Published: July 19, 2008 12:08 am            

Playing from behind

Huge early-inning deficit leads to Post 17 loss

PLEASANT VALLEY — After a blowout loss two days earlier, Fairmont’s American Legion team needed a bounce-back game in the worst way.

Instead, Post 17 got more of the same.

Friday night at East Fairmont High School, Charleston scored 13 times in the first three innings en route to an 18-4, five-inning victory in game one of a doubleheader. Game two results were unavailable as of press time.

As was the case Wednesday, when Fairmont dropped a 14-1 decision to Morgantown, the home team found itself in another early hole.

Mike Conley hit a two-run homer in the top of the first inning to open the scoring. Charleston, a Kanawha County travel team, added four more runs in the second, getting an RBI single from Kenny Harper and a two-RBI single from Hank Goings before a Post 17 error — one of three miscues in the opener — brought home another run.

If a 6-0 lead wasn’t enough, Charleston busted open the floodgates with seven-run third.

In the frame, 10 straight hitters reached base and six in a row scored runs. In the second and third innings combined, 22 batters came to the plate.

The team added two runs in the fourth and three in the fifth off Fairmont reliever Hunter Morgan.

Charleston had six hits in the fourth, 16 for the game and had nine players record a hit or score a run.

Ross Easterling finished 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles. Trevor Corne added three hits, including a two-run homer in the third. London Strolinger, Goings and Conley had two hits apiece, while Harper reached base four times.

Corne started and held Post 17 to four hits over five innings. He struck out four, walked one and hit a batter.

Fairmont, down 13-0 at the time, finally dented the scoreboard with a four-run third. Carter DeVault and Brett Costello had run-scoring singles in the inning.

Costello also added a double and Joey Buonaiuto singled in the contest.

Post 17 is back in action Sunday afternoon at home against Berkeley County.

E-mail Nick Cammuso at ncammuso.n@timeswv.com.

        

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