The William Byrd baseball team is 6-9 as they come down the home stretch for
the 2025 season. The Terriers swept a doubleheader from William Fleming on Tuesday
and will play host to Blacksburg tonight in a key non-district game.
“Hopefully we can win enough in the next two weeks to get us into the regional,”
said Byrd coach Jason Taylor.
The Terriers have a tough schedule. Blacksburg is in first place in the River Ridge
District and then Byrd goes to Lord Botetourt next Tuesday, a team that beat them 13-3
in Daleville. They still have to go to Franklin County and Northside, two tough places to
pick up a win.
Taylor is hoping Tuesday’s sweep of Fleming in Vinton will be a catalyst to a
strong finish. The Terriers shut out a struggling Fleming team twice, 11-0 and 16-0.
In the first game Tyler Chambers picked up his varsity pitching win with two and
two-thirds shutout innings, striking out five. Tyler also had two hits to help his own cause
and Hayden Eads and Brogan Dent also had two hits each.
In the nightcap Kylind Spence got the win with two innings pitched, also fanning
five. Kam McKee had two hits and drove in three runs and JW Vaughan had two hits.
The sweep followed losses to two Roanoke County rivals in the past week. Last
Friday in Vinton the Terriers lost to Northside, 17-4. This game was tied up at 4-4 in the
fourth inning and Byrd was on the verge of a big rally.
“We had bases loaded and probably one pitch from them replacing their best
pitcher, but we did not execute,” said Taylor.
Northside took advantage of the reprieve by scoring five runs in the next inning.
Then they scored eight in a big sixth to win going away, finishing the game with 19 hits.
Byrd pitchers walked six and the Terriers committed five errors in a night to forget.
On Monday at home the Byrdmen welcomed Cave Spring and played much better
but were disappointed again, dropping a 4-3 heartbreaker. Dent started on the mound and
took the loss, pitching into the fourth inning. Connor Jones came on in relief and was
solid in two and a third shutout frames, fanning three. Errors and poor fielding hurt again
as the Terriers committed five miscues and handed out five free passes.
“They did the little things, and we again did not execute,” said Taylor. “But, I was
glad to see us compete after Friday’s game.”
Offensively, McKee and Jones had two hits each while Eads, Jarrett Shepherd and
Jake Courtemanche had one hit each for the Terriers.
Byrd also played Brookville last Wednesday and won a non-district game at
Walthall Park, 18-2. The offense was clicking in this one as Byrd had 13 hits and drew
nine walks. Shepherd, Spence, Eads and Cannin Lutz had two hits each and Spence drove
in four. Hunter Obenchain hit his first varsity home run in the first inning to get the
Terriers off to a good start as Lutz picked up the win on the mound.
“Brookville used their top pitchers in a one run loss to LCA the night prior and
that was good for us,” said Taylor, who was happy to take the win.
