By ANTHONY STEVENS
LEBANON (June 2, 2026) – To sum it up, the Pioneers took a 4-2 win over Richlands in the Re-gion 2D semifinals, advancing to the Virginia High School League Class 2 baseball tournament for the seventh consecutive season. It doesn’t even begin to describe what took place on Doc Adams Field late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning!
The opening regional contest between defending champion John Battle and upstart Lee High was scheduled to begin at 4:30 pm. The start was delayed, and there was another lightning delay. The Trojans, trailing 8-4 in the seventh inning, rallied for four runs and then won it with a run in the eighth, and the game ended at 10:30 pm.
In the nightcap, Lebanon starter Lake Baldwin threw the first pitch at 11:09 pm. The umpires halted play at 1:16 am due to heavy fog. The umpires conferred, and at 1:30 am, it was determined that a 30-minute wait would be allowed to see if conditions improved.
At 2 am, the teams took the field and began to warm up. Three runners were on base for the Blue Tornado, trailing 4-2 with one out and the bases loaded. The umpires then determined it was un-playable, and by rule, the game reverted to the end of the sixth inning. Game Over!
“I hate to end the game this way,” Lebanon coach Cody Compton said. “But with the fog, I have to take care of my kids.”
Needless to say, the few Lebanon fans still around in the wee hours of Wednesday morning were happy with the win. The Richlands faithful, players, and coaches were extremely disappointed.
It was an unfortunate ending to say the least.
It was the 11th win in a row for Lebanon (17-8). It all came down to a two-out rally for the Pio-neers in the first inning.
Junior Parker Ryder started on the mound for the Blue Tornado and struck out the first two batters he faced. Brady Cole singled, and Baldwin and Cannon Barton drew walks, loading the bases.
Catcher Parker Cole came to the plate and drove a 1-0 pitch down the left-field line to score his brother Brady and Baldwin.
“Parker is such an addition to the team,” Lebanon senior outfielder Luke Garrett noted. “He started off slowly, but since the district games began, Parker has picked it up big time, and we’ve needed it. Especially being a freshman, he obviously has room to grow in his game, but we can’t ask for much more. He’s stepped up in big moments, and I can’t say enough good things about him.”
Garrett came to the plate next and delivered a two-run single up the middle, giving the Pioneers a quick 4-0 advantage.
“Same thing as always, grip it and rip it,” commented Garrett. “Find a good pitch. Stay true to what I’ve been doing, middle to backside. Thankfully, that hit proved big for us.”
Those four runs proved to be enough with the lefty Baldwin on the bump. He retired the first nine batters he faced. Gage Hylton broke up the no-hitter by leading off the fourth inning with a single. Baldwin sandwiched a flyout between two strikeouts to get out of the inning without any damage.
Richlands (12-10) scored in the fifth when Blake Fuller reached on an error with an infield popup dropped. He scored on a groundout by Collin Adkins.
The Blue Tornado added a run in the sixth. Riley Perkins singled, stole second and third, then scored on a wild pitch. With two outs, Max Herndon singled, and Andrew Boyd walked, ending the day for Baldwin, who allowed three hits and struck out 10.
Jake Hilton came to the hill, walked Fuller to load the bases, and then struck out Gabe Gillespie to end the inning.
It was three up and three down for the Pioneers in the bottom of the inning. That proved to be the end of the game.
“Parker came through with a huge hit for us in the first,” Compton said. “It was a big inning. We have to figure out how to get a clutch hit going forward. Lake threw a great ballgame. Jake didn’t have his best stuff, but he got a big out for us. It doesn’t feel like it, but we’re going to the state tournament. That’s a small success.”
Although somewhat tainted, Lebanon advances.
“A wins a win. It’s not every day you get to play a VHSL region game at one in the morning,” Garrett said. “You have to do what you have to do at this point.”
The Pioneers will host John Battle on Thursday with the regional title on the line. Both teams ad-vance to the Class 2 state quarterfinals regardless of the outcome.
“At this time of year, you have to take it one game at a time,” Garrett stated. “All we have to do is prepare for the region championship game and play our hearts out. When we go on to the state quarterfinals, we have to go win it.”
Lebanon 4, Richlands 2
Richlands000 011—2 3 0
Lebanon400 000—4 5 1
Ryder, Hylton (4) and Gillespie. Baldwin, Hilton (6) and P. Cole. W—Baldwin (4-2). L—Ryder (2-5). HR—none.
