FCC's 20 game winning streak comes to an end with an 8-7 loss to Chesapeake

FREDERICK, Md. – The #8 Frederick Community College Cougars hosted the Skipjacks on Sunday afternoon for a doubleheader. The weather felt more like a Fall afternoon for a football game on the gridiron, but the two leading teams in Region 20 D2 battled on the diamond. The Cougars defeated Chesapeake in game one by the score of 4-0. In the nightcap, the Skipjacks snapped FCC's winning streak as Chesapeake earned the 8-7 victory in extra innings.  With the victory in Game 1, FCC Head Coach Rodney Bennett is just two wins shy of the 700 win plateau. 

GAME 1

FCC's first baseman Aidan Greaney was inserted into the lineup halfway through the game. He came up in the bottom of the 5^th and delivered in the clutch. He disposed of the baseball over the centerfield fence, breaking a 0-0 tie. The Cougars would add two more runs in the sixth and one more in the seven to earn the 4-0 victory. With the win, that is now 20 in a row for the Cougars. Greaney smoked a grand slam this past Wednesday, now homering in back-to-back games.

Ezekiel Gongola continues to be lights out for FCC. The hard-throwing righty turned in another dominant outing. Zeke tossed six innings and gave up just six hits while fanning seven Skipjacks. He remains perfect on the hill with a record of 4-0 and a stellar 0.88 ERA on the season. He has pitched 30.2 innings and has recorded 41 punchouts.  

Jared Hurlburt, the fireman, pitched the seventh inning to earn his fourth save of the season. He gave up just one hit and struck out a pair.

GAME 2

Chesapeake wasted little time getting to FCC starter Daniel Leo as the Skipjacks put up four runs in the first frame. The Cougars would fight their way back into the contest plating two runs in the first and second innings. Chesapeake would take a 7-5 lead late in the game, but in the bottom of the sixth, FCC tied things up at seven when an error scored two runs. The Skipjacks would plate the go-ahead run in the top of the 8th on with a double off the wall and a single to win it for the Skipjacks.

FCC would not go away quietly in the final at-bat. Aidan Greaney led the inning off with a single. Weston Roop would pinch hit for Austin Massey as Roop laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt putting the tying run in scoring position. This set the stage for the top of the order. Aidan Masters stepped to the plate and scorched a liner to the shortstop who made the shoe-string snag and doubled up the runner on second to end the game. 

Aidan Masters and Brodey Neveker each registered two doubles in the loss. Teammate Joshua Wilson added two singles. Wilson has been swinging a hot stick and has hit safely in the last seven games.

Daniel Leo started for FCC and earned the no-decision. He pitched five innings, giving up five earned runs, and allowing four free passes. Luke Nelson pitched the 8^th inning and was tagged with the loss. He falls to 0-1 on the season.

ON DECK

The Cougars (21-2, 10-1 MD JUCO) will return to the diamond on Tuesday (4/5/2022) afternoon when they travel to CCBC Essex for a Region 20 D2 doubleheader matchup. First pitch is slated for 1:00 PM.

BY THE NUMBERS:
NATIONAL RANKING: #8 NJCAA D2
OVERALL: 21-2
CONF: 10-1
REGION 20 D2: 8-1
HOME: 8-1
AWAY: 6-0
NEUTRAL: 7-1