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Chantilly's bats wake up in win
With his team leading 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning of Monday's Northern Region quarterfinal against South County, Chantilly senior Keith Morrisroe decided it was time to make something happen. Teammate Max Langford was standing on first base, so Morrisroe leaned over the plate, getting hit on the shoulder by an inside pitch and advancing Langford into scoring position.But as the Chargers' catcher made his way to first, the home plate umpire called him back, ruling he had intentionally tried to get hit. Instead of receiving a free pass, the pitch was ruled a ball and Morrisroe stepped back into the batter's box with a full count.
On the very next pitch, Morrisroe lined the ball into the right-center field gap for an RBI triple, igniting a Chantilly rally and leading the Chargers to a 7-2 victory.
“I leaned into it,” Morrisroe admitted after the game. “The last two curveballs I got were in, so I was like, why not take a base? I guess a triple is better than a hit-by-pitch. I told the umpire thanks after the inning. He said, 'This game is about getting hits, not getting hit by pitches.'”
Chantilly coach Kevin Ford asked for an explanation from the umpire after the play, but was happy he didn't argue to vehemently.
“Obviously, I want him to hit,” Ford said of Morrisroe. “He's easily our best hitter. He's been clutch for us all year. The kid plays hard all day long. He will do what it takes to win. It's a great thing for us to have him as a leader on our team.”
The Chargers have made a name for themselves with their pitching, but on a day when they had a sub-par performance on the mound, it was the bats that won the game. In addition to Morrisroe (2-for-4, RBI, run) and Langford (2-for-4, RBI, run), leadoff man Chris Gentile went 2-for-4 with a run scored, DH Brandon Beckner was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored and Justin Carwile was 1-for-3 with a two-run double.
“A couple guys were a little anxious early [at the plate],” Ford said. “I think as we got into the flow, guys relaxed a little bit and hit how they can.”
With the win, Chantilly advanced to the Northern Region semifinals for the first time since 2000, where they were scheduled to face West Springfield Wednesday.
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