West tops East in 7th

STUARTS DRAFT – on a night of community fun, the Stuarts Draft Diamondbacks hosted the Rockingham County Baseball League All-Star game Saturday in a battle of East versus West.

In a game where each player was trying to prove himself on the field, or by swinging for the fences and playing a position that was new to him, the West All-Star team came out on top 9-4.

A tribute was paid to the late Orvin Kiser Sr., who spearheaded the development of the Diamondback’s baseball park in Stuarts Draft. The field was a plot of weeds until Kiser had the idea to turn it into a baseball field instead of letting it be used for a water retention site.

Fans who came out early to the game were treated to a home run derby. Wes Dimitt won the derby after going into a sudden death against West player J.J. Loker.

To start the game, a bad throw by the catcher, that went deep into the right field corner, brought in both Luciano Pugliese and Beau Banglesdorf of the East All-Star Team after they were walked in the second inning.

The West came back strong in the third when both Tyler Hodges and Devon Snow scored runs. A home run by Shane Banks put the West up by one.

Pugliese and Banglesdorf both scored again in the fourth. Pugliese, who plays for Shenandoah, hit a single and made it to second when the second baseman dropped the ball. Banglesdorf hit a deep RBI double to bring him home. Nathan Batman brought Banglesdorf home to give the East the lead again.

The lead didn’t last for long when the West sent a man over in the fifth to knot the game up at four apice.

The West went on scoring in the seventh, bringing in two off an error in the outfield. A second error brought in a third. The inning was finally brought to an end by a sliding catch by the left ielder. Another pair was scored in the eighth.

Diamondbacks players, Tim Brust, Drew Dobbins, and Ben Wise, each pitching an inning apiece, combined for four strikeouts. The East team as a whole had eight strikeouts.