The weekend ended poorly for the Bulldogs. After starting district play with a 4-game win streak, they’ve fallen back to 0.500 with four losses in a row and find themselves in a tie for fifth, but only one game out of the playoff hunt. Unearned runs did the Bulldogs in during those first three losses; lack of offense was the story against the Broncos and district loss #4, sending only 3 batters to the plate in 4 out of the seven innings, and only getting 8 baserunners all afternoon.

The Broncos didn’t waste any time getting on the board. After a caught line drive by CF Scott Viktorin on the first pitch in the bottom of the first, the next four batters reached against Starter Ryan Dalton on a hit-by-pitch, a double, a single, and a walk. All of that activity netted only one run, but a two-out first-pitch single by the Bush catcher scored another pair to make it 3-0. The Broncos would add two more in the bottom of the fourth, on a lead-off single by the Bush shortstop, and a two-out home run by Bush Pitcher Chris Hernandez. Andrew Keplinger came on in relief of Dalton, and pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings.

When you don’t score any runs, it stays pretty quiet on the offensive side of the ledger. The Bulldogs had a few of threats: in the third inning, 3B P.J. McKinley hit a ground-rule double and C Drew Miller reached on the shortstop’s error. They left the bases loaded in the fifth when McKinley was hit by a pitch, Miller walked, and SS Barrett Barnes walked. And in the seventh, lead-off singles by Keplinger and RF Caleb McKinney were followed by ground balls to the shortstop by Gigliotti and Miller, the last one for a game-ending double play.

Next up for the Bulldogs is a fresh start with the second half of district play, starting with a game at Dulles on Tuesday night. It’s a tight race for the playoffs and there’s still lots of baseball left to play!

Bulldog Offensive Highlights:

· 4 hits for the Bulldogs, 1 for extra bases; a ground-rule double for 3B P.J. McKinley; and singles by 1B Adam Shank, 2B Andrew Keplinger, and RF Caleb McKinney.

Bulldog Pitching Highlights:

· Ryan Dalton (2-4, 0-2), 3 2/3 innings, 1 K, 4 BB’s, 8 hits, 5 earned runs.

· Andrew Keplinger, 2 1/3 innings, 1 K, 1 BB, 3 hits, 0 runs.

Bulldog Defensive Highlights:

· A great running catch into left center by CF Scott Viktorin on the first pitch in the bottom of the first.

· A 4-6-3 double play in the bottom of the second, Keplinger to Barnes to Shank.

· A 4-6-3 double play in the bottom of the fifth, Barnes to Viktorin to Shank.

Winning Pitcher: Chris Hernandez

Losing Pitcher: Ryan Dalton

Extra Base Hits, FBA: McKinley (ground-rule double)

Extra Base Hits, BUS: double by #2, triple by Thomas, HR by C. Hernandez