistant coach Isaac Rine said. "That was the big thing tonight. When we were down 0-2, 1-2 we put the ball in play and made something happen."
Post 1 came out swinging as the first four batters - Jared Marsh, Braxton Billick, Jaxon Murray and Andrew Skadra - all went first-pitch hunting that resulted in an infield single; a sacrifice bunt; two ground balls that were misplayed; and a 1-0 Wheeling lead. Zade Billings lined a single to center that made it 2-0. It became 3-0 when Rocco Paolina legged out an infield single to load the bases with two outs and Preston Cole, believed to be the first-ever Oak Glen player to don a Post 1 uniform, lined a triple to right that cleared the bases for a 6-0 reading.
"Preston had a big hit there and he played a solid second base for us," Rine noted.
Billick's sacrifice fly in the fourth plated Marsh who had tripled, making it 7-0.
Wheeling sent 10 batters to the plate in the sixth, the second time it batted around in the game. Winning pitcher Quinn Jamison knocked in the first of five tallies with a sacrifice fly. Cole recorded his fourth RBI from the No. 9 hole with a single. Marsh bounced into a fielder's choice as a run scored and Billick ripped a two-run single through the left side of the infield. Dillon Wilson had an RBI double as the margin grew to 12-0.
Post 34 avoided a shutout on Ray DeFranco's two-run single with two outs in the bottom of the sixth. DeFranco had two of Wellsburg's three singles.
Jamison went the first four innings for Post 1, striking out eight, walking one and giving up one hit. Half of his strikeouts came in the fourth when one batter reached first base when the third strike was dropped and then thrown wildly to first.
"Quinn did his thing. When he throws strikes and gets rolling, he's tough," Rine added. "I hate to take him off of first base (his regular position), but I love it when he's on the mound and doing his thing."
Ryan Yates pitched a scoreless fifth, with one K, before Murray finished the game. He fanned two and walked two.
Marsh and Murray each singled twice and tripled for six of Post 1's hits. Cole had two hits, as did Billings, one of two Tyler Consolidated players on Wheeling's roster.
Wheeling returns to the Friendly City today to host debuting Moundsville on the artificial surface at Wheeling Park High School.