By Chris Damond

Alexandria is now the city of champions. After securing the regular season title last week, the first-seeded Alexandria Aces downed the second-seeded Bethesda Big Train, 5-3, on Saturday night at Shirley Povich Field to win the Cal Ripken League Championship for the first time in team history.  

Alexandria swept Bethesda, 2-0, in the best-of-three series and stopped them from winning its sixth consecutive title. The Aces went a perfect 4-0 in the playoffs on their way to victory.  

Both teams went back and forth for much of the night until the ninth inning, when tied at 3, the Aces broke through with two runs to put the game away. 

Dylan Koontz (Campbell) led off the ninth with a walk, advancing to second on CJ Boyd’s (Appalachian State) groundout in the next at-bat. Then, on his steal attempt, the Big Train committed one of their three costly errors on the night. Catcher Baylor Cobb missed the throw to third, bringing Koontz home for the go-ahead run.  

Moments later, Cade Sullivan (Western Michigan) launched a solo homer and was mobbed by his teammates after trotting the bases. It was Sullivan’s third home run of the playoffs. A thunderous “Let’s Go Aces” chant followed by the Alexandria faithful and, for a second, it seemed like everyone was back at Frank Mann Field. 

All-star Ryan Brown closed out the game with a quick 1-2-3 inning. After his strikeout to retire the side, the Aces – along with staff, family and more – rushed the field to celebrate.   

“It feels unbelievable. I can’t even put it into words,” series MVP Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) said. “We just came out there, and out dogged them from start to finish. That was our motto all year – just dogs being dogs.”  

The Potomac, Maryland, native was just minutes away from his hometown when the Aces won the championship in Bethesda at Shirley Povich Field.  

On whether that added any additional meaning to the victory, Hacopian said, “I’d be lying if I said it didn’t, but anywhere I could win it with this group of guys is really awesome.”  

Hacopian, the Aces leadoff hitter, recorded four hits in the series and scored the first run on Saturday after Adam Tellier (Ball State) smacked a double that bounced off the center field wall in the third.  

Starting pitcher Sasha Kamenjasevic, one of two Canadiens on the team, pitched three scoreless innings. But Bethesda still had several baserunners early on, and after Kamenjasevic allowed a leadoff single in the fourth, fellow Canadien and University of Fraser Valley teammate, Josh Berenbaum, entered the game and retired three straight batters.  

The Aces held a 1-0 lead until the fifth, when Bethesda plated two runs to go ahead. Alexandria equalized in the sixth thanks to Connor Offshack’s (Elon) RBI single, but the Big Train scored once more in the bottom half of the inning to take a 3-2 lead.  

With two outs in the seventh, Koontz lofted a ball that curved towards the left-field line for a triple. Boyd hit a grounder right to the shortstop in the next at-bat, but the first baseman dropped the ball, which took a short hop, allowing Koontz to come home and tie the game.  

Boyd, who started the game in left field, then pitched a shutout eighth inning that ended in a double play. 

In 2021, the Aces made the championship but were swept by Bethesda. This year, celebrating their 15th season in the league, they finally broke through.  

Alexandria Aces (4-0-0) 5

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Aces 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 2 5 8 2 Big Train 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 3 6 3

Bethesda Big Train (2-2-0) 3

By Chris Damond

Frank Mann Field was packed on Friday night for Game 1 of the LCS Championship. 360 Aces and Big Train fans flooded the bleachers, stood by the fences and cheered until their voices were hoarse as the action unfolded.  

In perhaps the biggest game the Alexandria Aces have ever played, they outslugged the Bethesda Big Train, 8-6, to win Game 1 of the LCS Championship. First-seeded Alexandria now leads the second-seeded Big Train in the best-of-three series, 1-0.  

“It was really just a team effort, Adam Tellier (Ball State), who had a team-high three RBI, said. “From pitching to defense to hitting, we were able to come together and put one together for us.”  

The Aces were hot early, building an 8-2 lead through six innings. Tellier, Alexandria’s regular season leader in batting average and hits, blew the game open with his two-run homer to left field in the fourth, putting the Aces up 4-0.  

“At that moment, I was just trying to do whatever it took to get the win,” Tellier said about his home run. 

While Alexandria built a lead, starting pitcher Matt DeLano (MGCCC) kept Bethesda at bay. He pitched five scoreless innings and allowed just two hits on his way to picking up the win.  

DeLano showcased his strong arm on Friday night with both his pitches and pickoff attempts. In the fourth, he spectacularly threw out a runner at second. The Mississippi native faced several runners in scoring position throughout the game, but he stayed calm and got out of the jams.  

“Every time I go out there, [I’m] making sure [I’m] focusing, getting ahead in the counts, and putting batters away,” DeLano said pre-game. He certainly did that on Friday.  

As if their four-run lead wasn’t enough, Alexandria doubled its tally in the sixth to energize the crowd even more. Leadoff hitter Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) got the party started, as his grounder was thrown over the head of the Bethesda first baseman, allowing Brendan Harrity (Western Michigan) to score from first. It was one of the Big Train’s two errors in the game. 

Tellier doubled to plate Hacopian in the next at-bat, before stealing third and scoring off a wild pitch. Dylan Koontz (Campbell) walked right after and eventually came home after another wild pitch.  

But the Big Train, winners of the past five LCS Championships, would not go away quietly. As the rain started to come down, they turned it on with a four-run inning of their own in the seventh, scoring all their runs with two outs.  

In the eighth, they threatened once more with runners on first and second. Alexandria native Ryan Osinski (Bucknell) retired the side, though, as Bethesda hit a grounder that Connor Offshack (Elon) fielded before tapping third base to end the inning. 

Osinski closed out the game in the ninth with a quick 1-2-3 inning. He picked up the save.  

Both teams had eight hits.  

Alexandria is now one win away from its first championship in team history. Last season, they finally broke through and made the finals but were swept by the Big Train. This year is different. The Aces won the regular season title for the first time ever last week, picking up the number one seed in the playoffs and securing home field advantage. They held onto it tonight.   

The Aces will try to win the title tomorrow at Shirley Povich Field in Game 2 of the LCS Championship. First pitch is at 7:00 p.m.  

Bethesda Big Train (2-1-0) 6

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Big Train 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 0 0 6 8 2 Aces 1 1 0 0 2 4 0 0 x 8 8 3

Alexandria Aces (3-0-0) 8

By Chris Damond

The Alexandria Aces are headed to the LCS Championship for the second consecutive year, and they did it by smacking four home runs in a 12-4 rout of the Metropolitan Braves at South County High School on Wednesday night.  

Alexandria’s victory in Game 2 of the LCS Semifinals gave them a 2-0 sweep against Metropolitan in the best-of-three series.  

In typical Aces fashion, they started off slow, before exploding for 10 runs in the final four frames to put the game away.  

At the center of Alexandria’s offense were Western Michigan teammates Cade Sullivan and Brendan Harrity. Sullivan put the Aces on the board with his solo homer in the second and then had another in the seventh.  

Harrity had three doubles in his four at-bats, including one that took a wonky bounce off first base that plated two runs in the eighth. He finished with a team-high three RBI.  

With a 5’10” and 170-pound frame, Harrity isn’t the biggest guy on the team, but his technique makes up for it. 

“[Just] keeping short to the ball, letting it get deep and letting it catch the barrel,” Harrity said on how he hits for power.  

The second baseman is batting .500 throughout the playoffs. Only two Aces have higher averages – Eddie Hacopian (.600) and Cade Law (1.000), who entered the game late and blasted a homer that bounced off the scoreboard in the ninth.  

But before the offensive onslaught, Metropolitan scored three quick runs off starting pitcher Britt Yount (George Mason) in the first, taking a lead that would hold for five more innings.  

The turning point came in the sixth with the Braves hanging on to a 3-2 lead. Connor Offshack (Elon) ripped a two-run shot that he watched soar over the left field wall before dramatically flipping his bat and trotting around the bases. The homer put Alexandria ahead 4-3.  

Alexandria native and Alexandria City High School graduate Reese Crochet (George Washington) replaced Yount in the sixth and picked up the win. He pitched two innings of one-run baseball. Brody Valentine (Salve Regina) and Josh Berenbaum (U Fraser Valley) closed out the game in the eighth and ninth, respectively.  

Nick Frazier was tagged with the loss. Alexandria drilled 13 hits compared to the Braves’ seven. It was a great bounce-back game for the Cal Ripken League’s number one offense, who were held to a measly four runs the day before.  

Now, the first-seeded Aces will face the second-seeded Bethesda Big Train, winners of the past five titles, in the LCS Championship. 

 Last season, Bethesda swept Alexandria in the best-of-three series, but the Aces are riding a high after clinching their first regular season title in team history, which gives them home field advantage in the championship. That bodes well for Alexandria, who haven’t lost at home since June 21.  

“We’re just gonna keep playing our game, keep playing aggressive and loose,” Harrity said. 

Game 1 is Friday at Frank Mann Field. First pitch is at 6:30.  

Alexandria Aces (2-0-0) 12

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Aces 0 1 0 0 1 2 2 5 1 12 13 1 Braves 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4 7 2

South County Braves (1-2-0) 4

By Chris Damond

On a day when the Cal Ripken League’s best offense wasn’t up to its lofty standards, Alexandria’s pitching came through. Three Aces pitchers combined to allow one earned run and five hits, giving Alexandria a 4-2 victory over the Metropolitan Braves in Game One of the LCS Semifinals at Frank Mann Field on Tuesday afternoon.  

“That was big,” Alexandria native Ryan Osinski (Bucknell), who pitched 3.1 innings of one-hit baseball in relief of Jacob Hartlaub, said. “I saw some people I knew in the stands, which was really nice. [The win] felt awesome, and I’m just happy to be a part of it.” 

The first-seeded Aces now lead the best-of-three series against the fifth-seeded Braves, 1-0. 

Osinski entered in the fifth after Metropolitan scored the first run of the game and immediately recorded a strikeout to retire the side. The St. Stephens St. Agnes graduate picked up the win, striking out four batters and allowing zero earned runs.  

“The fastball no one seemed to hit,” Osinski said. “Mixing that in with the changeup really seemed solid today, so I’m happy with that … [Jacob Hartlaub] went five innings and allowed one run, so he made it easy for me, and the offense helped out, too. They got runs when I needed it and having that run support is the biggest thing for a pitcher, so that was really nice.” 

Starting pitcher Jacob Hartlaub (Ball State), who pitched eight innings of one-hit baseball last week against Metropolitan, continued his dominance by striking out three Braves in the first. He finished with eight strikeouts in 4.2 innings pitched.  

But while Hartlaub excelled, Metropolitan pitcher Kristian Asbury shut down the Aces, a team that batted a league-high .303 in the regular season. Through four innings, the game was scoreless. 

Metropolitan struck in the fifth and sixth, though, but the Aces responded each time in the bottom half of the inning. After six, it was a 2-2 ball game.  

Then, in the seventh, Alexandria took its first lead of the game. Back-to-back bunts by Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) and Adam Tellier (Ball State) put them on first and second, before CJ Boyd (Appalachian State) walked to load the bases with two outs. 

A balk put the Aces ahead, and Cade Sullivan (Western Michigan) added an insurance run with his RBI single. Ryan Brown (Ball State) picked up the save.  

Alexandria managed to register 10 hits on Tuesday but left 12 runners on base. They also recorded an uncharacteristic three fielding errors, one of which led to an unearned run. 

However, the Aces were dominant on the basepaths, stealing five bases throughout the game to get into scoring position. Adam Tellier, Alexandria’s leader in steals, had a team-high two on the day.   

Now, the Aces travel to South County High School tomorrow for Game 2 of the LCS Semifinals. If Alexandria wins, it’ll eliminate the Metropolitan Braves from the playoffs and advance to the LCS Championship. First pitch is at 7:00 p.m. 

South County Braves (1-1-0) 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Braves 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 5 0 Aces 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 x 4 10 3

Alexandria Aces (1-0-0) 4

  

By Chris Damond

The Alexandria Aces are the Cal Ripken League regular season champions for the first time in team history. A 9-5 victory over the Gaithersburg Giants on Saturday afternoon at Frank Mann Field gave them the title. The game went seven innings due to extreme heat.  

Alexandria and the Bethesda Big Train, winners of the past five league championships, finished with identical 26-10 records, but the Aces owned the tiebreaker with a 4-2 head-to-head advantage.  

“It’s been a long time coming,” Adam Tellier (Ball State), the Aces leader in hits, said. “It feels really good, honestly, to get it for coach [Chris] Berset. He’s been coaching in this league for a while now and for him to finally get one regular season [title] under his belt is really cool.”  

Alexandria ended the regular season on a seven-game winning streak, the longest of the year. The Aces are now the number one seed in the playoffs and will enjoy a first-round bye, but it wasn’t always clear that they would capture the top spot. Prior to their win streak, Alexandria had dropped three in a row. Just like all season, though, the Aces bounced back and won both games in a crucial doubleheader against the Bethesda Big Train on Thursday to give them a shot at the regular season title.  

“This is a lot of fun,” Dylan Koontz (Campbell) said. “I’ve never been to Virginia, never met these guys. I’m just having fun, and I’m just playing ball.” 

Alexandria boasts the best offense in the Cal Ripken League, with a .303 team batting average and a league-high 352 hits.  

It’s what kept them in the game Saturday, as Gaithersburg jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third inning. It didn’t last long though. Alexandria responded with four runs in the bottom half to take the lead, which was jumpstarted by Koontz’s RBI single. An error by the Giants’ third baseman plated another, before Jacob Friend’s (Davidson) sacrifice fly tied the game. The Aces took their first lead when Koontz completed the 360-foot journey along the basepaths by stealing home.  

Gaithersburg tied it at five in the sixth, but then Alexandria native, and Alexandria City High School graduate, Reese Crochet (George Washington) came in with two runners on and retired the side with one pitch. He picked up the win. Matthew Vernieri was tagged with the loss. 

Tellier brought in the go-ahead run in the bottom half of the inning with a single, and the Aces scored three more runs in the sixth to put the game away.  

“Working with coach and just trusting my ability, [I’ve] been able to get it done consistently. It felt pretty good,” Tellier said about his hitting this season.  

It was a fitting path to victory for a team that came back to win several games this season. At one point, the Aces had six straight come-from-behind victories. They’ve been the underdogs for much of the year, but with a regular season title, a changing of the guard with the Bethesda Big Train seems possible.  

Alexandria has been on the rise for a while now, ever since manager Chris Berset, who previously played for the Cincinnati Reds organization, took over in 2019. Last year, the Aces finished second in the Cal Ripken League standings and even made the championship but fell to Bethesda.  

Now Alexandria looks to finish the job. That journey begins at Frank Mann Field on Monday at 6:30 in Game One of the LCS Semifinals. Their opponent won’t be known until tomorrow, when four other teams will play a single elimination game for the chance to face either the first-seeded Aces or second-seeded Big Train in the semifinals.

“We just had fun all year,” Tellier said. “If we just keep having fun and trusting each other, we’ll get it done.” 

Postseason schedule: 

LCS Semifinals Game 1 – July 25 at Frank Mann Field 

LCS Semifinals Game 2 – July 26 

LCS Semifinals Game 3 (if necessary) – July 27 at Frank Mann Field 

LCS Championship Game 1 – July 29  

LCS Championship Game 2 – July 30 

LCS Championship Game 3 – July 31 

Gaithersburg Giants (17-19-0) 5

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E Giants 0 0 3 0 1 1 0 5 8 2 Aces 0 0 4 1 0 4 x 9 6 1

Alexandria Aces (26-10-0) 9

  

By Chris Damond

Saturday at noon, the Alexandria Aces will have a chance to make history. After downing the Metropolitan Braves, 11-2, at South County High School in seven innings on Friday night, the Aces are just one win away from their first ever regular season title.  

Alexandria is a half game back from the Bethesda Big Train for the top spot in the Cal Ripken League standings with one game left in the regular season. If the Aces win on Saturday against the Gaithersburg Giants at Frank Mann Field, they’ll have the same record as their first-place rivals. But Alexandria owns the tiebreaker, with a 4-2 head-to-head record versus Bethesda.  

Entering Friday, the Aces knew they controlled their own destiny – win out, and first place is theirs. They got right to business.  

Alexandria put up two runs in the first, and then had a nine-run inning for the second game in a row to lead 11-0 after three. Once again, Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) led the hitting onslaught, with a team-high four hits, which included a solo home run.  

Cade Sullivan (Western Michigan) had a three-run shot as well, and Qingyang Feng notched his first RBI of the season.  

Dylan Koontz (Campbell) had three RBI thanks to a double and a groundout, which was tied with Sullivan for the most on Alexandria.  

Ben Koomey (RPI), a Yorktown High School graduate, pitched four solid innings, striking out four and allowing just two runs. Alexandria native Ryan Osinski (Bucknell) closed out the game with two scoreless frames of his own.  

 

By Chris Damond

The Alexandria Aces are just a half game back from the top spot in the Cal Ripken League standings after defeating the first-place Bethesda Big Train twice on Thursday at Shirley Povich Field. Alexandria took game 1, 5-4, after Connor Offshack (Elon) walked it off with a two-run single and cruised to a 13-7 victory in game 2. Both games were only seven innings, and the first contest was a make-up from last week, with the Aces as the home team.  

With two games left in the regular season, Alexandria controls its own destiny. Win out, and the Aces will secure their first regular season title in team history. Bethesda has won the past four.  

But it wasn’t easy to beat the Big Train twice in one day. Bethesda initially jumped out to a 4-0 lead in game 1. The Aces’ relievers held them after the fourth inning, though, with Alexandria native Reese Crochet (George Washington) closing out the game with two scoreless innings and four strikeouts. He picked up the win.  

“I think my fastball had a lot of good movement, which was helping to keep hitters off balance,” Crochet said. “The good contact that got made ended up going straight to the fielders.”  

Crochet and fellow reliever Matt DeLano (MGCCC) helped Alexandria get back in the game. Mike Eze’s RBI double put the Aces on the board in the fourth, before they got within one after CJ Boyd’s (Appalachian State) two-run single in the next inning. Then Offshack finished the job. 

In the second game, Alexandria trailed early again, but a nine-run third put them in front for good. Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) led the offensive charge, with two hits and a team-high three RBI. 

“I just felt really good with two strikes,” Hacopian said. “I was taking some swings with less than two [strikes]. Maybe it was getting a little long, but with two [strikes] I was just making that adjustment, trying to shorten up, and it was working for me.”  

The Potomac, Maryland, native bypassed three teams in the Cal Ripken League from his home state, deciding to play with Alexandria instead.  

“I just wanted to play for a good team,” Hacopian said. “I love Alexandria. I’m an Ace for life.” 

Alex Walsh (Lafayette) got the start on the mound and picked up the win. He allowed two hits, three earned runs and struck out three in 2.2 innings. All-star Ryan Brown closed out the game in the ninth.  

The Aces return to action on Friday night against the Metropolitan Braves in their last road game this season. First pitch is at 7:00 p.m.  

Bethesda Big Train (25-10-0) 4

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E Big Train 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 4 4 0 Aces 0 0 0 1 2 0 2 5 8 2

Alexandria Aces (24-10-0) 5

Alexandria Aces (24-10-0) 13

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E Aces 0 0 9 2 0 2 0 13 8 0 Big Train 1 0 2 0 0 3 1 7 4 2

Bethesda Big Train (25-10-0) 7

 

By Chris Damond

The comeback kings of the Cal Ripken League did it again on Wednesday night at Frank Mann Field. Facing a five-run deficit early on, the Alexandria Aces scored eight runs in the second inning to take the lead for good and beat the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts, 12-6, for their fourth straight win.  

Vanderbilt teammates Matt Wolfe and Cade Law led the offensive charge in the Aces monster second inning, working together to drive in Alexandria’s first three runs. They hit back-to-back in the lineup, and after Wolfe drilled a two-RBI single, Law, who had a team-high four hits, doubled to score him.  

Wolfe was spectacular at shortstop too, making clutch plays all game. In the first, he made a sliding catch down the left field line to save a run with Thunderbolts on the corners.  

Dylan Koontz (Campbell) and CJ Boyd (Appalachian State) launched back-to-back homers in the second for three more runs. Boyd dazzled on offense once again, finishing with two RBI and three hits.  

The only triple for Alexandria went to Brendan Harrity, who added a run with his rip in the eighth. Alexandria finished with an astounding 16 hits and Silver Spring had nine.  

The Thunderbolts only scored one run after the second, and Brody Valentine (Salve Regina) made sure it wasn’t more. With the bases loaded and no outs in the eighth, the Delaware native came in and retired three straight batters, striking out two of them.  

“I just felt really relaxed and had confidence in my stuff,” Valentine said. “My fastball was good; I could mix in my curveball whenever I wanted. But pretty sure my fastball had a lot of life tonight, and I could just get it by opponents.”  

Boyd, who started the game at right field, closed out the game in the ninth, retiring three-out-of-four batters without giving up a hit.  

“CJ’s got lots of talent,” Valentine said. “[He] got the home run earlier tonight to get us going and then comes in and shuts the door. Made it look pretty easy.” 

Alexandria native Reese Crochet (George Washington) and Canadian Josh Berenbaum (U Fraser Valley) each pitched shutout frames in relief of starter Britt Yount (George Mason), who pitched five innings and picked up the win.  

Ryan Cuadros was tagged with the loss.  

The Aces are now just 2.5 games back from the first-place Bethesda Big Train, with a doubleheader scheduled against them tomorrow at Shirley Povich Field. Game 1 is at 4:30 and Game 2 will be no earlier than 7:00 p.m. 

“We’re just going have all hands-on deck,” Valentine said about tomorrow’s game. “Everybody in the bullpen has to come out, contribute, and do their stuff … Play like it’s a regular game.”  

SS-T T Bolts (10-22-0) 6

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E T Bolts 2 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 6 9 1 Aces 0 8 0 0 0 1 1 2 x 12 16 0

Alexandria Aces (22-10-0) 12

By Chris Damond

It was the Jacob Hartlaub show at Frank Mann Field on Tuesday night. The Ball State ace was almost as hot as the 90-degree weather, striking out nine batters and pitching eight innings of one-hit baseball to lead Alexandria to a 5-0 victory over the Metropolitan Braves.  

“[I was] just trusting my stuff, trusting guys behind me,” Hartlaub said. “I got a great infield, got a great outfield, got a great catcher back there in Jacob [Friend] calling a great game. Just trusting all my pitches and trusting him, and it worked out.”  

Tuesday marked the first shutout of the season for Alexandria (21-10) and the longest outing for an Aces pitcher this year. The win also clinched a playoff bye for the Aces, as they are now guaranteed to finish second or higher in the Cal Ripken League Standings. Alexandria is just three games back from the first-place Bethesda Big Train with a crucial doubleheader against them on Thursday.  

Myles Webb singled in the second at-bat of the game for Metropolitan (14-17), but from there, Hartlaub was nearly perfect. He attacked the zone, varied his pitches and allowed only two baserunners after the first inning. The Milwaukee native was efficient too, recording five 1-2-3 innings.  

“Before the game I was very tired,” Hartlaub said. “[That’s] what we got to do when playoffs are coming around. We just gotta lock down, lock in and get the job done.”  

But it wasn’t just Hartlaub who excelled on Tuesday night, his Ball State teammates Adam Tellier and Ryan Brown also had stellar games.  

Tellier smacked two singles and, more importantly, played exceptional defense at shortstop. The Aces’ leader in batting average (.378) had several blazing fast throws to first base that saved a few hits. Ryan Brown then entered in the ninth and closed out the game by striking out the side. Aces pitchers had 12 strikeouts on the day.  

“We get together; we play for each other,” Hartlaub said of his teammates. “We always got each other backs. We’ll pick each other up no matter what. I’m very thankful for Adam saving me a couple times and [Brown] did what he did.” 

Second baseman Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) also had a crucial stop in the eighth inning to save Hartlaub’s one-hit masterpiece. The Braves cranked a ball to right that Hacopian fielded with the backhand of his glove before spinning around to make a beautiful throw to first.  

It was a pitcher’s duel through the first three innings, as Braves starter Nick Lottchea had a great game of his own. But when he was pulled at the start of the fourth, Alexandria went in front. 

After Metropolitan walked a run in, number-nine hitter Drew Collins (Oakland) drilled a two-RBI single to put the Aces up 3-0.  

Hacopian would add two more runs in the sixth and eighth innings with a RBI single and a sacrifice fly, respectively.  

Kyle M. Lewis was tagged with the loss.  

The Aces return to action tomorrow for a matchup with the Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts at Frank Mann Field. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. 

South County Braves (14-17-0) 0

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Braves 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Aces 0 0 0 3 0 1 0 1 x 5 9 0

Alexandria Aces (21-10-0) 5

 

By Chris Damond

The Alexandria Aces traveled all the way up to OBGC Park on Sunday afternoon for a doubleheader against the Olney Cropdusters. Alexandria dropped the first game, 21-9, before smacking three homers in the second contest to win 9-4 in seven innings.  

The Aces (20-10) are now six games ahead of the third-place Metropolitan Braves in the Cal Ripken League standings with under a week left in the regular season and only 2.5 games behind the first-place Bethesda Big Train. If Alexandria holds onto second, they’ll skip the play-in game on July 24 and automatically advance to the next round.  

The first contest of the day was a continuation of a game earlier in the month, which was suspended with Olney up 10-5 in the fifth inning due to weather. The Cropdusters picked up right where they left off and bombarded the Aces with runs, outscoring them 11-4 on Sunday. 

But Alexandria bounced back the next game, smacking three home runs after going down 3-0 early. CJ Boyd (Appalachian State) got the party started with a two-run shot in the fourth. All-star game MVP Jacob Friend (Davidson) singled the next at-bat, before Mike Eze (Georgetown) put the Aces in front with another two-run homer.  

Eze has been arguably the most outstanding player this week. In yesterday’s win over Gaithersburg, he had two hits, one RBI, two stolen bases and six putouts in center field.  

Brendan Harrity (Western Michigan) added a home run in the seventh that scored two more runs.  

Despite the shortened game, the Aces still managed to record 13 hits in seven innings. Their offense was firing on all cylinders, but CJ Boyd was the standout. The Lewisville, North Carolina, native had a team-high three RBI off two hits and a sacrifice fly.  

Alexandria native Ryan Osinski (Bucknell) took the mound for Alexandria and picked up the win. He registered six strikeouts in five innings of work and allowed three runs. All-star Ryan Brown (Ball State) sealed the deal, recording the last four outs of the game.  

Alexandria’s defense backed up the pitching with some stellar plays, including a dazzling catch by Eddie Hacopian (Maryland) as he sprinted to snag a fly ball near the warning track in center field.  

Next up, the Aces return home to Frank Mann Field on Tuesday night to face the Metropolitan Braves. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m.  

Alexandria Aces (20-10-0) 9

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 R H E Aces 1 1 1 2 0 1 3 0 9 12 4 Cropdusters 6 1 0 3 0 8 1 2 21 17 4

Cropdusters Baseball (13-17-0) 21

Alexandria Aces (20-10-0) 9

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E Aces 0 0 0 4 2 1 2 9 13 2 Cropdusters 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 4 5 0

Cropdusters Baseball (13-17-0) 4