Generals Eliminate Yellow Jackets, 12-5
Garland Leads Charge with Four Hits, Four RBI
April 27, 2007  -  Box Score

LYNCHBURG, Va. --- Washington & Lee University (18-13) kept its tournament championship hopes alive on Friday afternoon, eliminating Randolph-Macon College (19-20-1) by a score of 12-5 in the second round of the 2007 Old Dominion Athletic Conference Baseball Championship.

Big innings shaped the outcome of the ballgame.  Washington & Lee jumped out quickly with four runs in the bottom of the first inning.  Randolph-Macon rallied from the Generals’ early outburst with five runs in their half of the third, but W&L put a six-spot on the board in the bottom of the fourth to regain control.

Richard Garland was the catalyst for Washington & Lee, making up for a three-strike out performance on Thursday by going 4-for-5 with two doubles and four runs batted in.  David Miller picked up three hits and a walk in five plate appearances, collecting a trio of RBI.  Brendan Clark earned the victory, improving to 3-0 following 3.1 innings of scoreless relief.

Greg Meleski and Charlie Hartt had two hits apiece for Randolph-Macon.  J.C. Conway drove in two of the Jackets’ five runs.  Matt Tiller took the loss, dropping to 1-2 overall.

Washington & Lee used three extra base hits to put four on the board in the first.  Miller led off with double to left center, and he came home in the next at-bat on Terrence McKelvey’s triple to deep center.  After William Lewis walked, Garland made up for a tough batting day on Thursday with the Generals’ second double to the gap in left-center, scoring McKelvey from third.  James Madden walked to load the bases, followed by a sacrifice fly by Andrew Henderson and a groundout by Clayton Edwards to drive in the final two runs of the inning.

The Yellow Jackets one-upped W&L’s outburst in the third inning.  RMC sent 11 batters to the plate on the way to a five-run push.  With one down and runners on second and third, Chris Dykes brought in the first of the runs with a line shot back up the box.  Meleski followed with a sacrifice fly to deep left-center for the inning’s second tally.

Hartt hit the first of two wind-aided doubles for the Jackets, driving in Dykes to cut the Generals’ lead down to 4-3.  A walk to Joey Crawford and a single through the right side by Brian Rogers chased starter Steve Marcott from the game and loaded the bases for J.C. Conway.  The Jackets’ centerfielder sent a high fly to right-center that carried away and deeper from the W&L rightfielder to drive in both Hartt and Crawford for a 5-4 RMC advantage.

A two-out error by the second baseman led to the Generals’ six-run fourth.  Edwards and John Dittore scored on the errant throw to give W&L a 6-5 lead.  Lewis walked to reload the bases, and Garland followed with his second and third RBI of the day with a double down the left field line.  Madden smoked a single to center to drive in Lewis and Garland to cap the scoring surge with W&L ahead, 10-5.

Randolph-Macon seemed ready for its second big inning in the top of the seventh as the Jackets loaded the bases with nobody.  RMC’s charge was quelled by W&L relief pitcher Jeff Pharis.  The Generals’ left-hander fanned Rogers and induced a pair of lazy pops Conway and Nick Willie to get out of the jam.

Washington & Lee tacked on two more in the bottom of the eighth inning.  A pair of singles to start the inning led to a sacrifice fly by Lewis to drive in Miller.  Garland picked up his fourth hit and RBI of the game with a single through the left side to plate McKelvey.

The Generals move on to play at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.  They square off with #3 Lynchburg College at City Stadium in Lynchburg.