Hillsboro Post 129 opens '15 season with league loss to Aces

The Hillsboro American Legion Post 129 baseball team opened their 2015 season Wednesday night in a game played at Shaffer Park, falling to the visiting Washington C.H. Post 25 Aces, 5-2.

Post 129 trailed from the third inning through the remainder of the game with the Aces scoring three runs in the third, and in the top of the fifth, they extended their lead to four runs with another run against the hosts.

Hillsboro responded in their half of the fifth with Klay Walker (Fairfield) and Ryan Collett (Clinton-Massie) crossing home plate off a double by Joey Wilson (Fairfield).

In the seventh inning, Post 25 added one final run.

The host club, Post 129 had other opportunities to score runs in the season-opening loss, but just couldn't get the runners over.

In the bottom of the first, Latrell Haithcock (Hillsboro) led off the inning with a standup triple hit to the center field fence. Bases were eventually loaded by Post 129 with one out, but the final two batters of the inning struck out at the plate. Also reaching bases in the first for Hillsboro were Collett, on an infield hit, and Wilson, who was hit by a pitch.

The second inning saw Wyatt Crothers (Fairfield) stay stranded on second base following a two-out hit.

In the third for the Hillsboro club, they again left Collett on the bases, and in the fourth, Kendall Vilvens (Lynchburg-Clay) doubled but stayed on second base after his two-out hit.

Haithcock reached the bases again in the seventh inning with another lead-off hit, but that was followed up with three consecutive outs.

Charged with the loss on the mound was Collett. Pitching in relief was Andrew Ledley (Clinton-Massie). Collett struck out nine batters in the loss. Ledley finished with two strikeouts in his inning of relief.

The results for the second game of the doubleheader were not available.