Raider baseball earns 8-6 record in early season play

Williamsburg entered the season as the state’s fourth-ranked team in Class 2A, and through the first three weeks and 14 games of the 2023 campaign the Raiders own an 8-6 record.

West Marshall

Williamsburg kicked things off with a 4-1 victory over West Marshall Monday, May 15, at West End Park.

Senior Trey O’Neil threw a complete game masterpiece for the Raiders, holding the Trojans to two hits and striking out 13.

Landon Jepson doubled and drove in three runs to provided O’Neil with all the offensive support he would need. Nile Sinn tripled and had one RBI.

Des Moines Valley

Williamsburg took a road trip to Des Moines Wednesday, May 14, and got shutout by the Tigers of Valley, 14-0.

Three Raider pitchers gave up seven hits and walked nine Valley batters, the loss going to starter Cael Moore.

Williamsburg was held to two hits, singles by Moore and Madox Doehrmann.

Independence

The Raiders split a WaMaC Conference doubleheader with Independence Monday, May 22, at West End Park.

Independence won the opener, 5-3, rallying for two runs in the fifth inning off Williamsburg starter Nile Sinn to break a 3-3 tie. Sinn gave up just one earned on five hits and struck out six. Moore came on in relief and held Valley scoreless and hitless for 1-1/3 innings.

Rayce Heitman had two of the Raiders’ five hits, including a double. Sam Rich also doubled and drove in a run.

Williamsburg rallied for a 5-4 win in the nightcap, scoring twice in their last at bat to wipe out a 4-3 deficit.

Rich tripled for the second time in the game to drive in the tying run, and Doehrmann’s RBI double won it.

Heitman went 2-for-3 at the dish and finished the night 4-for-6 with a double and triple.

Iowa City Regina

The Raiders rallied for a nine inning, 7-6 victory over the Regals Thursday, May 26, at West End Park.

Williamsburg led 4-0 after one inning, but Regina scored six times in the third to pull ahead, 6-4. The Raiders closed to within 6-5 in the fourth, tied the game 7-all in the seventh to force extra innings, and won it in the ninth.

Heitman, Moore, Jepson, Sinn and Doehrmann each doubled and drove in four runs between them as part of a 10-hit Williamsburg attack.

Gavin Jensen, in relief of O’Neil, pitched 6-1/3 scoreless innings, scattering seven hits, to earn the win.

Prairie City-Monroe

The Raiders pounded out 20 hits and scored 20 runs while sweeping a doubleheader from the Mustangs Wednesday, May 30, at Monroe.

Sinn and Jensen combined to pitch a three-hitter, striking out 10 as Williamsburg won Game 1, 9-2.

Jepson went 3-for-3 at the plate with a double and two RBI, O’Neil also doubled to drive in a run, Rich went 2-for-4 and Heitman and Doehrmann contributed RBI singles.

Sinn and Rich combined for six hits, including three doubles, five RBI and five runs scored to carry the Raiders to an 11-2 victory in Game 2.

Rich also struck out seven batters in four innings of mound work, and Moore and Ty Becker, between them, threw three innings of hitless relief, striking out six.

Benton/Davenport West

Williamsburg also dropped both ends of a doubleheader at home Thursday, June 1, against Benton Community, and split a twin bill Saturday, June 3, at Davenport West, losing the opener 5-2, and winning the nightcap 14-6.

Statistics from those games had not been posted on Iowa Quik Stats prior to press deadline.