Ben McDougal burns Morgantown Post 2 as Bridgeport Post 68 advances to the Area 2 Championship

But no one from Post 2 expected McDougal to come in and strike out eight consecutive batters.

“Hitting is fun,” McDougal said of his typical appearance with Post 68. “But pitching is where I make my money, so I enjoyed it.”

Post 68 defeated Post 2 7-3 to advance to the West Virginia American Legion Area 2 Tournament championship.

As the teams took to the field, experience was the focal point. The teams have played against each other twice so far this season. Bridgeport held the series lead, winning both games.

But the regular season was out the window. It was now a matchup that decides an automatic bid to the West Virginia American Legion State Tournament.

Tensions were a bit high in the early goings of the contest. After a dropped third strike, Dylan Duvall was able to reach first base after running through Tanner Montague at first base, forcing him to drop the ball as he grabbed his forearm.

Bats were flipped on walks and strikeouts were punctuated by applause from both sets of bleachers.

The game started in Post 2’s favor. In the top of the first inning, Morgantown struck first on a two-RBI double from Jett Walters.

Andrew Bell received the start on the mound for Post 68 after shutting down Buckhannon Post 7 in the team’s first matchup. He spent the first inning shaking off rust before tossing two strikeouts to close out the second inning.

He finished the day with four strikeouts, allowing three runs in three innings.

Bridgeport began to threaten in the bottom of the second inning. Isaac Lough came to bat with two runners in scoring position. Sitting with a 1-2 count, Lough turned his bat into a pendulum before getting his grip.

With a swing of the bat, Lough’s two RBI single tied the matchup.

He finished the game with a team lead in RBI.

“Once the hit went through, I think we worked well from there,” Lough said. “We started slow, but we rallied and backed each other up.”

A crew of dark clouds began rolling over the field at Bridgeport High School. The mostly quiet third inning was punctuated with a solo shot deep to left field by Drew Bailey. His home run gave Post 2 a 3-2 lead.

Zach Harman drew the start for Post 2. In five innings of work, he finished with four strikeouts, allowing six hits and two earned runs.

Sean Via dropped a bunt with two outs in the bottom of the third inning. An error by the catcher allowed him to reach first and advance Anthony Dixon to third base. Connor Blake then ripped a single to tie the game back at three.

As the game tied up and the clouds cleared, Ben McDougal entered the game for just the second time this season for Post 68. McDougal, of course, is a pitcher at Potomac State. He finished with a 7-1 record in his freshman season.

The team saved him for the biggest game of the year.

McDougal’s arm is a cannon. He says that he has been clocked near the 90 miles per hour mark during his time with the Catamounts.

Rocketing past batters, McDougal found two strikeouts in his first inning of work before finding three more in the top of the fifth inning.

“I’m just having fun,” McDougal said of his ability to burn through the offense. “I’m just glad to be out there on the mound, that’s all I have to say about it.”

The Post 2 offense, which started hot, was frozen in place. The team was unable to even put a ball in play for 12 consecutive batters.

“Defensively, I was getting bored out there,” Lough said. “He had one hell of a game, and offensively, we know we can take big swings that are backed up on the defensive side.”

Post 68 found an RBI single from the bat of Dylan Duvall in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Anthony Dixon rounded to home, beating the swipe by inches on the slide. It gave Bridgeport life to find another run on a sacrifice play, extending the lead to two.

Michael Romano then dropped an RBI single on a bunt, extending the lead to close out the three-run fifth inning for Bridgeport as it led 6-3.

While Bridgeport only had seven hits, it was able to secure runs on all of them, allowing them to take an advantage that Post 2 was unable to overcome.

The final run was scored by Zach Rohrig as he zoomed through the basepaths to secure a run after a walk — 7-3 Bridgeport.

McDougal’s streak of strikeouts ended in the seventh inning as he walked his first batter. He ended the day with 11 strikeouts, facing 13 batters. He only allowed the walk, and Post 2 put just one ball in play all night.

“We’re going to win as many as we can until someone stops us,” McDougal said.

Post 68 advances to the Area 2 championship game where they will face the winner of the matchup between Post 2 and Clarksburg Post 13.

Bridgeport has also claimed a spot in the state tournament with the win.

“We’re a bit more relaxed now because we know we will get there,” Lough said. “But that doesn’t mean we won’t come out and play hard.”

No matter the matchup, the team will face one of the teams that have played them close all year.

“They’re two great ball clubs,” Lough said. “When we play, we’re never truly able to just put them away. We need to put our foot down to get the win and feel good as we head to state.”