RINER 鈥 Jared Lavergne鈥檚 two-out RBI single in the seventh inning not only sent Auburn back to the state baseball semifinals, but it also spoiled a gem of a pitching performance by Chilhowie鈥檚 Dawson Tuell.
Lavergne鈥檚 hit to right on a 2-2 pitch with the bases loaded gave the Eagles a thrilling 2-1 victory over the Warriors in a VHSL Class 1 state quarterfinal game Tuesday.
With the win, Auburn (24-1) advances to play defending state champion Rappahannock in Friday鈥檚 semifinals at Kiwanis Field in Salem.
Through six innings on Tuesday, Tuell was almost unhittable.
He gave up just three hits and one earned run, but with one out in the seventh he gave up his first walk of the game to the Eagles鈥 Mitchell Hale. Graham Alley followed with a single of his own, advancing Hale to second. Two batters later Josh Givens singled to left, but Hale was stopped at third, loading the bases for Lavergne.
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鈥淗e was getting a little tired and missing high,鈥 Lavergne said of Tuell. 鈥淚t just felt right for me. I was confident I could get it done.鈥
Chilhowie coach Jeff Robinson had no regrets leaving his starting pitcher in the game for the seventh, despite him maybe being fatigued.
鈥淗e is a warrior. He鈥檚 the [2024] state player of the year for a reason,鈥 Robinson said of Tuell. 鈥淗e鈥檚 the guy you want on the mound in this game and in that situation.鈥
Chilhowie (20-6) was hitless for the first three innings, but shortstop Jayden Schwartz led off the fourth with a double. Eventually the Warriors loaded the bases in the frame and scored their lone run on a two-out walk by designated hitter Gavin Walker to give Chilhowie a 1-0 lead.
After the walk, Auburn went to the bullpen as Zac McGlothlin replaced Givens, the starter.
McGlothlin proceeded to strike out the Warriors鈥 Noah Nash to get out of the jam.
鈥淲e have Zac in relief this time of year and he got a couple of big outs with some of their best hitters up,鈥 Auburn coach Eric Altizer said.
In the bottom of the fourth, Auburn tied the game when with two outs and a runner on first, Hale hit a groundball to third.
The throw to first by Nash, the Warriors鈥 third baseman, was low and couldn鈥檛 be picked by first baseman Asher Chapman. The ball rolled into foul territory down the right field line and allowed Matthew Altizer to score all the way from first to even up the contest.
Givens and McGlothlin combined to give up just two hits and one run for Auburn, while walking seven and striking out 14 batters. The Warriors, however, did leave eight runners on base.
鈥淲e had some opportunities to score,鈥 Robinson said. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 come up with the big hits, but we left it all on the field.鈥
