The Riverbend High School baseball team lost a 17-10 slugfest to Ocean Lakes in the Virginia High School League Class 5 state semifinals at Deep Run High School in Glen Allen on Friday afternoon.
Aiden Pritt had three RBIs for the Bears (21-6), while Brady Campbell and Josh King collected two RBIs apiece.
Aiden Zovak was also a standout offensively, going 2-for-3 with a pair of walks and scoring three runs.
Unfortunately for Riverbend, Ocean Lakes had the more potent offense. The Dolphins (21-5) scored nine runs in the bottom of the first inning to put the Bears in a deep hole they couldn’t quite climb out of.
Donovan Nagle and Brady Nagle finished the day with four RBIs each for the Virginia Beach school. Ryan Gocio and Austin Crew added three RBIs apiece.
It’s the second season in a row that Riverbend lost in the state semifinals, and the third straight year the Bears qualified for the state tournament.
The Riverbend softball team fell 8-2 at Midlothian in the state quarterfinals on Tuesday. Jameson Snell went 2-for-3 with an RBI for the Lady Bears, who finished their campaign at 20-5 after making the state tourney for the first time ever.
The Riverbend baseball and softball teams both won the Commonwealth District championship and finished as Region 5D runners-up. Their state playoff runs capped a banner year for the Bears’ athletic program.
Among the Riverbend squads to taste gold this school year: football earned a share of the district title and finished as region runner-up; boys basketball was region runner-up and advanced to the state quarterfinals; girls basketball and boys soccer both won district tournament crowns; girls tennis claimed a district title; boys and girls cross country both won regional championships and finished second at the Class 5 state meet; and the boys 3,200 meter relay team won the state title.
“We have committed individuals that work together to help Riverbend be their best,” Bears Athletic Director Jesse Lohr said. “We have athletes that are committed, and transformational coaches that go above and beyond. And we have great support from the parents, who want to help give our coaches and athletes what is needed to build a culture of success.”
Cavs come up short in state quarterfinals
The Caroline softball team saw its first-ever trip to the state tourney end at the hands of Warhill in a 1-0 nail-biter on Monday in the Class 4 state quarterfinals.
The visiting Lions (18-6) pushed across the only run of the game courtesy of a Payton Auerbach RBI single in the top of the first.
The Cavaliers (17-6) managed just four hits against Warhill’s Skyler Wilson, who struck out six and walked three. They left the tying run on second base in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings.
Wilkerson went 2-for-2 with a walk. Jaidyn Tingen scattered six hits in a complete-game effort on the mound, striking out six and walking two.
Caroline loses three starters to graduation, but is expected to return many of its top performers next season. Those include Tingen, who is just one strikeout away from 400 in her career, third baseman Wilkerson and outfielder Ava Anderson. All three were first-team all-Region 4B honorees this year. The Cavs are also expecting a handful of new faces who helped the junior varsity squad win the Battlefield District crown.
Bad third spells doom for View
A six-run third by visiting Glen Allen proved to be the Mountain View softball team’s undoing in a 7-5 Class 5 state quarterfinal loss on Tuesday.
The visiting Jaguars (15-7) benefited from four walks and two hit batters in the pivotal frame. They also pushed across a run on a wild pitch and two more runs on an error.
Charley Torres, Natalie Stewart, Maddie Young and Sammie Jo Smith had an RBI each for the Wildcats (16-6). Stewart went 2-for-4 at the plate with a triple and a run scored, and Mya McLeod was also 2-for-4 and scored once.
Mountain View outhit Glen Allen 8-4.
