Owls Defeat Copperheads, 4-2
Published on May 31, 2011 under Coastal Plain League (Coastal Plain)
Forest City Owls News Release
The Forest City Owls began the 2011 season on a high note, dropping the Asheboro Copperheads, 4-2, at McCrary Park on Tuesday night.
Owls starter Seth Cutler-Voltz earned his first victory of the season. The Copperheads made Cutler-Voltz work during the first two innings. The junior from Virginia Commonwealth found his groove in the third inning, retiring the side in order and striking out the side in the fourth. Cutler-Voltz weathered a few bumps in the road, as well as three errors by his defense, but did not allow a run after the second inning. Cutler-Voltz allowed an unearned run and five hits in seven innings. He struck out seven Asheboro batters, gave up one walk and plunked two hitters.
The Copperheads opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning. Third baseman Jordan Erisman pegged a soft ground ball to the right side. Owls second baseman Hector Crespo tried to start a double play, but threw the ball into left field, allowing Trey Holmes to score from second.
The Owls answered back in the top of the fourth. After third baseman Jordan Betts singled to right, giving Forest City its first hit of the evening, first baseman Dusty Quattlebaum crushed a two-run homer over the right field wall, putting the Owls ahead 2-1. Quattlebaum led the Owls in home runs in 2010, with six.
Right fielder Axel Johnson led off the Owls' seventh with a double off the left field wall. After Michael Bishop's bunt moved him to third, the TCU product scored on a Jake Watson sacrifice fly, barely evading the tag from Asheboro catcher Ethan Bennett. The Owls led 3-1 going into the seventh inning stretch.
VCU's Brennan Huelse relieved Cutler-Voltz, his Rams teammate, in the eighth inning. Trey Holmes' RBI single plated Marquis Riley, who led off the eighth with a double to the right field gap, cutting the Owls' to 3-2.
Michael Bueker gave the Owls an insurance run in the ninth inning, poking a single into right field, which scored Dan Burant, boosting the Forest City lead to 4-2. Burant led off the ninth by reaching second on a throwing error by Copperheads third baseman Jordan Erisman.
Gardner-Webb junior Adam Izokovic shut the door on the Copperheads. Izokovic retired the Asheboro side in order in the bottom of the night to notch his first save of the season.
Johnson, Quattlebaum, and Crespo each reached base twice. Johnson went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Aside from his two-run dinger in the fourth inning, Quattlebaum also walked in the sixth. Crespo went 1-for-4 with a single and a walk, but also committed two errors.
Although he received the loss, Fontana was a tough nut to crack on the mound for Asheboro, allowing only two runs on three hits in six innings of action. The junior from Molloy College struck out seven Owls hitters and walked three.
The Owls return to the diamond Wednesday night, when they will celebrate their home opener at McNair Field against the Martinsville Mustangs. First pitch is at 7:30 PM.
The Forest City Owls are a member of the Coastal Plain League, entering their 15th season in the nation's hottest summer collegiate baseball league. Celebrating its 15th season, the Coastal Plain League features 15 teams playing in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The CPL gives college players the chance to refine their skills with the use of wooden bats. Players are housed with local host families for the summer and past experiences have been very positive for both players and hosts. Furthermore, the CPL has had over 800 alumni drafted and 44 alums make their Major League debut thus far. For more information on the Coastal Plain League, please visit the league website at http://www.coastalplain.com, and be sure to friend us on Facebook (at http://www.facebook.com/coastalplainleague) and follow us via Twitter (as cpleague).
Coastal Plain League Stories from May 31, 2011
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