WILLIAMSTOWN, W.Va. — Four runs scored in the first three innings were more than enough for Layne Coffman and the Sissonville Indians to sweep their regular season home-and-home series with Williamstown, 4-0 in a game that was played in a brisk one hour and 44 minutes.
Coffman scattered four hits for the Indians in posting the shutout. He walked three batters and struck out six.
“He has given us that throughout the year. That’s what we expect and Layne and it is what he expects of himself every time he goes out,” said Sissonville head coach Chad Carpenter.
“Tonight, he had four pitches anytime he wanted for strikes. That makes it very difficult on the opposing hitters when he can do that.”
Sissonville (13-5) scored single runs in each of the first two innings with run-scoring singles from Landon Chapman and Maddox Balog. In the third inning, the Indians opened the frame with bunt base hits from Cooper Nooney and Cooper Hall. After a sacrifice bunt from Chapman, Chase Litton doubled the Sissonville lead with a run-scoring single.
“I absolutely love to do that. In the middle part of the season, we were really struggling just getting sacrifice bunts down. We have worked our tail off the last couple of weeks. I am glad it came to fruition tonight on how it plays out because that lets the guys see exactly what we are trying to accomplish.”
After allowing seven hits in the first three innings, Williamstown starting pitcher Wyatt Siley allowed just one hit in the final four frames. He went the distance for the Yellowjackets (15-11), striking out seven batters.
“Our bats went quiet after that. We had, I think, two innings in a row where we just saw nine pitches,” Carpenter said. “We get anxious and we really don’t stay with our plan. We have been preaching all year to have a plan when you go to the plate and stick to that plan. We kind of got off kilter in the fourth and fifth innings.”
Balog had two of Sissonville’s eight base hits. Tyler Kaiser and Dylan Pucella each had two hits for WHS.
Sissonville has won eight of their last ten games with a lineup that contains many new starters at the varsity level.
“Expectations were kind of minimal because I only returned two starters. I lost nine or ten seniors off last year’s team. We had a lot of inexperienced varsity guys. But I love this group. They come to work every day. They work hard and they listen. They do what is asked of them. We’re having a lot of fun.”