SOSA Staff Report
CHILLICOTHE — Right off the bat, literally, the Chillicothe Paints made their presence known Tuesday evening.
Playing in front of a home crowd at VA Memorial Stadium, the Paints (4-7) claimed their second straight victory in a 17-0 drubbing of Champion City.
The 17 runs is the most Chillicothe has tallied this season while the goose egg on the other end represents the pitching staff’s first shutout of the summer.
The Paints scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning before tacking on one in the third, four in the fourth, and eight in the sixth. As a team, Chillicothe collected 16 hits while five different players had multiple hits.
Cody Orr (Tiffin) led the offensive onslaught, finishing 3-for-5 with two doubles, three runs and two RBIs while Chris Eisel (Indiana University) of Pennsylvania) followed, finishing 2-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs.
Gavin Homer (Penn State) ended the night 2-for-3 with a home run and two runs scored, Cole Andrews (Miami) was 2-for-4 with a double, a run and two RBIs, and Parker Murdie (Grand Valley State) went 2-for-4 with a double and a run.
“To be able to come out here and have a game where there’s not a whole lot of pressure, that’s always a plus,” Homer said. “We got some things rolling tonight and hopefully that will carry forward. Tonight, we had great discipline, we weren’t swinging out of our zones and that paid off.”
On the hill, Zach Kendall (Rio Grande, 1-0) picked up the victory after tossing 6 2/3 innings and surrendering just two hits while whiffing eight.
The Paints are back in action Wednesday night at VA Memorial Stadium, hosting Champion City in the second of a two-game series. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
To find news, updates, and more information about the Paints, be sure to visit chillicothepaints.com.