By Staff
John Swartz, Sports Correspondent
VANCEBORO -- Washington's Aaron Mobley must have had some sore shoulders after the load he carried in Tuesday night's 4-3 victory against the West Craven Eagles.
Mobley was 3-for-4 with two RBI and a stolen base for Washington (2-4, 1-0 Eastern Carolina Conference). He also came in to pitch in the seventh inning to close the game out for starter Todd Ange.
The scoring didn't start in Washington's favor, as the Eagles were the first on the board in the second. West Craven used a few of its own singles and even an error from Washington to score Jonathan Ipock and Justin Morris during the inning.
It didn't take long for the Pam Pack to respond as Mobley hit a two-run single to right field. The two runs were good enough to carry a tie into the fourth.
But a tie isn't good enough in conference play, so the Washington bats went to work. Josh Edding hit a double that scored Travis Rogerson. Then Edding himself was knocked in by a single from Corey Calloway.
Since the Eagle two-run second, Ange had held the Eagles hitless until the sixth. Fifteen West Craven batters came to the plate and no hits were recorded. Five of those runners did reach base through walks and errors.
Washington head coach Marvin Burke said his boys kept him nervous throughout the game.
Ange gave up only one more run in the sixth. Pinch-hitter Jody Whaley hit a double for West Craven that rolled nearly all the way to the left field wall. The next batter, Ryan Droese, hit a single that got the run in, but Ange settled down and struck out Chris Brownell looking to end the inning.
Washington nearly managed some insurance runs in the seventh. The bases were loaded with one out when Edding hit into a fielder's choice that resulted in an out at home plate, then Justin Morris struck out to end the inning.
That's when Mobley came in to close the game for Ange, who went six innings and gave up three runs on five hits.
Mobley made it about as interesting an inning as he could without letting a West Craven bat contact the ball. He walked Adam Hughes then struck out the next two batters. Then Jackson Hayes swung for strike three, but Washington catcher Matt Tanner dropped the ball and Hayes got to first while Hughes moved to third.
West Craven's Justin Morris came to the plate with a chance to be the spoiler. But Mobley would have nothing of it as he composed himself and blew three straight pitches past the Eagle first baseman to end the game, and clinch the Pam Pack's first conference victory.
Washington 002 200 0 -- 4 11 2
West Craven 020 001 0 -- 3 5 2
WP: Todd Ange; LP: Brandon Braxton
W -- Corey Calloway 1-4 (RBI); Aaron Mobley 3-4 (2 RBI); Jack Moore 1-4; Travis Rogerson 2-4; Josh Edding 3-4 (RBI); Matt Tanner 1-3; WC -- Chris Brownell 1-4 (RBI); Brandon Braxton 1-3; Jared Smith 1-1; Jody Whaley 1-1; Ryan Droese 1-3.