Crocs

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Hagerstown's Isabel Giron pitched well enough to beat Cape Fear Tuesday night. He held the Crocs to five hits and struck out nine. But two of the five hits were solo home runs, and the Crocs beat the Suns, 3-2. Giron's record dropped to 8-9. He entered the eighth inning with the score tied 2-2. Giron retired the first two batters, then gave up a single to Kenny James, who stole second. Jaron Seabury relieved Giron, who allowed a game-winning RBI single to Henry Mateo.

By BOB PARASILITI / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer What started out as a possible clinching party ended up as a lynching party. The stage was set for the Hagerstown Suns to close out the South Atlantic League Northern Division's first-half title on Tuesday. Someone just forgot to tell Cape Fear. [cont. from sports page ] Cape Fear slapped five Hagerstown pitchers around for 18 hits and 10 runs in the first five innings to put the Suns' party plans on hold for at least one more day in a 12-2 rout at Municipal Stadium.

With their Crocs-style shoes resting comfortably out of the water, Anna Carricato, left, Jamie Brenstuhl, center, and Logan Akers wade in the Lord Fairfax Spring in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., on Tuesday afternoon. The three are from Camp Hill, Pa.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - On most other nights, Hagerstown's Matt Logan would have been the hero. After all, the Suns first baseman went 4-for-4 with four RBIs. He had three singles, then in the ninth inning with the Suns trailing by two and down to their last out, Logan ripped a two-run home run to tie the game. Alas, Cape Fear scored in the 10th to take an 8-7 victory over the Suns and cut their lead in the South Atlantic League's Northern Division to two games. Hagerstown is 20-12, and the Crocs are 17-13.

by Richard T. Meagher / staff photographer see the enlargement Coaches and mothers warned the Hagerstown Suns. There's going to be days like these. Days like Thursday when three Cape Fear pitchers combining on a seven-hitter in shutting out the Suns 9-0 in the opening game of an early-season, four-game showdown between the top to teams in South Atlantic League's Northern Division at Municipal Stadium.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - To put it simply, the Hagerstown Suns really don't like any game started in J.P. Riddle Stadium. Cape Fear won Saturday night's regularly scheduled game 6-4 against the Suns to salvage a split of a makeshift doubleheader. Hagerstown won the completion of the suspended game from July 30, 3-2. The loss in the nightcap dropped the Suns to 1-9 in games started at J.P. Riddle. But twice the Suns have been forced to complete a game there; they have won both.

Woody Heath was so good Monday night, he was in two zones. The strike zone and his comfort zone. And that meant Cape Fear was relegated to the Twilight Zone. Heath shut down the top hitting team in the South Atlantic League with seven innings of five-hit pitching as the Suns used a combination of creativity and power to notch a 4-1 South Atlantic League victory over the Crocs. --cont from sports -- Heath (7-2) got a handle on Cape Fear's hitters early by striking out Nate James and Scott Zech to start the game.

The Hagerstown Suns played one of those games on Sunday that they should have mailed in. And even at that, it would have been air mailed. --cont. from front page-- That's because the Suns literally just threw the ball around the field with very little purpose. Hagerstown committed three costly errors in innings that accounted for seven Cape Fear runs in an uncharacteristically sloppy 8-3 loss at Municipal Stadium. "Today was ugly," Hagerstown manager Marty Pevey said.

Bobby Cripps didn't seem to mind at all that Randy Albaral stole his thunder.

With their Crocs-style shoes resting comfortably out of the water, Anna Carricato, left, Jamie Brenstuhl, center, and Logan Akers wade in the Lord Fairfax Spring in Berkeley Springs, W.Va., on Tuesday afternoon. The three are from Camp Hill, Pa.

Cape Fear holds off Suns, 11-6 Hopes of finishing the season with the flair went away as the Hagerstown Suns gave up five runs in the first inning and fell to the visiting Cape Fear Crocs Saturday at Municipal Stadium in a South Atlantic League game. Hagerstown (62-73 and 28-37 in the second half) had defeated Cape Fear Friday and hoped to close the season with a sweep. Instead, the Suns will hope to win the final series of the year with the final two games today and Monday.

Suns take bite out of Crocs for fifth straight win FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - The Hagerstown Suns bid farewell to J.P. Riddle Stadium by using a three-run third inning Monday for a 4-2 victory over Cape Fear. The Suns used stolen bases and a Chivas Clark double to manufacture the go-ahead runs in Hagerstown's final visit to the oldest park in the league. Cape Fear will be relocating to Lakewood, N.J., next season. Hagerstown (19-24, 53-60) won its fifth straight game to offset last week's five-game losing streak.

Suns top Crocs for second straight win FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - The Hagerstown Suns scored four runs in the sixth inning, rallying from a 3-0 deficit, to defeat the Cape Fear Crocs 8-4 Friday night in South Atlantic League Northern Division action. Starting pitcher Marcos Sandoval weathered a rough first inning, in which he allowed three runs - two earned - to even his record at 8-8. He struck out three and walked one. Six Suns had multiple hits, including Shannon Carter, who had three.

The ambition to do well has been the prevention that kept Robert Cosby from doing well. The Hagerstown Suns' third baseman had been put on the spot, forced to hit with runners in scoring position 51 times before Wednesday afternoon. His success rate was just over 20 percent, resulting in just 13 RBI. cont. from sports page Until Wednesday. Cosby released the personal pressure valve which has kept him bottled up all season with key hits in his first two plate appearances to drive in four runs and push the Suns to an 11-3 chuckler over the Cape Fear Crocs in a Businessman's afternoon special at Municipal Stadium.

Aaron Dean pitched like he had to be somewhere. He did. "I have to go to pick up my girlfriend," the Hagerstown Suns pitcher said. "She's flying into Dulles from California tonight. " That wasn't the reason for Dean's effectiveness, but it was as good of an incentive as any. Especially since he mowed through the Cape Fear lineup with a five-hitter through eight innings Tuesday to lift the Suns to a 4-1 victory over the Crocs at Municipal Stadium. Dean pitched like he was already on cruise control heading down I-270 with the way he handled the Cape Fear batting order.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Cape Fear scored the first tug in the war for the South Atlantic League Northern Division's second-half title, using a four-run second inning Wednesday for a 4-2 victory over the Hagerstown Suns. Derick Urquhart broke the game open with a bases-loaded triple to give the Crocs all the runs they needed to top Hagerstown starter Scott Cassidy (13-7). The win gives Cape Fear a one-game advantage over the Suns for the second-half title, a berth in next week's playoffs and a date with the Suns in Hagerstown for the first game of a best-of-3 divisional series.

Sure, the Hagerstown Suns are a young team, but even they are too old for curfews. Or are they? Thursday, they played like they were allowed out until seven innings or 11 p.m. ... whichever came first. [cont. from sports page ] The seventh inning came and went and so did the Suns' lead. Cape Fear scored six runs in the last two innings - including Thomas Pittman's game-winning, three-run home run off Jarrod Kingrey with two outs in a four-run ninth inning - to grab a 9-6 victory.

By BOB PARASILITI / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer In another life, Taylor Smith might have been Nero. He proved that on Tuesday by pitching instead of fiddling around while everything seemed to be burning around him. In this scene, Smith made some beautiful music instead of going up in flames. [cont. from sports page ] Smith controlled Cape Fear on five hits through eight innings and survived one mistake to come away with a masterful 5-2 victory despite six errors by the Suns.

By BOB PARASILITI / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer What started out as a possible clinching party ended up as a lynching party. The stage was set for the Hagerstown Suns to close out the South Atlantic League Northern Division's first-half title on Tuesday. Someone just forgot to tell Cape Fear. [cont. from sports page ] Cape Fear slapped five Hagerstown pitchers around for 18 hits and 10 runs in the first five innings to put the Suns' party plans on hold for at least one more day in a 12-2 rout at Municipal Stadium.