Scotland baseball falls to Richmond on senior night

LAURINBURG — Senior night is always a touching moment that can bring out the emotional side of players and parents.

Winning the game can get lost in the festivities, however.

The Scotland Fighting Scots baseball team allowed five first-inning runs from the Richmond Raiders and never came within one run the rest of the way in an 11-6 loss on senior night Tuesday.

“I just told them in the huddle after I dismissed our seniors, told them sorry we couldn’t reward them with a win tonight,” Scotland coach Ricky Schattauer said. “But we have to learn to stop the bleed. And we have to learn, one error does not lose us the ballgame, or we can’t lose focus because of one.”

While Scotland (8-9, 5-6 Sandhills Athletic Conference), which suffered its sixth straight loss, finished the night with four errors, Richmond (11-8, 7-3 SAC), which snapped a three-game losing streak, did as well, furthermore proving Schattauer’s statement.

But two of Scotland’s errors happened on the first two plays of the game, which led to the Raiders getting Landon Taylor and Jason Walker in scoring position; Caden Nolan’s RBI sacrifice fly brought in Taylor, and Evan Hodges’ RBI single scored Walker from third to make it 2-0. After Hodges stole second, James Eason’s two-RBI double helped Hodges and Isaac Hinshaw score, and Collin Hill’s steal of home right before the top half of the first ended put it at 5-0.

“If we make one (error), we can’t not field the bunt. We can’t hit the next batter. And then, our catcher missed a pitch right to his glove. It seems like all of our mishaps, errors, whatever, happen back-to-back. And then, they (the Raiders) put up a crooked number,” Schattauer said.

The Scots scored their first runs in the second to cut it to 5-2; Logan Adner’s RBI hit brought home Maddox Locklear, and Thomas Taylor’s fly to center field led Dylan Tilson home.

In the fourth, Nolan’s RBI single brought in Walker to push the Richmond lead, but Tilson’s unearned run pulled it back. Richmond’s Jeremiah Ritter changed that in the fifth, though, with an RBI hit that led to Hodges scoring his second run; moments later, Eason scored on a passed ball to make it 8-3.

Scotland escaped the frame with no more damage done, and going on offense, lit its bats up for three runs; Dawson Williams and Kaden Hunsucker both scored following Locklear’s two-RBI single, and Locklear ran home on Robbie Peed’s RBI single. The spark changed the energy around the field for Scotland which had been sucked out by Richmond all night.

“When you put baseball pants on, you button up your jersey and you tuck it in and you pull your hat down on your forehead; if that’s not enough pumping up because just like these seniors, their time is running out,” Schattauer said. “So if it doesn’t pump you up to get on the field one last time and get the dirt on the bottom of your cleats, then I don’t know what’s going to. That’s what I told them in the huddle, that they have to learn to bring it.”

The recharged feel left in the sixth when Hinshaw scored on Eason’s RBI single, and Nolan scored on a passed ball to extend the Raiders lead to 10-6; Walker punched home the final run, scored by Landon Taylor, with an RBI single in the seventh.

Eason finished with three hits, including a double, and three RBIs for Richmond; Nolan had three hits, with one being a double, and two RBIs; Walker had three hits with one RBI and Hodges had two hits with one RBI. Eason took the win after pitching all seven innings, allowing seven hits with three strikeouts and one walk.

Locklear had two hits and two RBIs for Scotland; Peed had two hits and an RBI; Adner and Thomas Taylor had an RBI each and Tilson had two hits. Garrett Manning suffered the loss and threw five innings.

With it being senior night, Thomas Taylor, Grant McCoy and Garrett Sellers were honored with a celebration just before first pitch.

“They have been great this year,” Schattauer said. “I give props to them understanding their role on the team. I asked Thomas Taylor early in the year, ‘Can you play third base?’ And he went over there, and he looked iffy. And we just kept on fielding ground balls and kept on fielding ground balls. And I think he’s done a great job for us. Hasn’t fielded everything. He’s struggled at the plate. But he has continued to work knowing that he’s going to college to play football. He could have easily, I’m not really gonna play this game. So, I commend him.

“On Grant, he’s understood his role in being an outfielder when someone pitches and being a teammate in the dugout, trying to bring some leadership senior-wise, knowing he hasn’t had much playing time to bring the leadership. But Grant has, I’m not gonna say led the team, but he’s taken some people that have struggled to talk to them and keep the dugout up and know his role in left field and play hard in left field, even though he’s not getting at-bats.

“Sellers has had some chances early in the year between playing outfield, trying to hit, pitching a little bit. His strength was running. And we tried to coach early in the year about if you can hit the ball, hit the ball to shortstop, and make the guy throw you out. Because his strength across the board is athleticism and speed. So, him knowing when my pitcher gets on or my catcher gets on, like, this is my time. And I think he’s enjoyed that.”

Scotland and Richmond meet again in Rockingham on Thursday to close the regular season.

“Our plan is to win,” Schattauer said. “We’re gonna be a four seed, and we’re gonna host a conference tournament game here at Scotland. So if we take care of what we are, today’s not their last (home) game.”