BEL AIR, Md. – Another strong day at the plate was supplemented by a stellar effort by the pitching staff as the Harford baseball team cruised to a 15-5 win over Anne Arundel.
Double-digits in the hit column has been a regular occurrence for the Fighting Owls (34-7, 21-2 MD JUCO) in 2015 and Tuesday evening was no different as the top offense in the nation cranked out 14 hits. It was the pitching staff that stood out on this night though as they carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning.
Dalton Reed (7-0) made the start for Harford and was credited with win. He pitched two perfect innings, retiring all six batters he faced and recording one strike out.
Austin Griffie came on to pitch the third inning and needed just eight pitches to set the side down in order. It was an encouraging return to the hill for the sophomore who missed a month of action due to injury.
Michael Hanafin also needed just eight pitches to get three groundball outs in a perfect fourth inning.
Alex Brown came on to pitch the fifth and was unfortunate to allow the first two base runners of the game for the Pioneers. The perfect game was lost on a throwing error and Brown gave up a walk on a borderline 3-2 pitch to Jacob Donaldson with two outs.
TJ Pagan allowed the first hit of the game to Gabriel Vertucci on a groundball through the right side with one out in the sixth.
Brandon Smith made the most of his three plate appearances, going 2-for-2 with a walk. He hit a two-run double in the second inning and blasted his fifth home run of the season to lead off the fifth inning. The third baseman scored a run and drove in three on the day.
Chase DeMars,
Alec O'Dell and
Casey Plunkett each hit doubles. DeMars went 1-for-1 with an RBI and a run scored. O'Dell went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three runs batted in. Plunkett's two-run double gave Harford a walk-off win via the 10-run rule. He went 1-for-2 on the day.
Harford sits atop the MD JUCO standings with just three conference games remaining on the season. They will host CCBC Essex on Thursday evening before wrapping up the conference slate with a trip to Garrett Saturday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday at Harford Sports Complex.
