The Virginia Peninsula Community College baseball team celebrated Sophomore Day on March 29 with a doubleheader split against Mid-Atlantic Christian University. The Gators took the opener 10-4 before losing the second game 11-6. Both games were seven innings and played at War Memorial Stadium in Hampton.
In the first game, Caleb Gonzales (Kempsville/Virginia Beach), one of the sophomores honored in a ceremony between games, put the Gators on the board first with a two-run home run to left field in the third inning. It was the first home run of the season for Gonzales, a catcher known more for his defense than offense.
After the Mustangs from North Carolina tied the game in the fifth inning, the Gators responded with two runs in the bottom half. Jayden Alvarez (Woodside/Newport News) was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to drive in one run, and Aidan Feather (Grassfield High School/Chesapeake) drove in the other on a sacrifice fly. MACU tied it again with two in the sixth, but VPCC broke open the game with six runs in their half of the sixth. Feather hit a three-run homer, Tyler Stobbs (Spotswood/Harrisonburg) and Israel Dozier (Kempsville/Virginia Beach) had RBI singles, and Gonzales added a sacrifice fly.
Kaden Hundley (Middlesex) earned the win for VPCC, going 5 1/3 innings, giving up eight hits and three runs, all earned. Wilson Estep (Walsingham Academy/Williamsburg) earned the save, retiring all three batters he faced in the seventh inning.
The Gators couldn’t carry the momentum into the second game. The visitors used a six-run second inning to take an 8-2 lead enroute to the win. Justin Bryson (Arbor View/Las Vegas) had three hits, and Marco Fernandez (Spanish River/Fla.) had two.
The Gators return to action Monday, March 31 with a game against The Apprentice School at War Memorial Stadium. They resume Region 10 play with a three-game series against Caldwell Community College on April 5-6 at War Memorial. Saturday’s doubleheader begins at 1 p.m., with Sunday’s single game starting at noon.
For more information on VPCC athletics, visit www.vpccgators.com.