BARNSTORMERS BATS BOOM AGAIN

Lancaster Wins Third Straight, 10-2

For the first time in 2016, the crowd at Clipper Magazine Stadium got to see the highly touted Lancaster attack.

The Barnstormers banged out 16 hits en route to a 10-2 victory over the York Revolution in the opener of the 2016 War of the Roses Monday evening.

Jeff Kobernus led the attack with three singles as all nine Barnstormers in the batting order contributed at least one hit on the evening.  Five of the hits were for extra bases, including a tape measure home run by third baseman Josh Bell.

Josh Whitaker’s RBI double inside the first base bag boosted Lancaster to a 1-0 lead in the first inning.  Travis Witherspoon tripled home another run in the second.

Bryan Evans held the 2-0 lead into the sixth when Andres Perez walked, moved to second on a single to center by Telvin Nash and scored on Joel Guzman’s base hit to right center.

Tanner Peters (1-0) entered the game and allowed a game-tying sacrifice fly to Keith Castillo.  The right-hander, making only his second Atlantic League appearance, held the tie by retiring Jason Repko on a bases-loaded pop up to short for the final out of the inning.

Lancaster feasted in the bottom of the sixth.  A one-out double by Charlie Cutler chased Kelvin De La Cruz (3-2).  Kobernus greeted reliever Beau Vaughan with a single to right to drive in the lead run.  The Lancaster second baseman, who had taken second on the throw home, stole third and scored when Witherspoon drilled a single through the left side of the infield.  Kevin Ahrens made it 5-2 with a double to the gap in right center.

Four more runs scored in the seventh on five walks, a single by Mike McDade and two fielder’s choice ground balls.  Bell capped the scoring with his mammoth homer in the eighth, a blast that cleared the back wall of ad signs in deep right center.

The series continues on Tuesday as Bryan Woodall (2-0) will make the start for Lancaster against right-hander Mike McClendon (0-1).  Fans may tune into the Barnstormers YouTube Channel, beginning at 6:45.

NOTES:  Lancaster has scored 25 runs in its last 22 turns at the plate…Caleb Gindl went 2-for-4 to stretch his hitting streak to 11 games, tied for the longest for the Barnstormers since the start of 2015…Ahrens has batted safely in nine in a row, and Whitaker has hit safely in six straight…Witherspoon was a late replacement for Logan Schafer in the lineup…Schafer was scratched due to illness…Manager Butch Hobson missed his third game in the last week, battling an ailment as well.