MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Trey Ritchie went 3-for-3 at the plate and struck out eight batters on the mound as George Washington defeated University, 7-1 in the opening game of the Mon County Classic.
Ritchie pitched six strong innings for the Patriots. He allowed just six hits and walked three batters. “He pounded the zone and he was getting three pitches over for strikes,” said George Washington head coach Mike Davis. “He has thrown the ball real well this year and that is what we have expected from him.”
The Patriots (12-13) pounded out 14 hits and scored in five different innings. GWHS leadoff batter Brayden McCallister had three hits and drove in a pair of runs. “He has been hitting the ball real hard all year and tonight he found some holes,” Davis said.
Trailing 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, University’s Casey Smith drove in Kevin Smith with an RBI single. But the Hawks were unable to generate any runs the rest of the way despite getting runners on base in each of the first six innings. “I thought we had some good approaches at the plate,” said University head coach Buck Riggleman. “A couple guys hit the ball really hard but the timely hits didn’t happen.”
Perry Lillard suffered the loss for the Hawks (7-15). He allowed six runs in six innings. “We talked in the fourth inning and said it looked like he was getting a little stronger,” Riggleman said. “We just gave them some runs here and there. We made him throw a few more pitches and that has been our story throughout the season.”
University will wrap up the regular season next week with three road contests against Linsly, Brooke and George Washington. The Patriots will gear up for the MSAC Tournament. GW is the No. 4 seed and will visit top-seeded Saint Albans in the semifinal round on Monday.
“The MSAC is a great conference,” Davis said. “When you can finish in the top four any year, you know you are doing something right. We’ll go in there and see what we’ve got and play in some meaningful games going into the sectionals.”