Loss Ends Loudoun's Run in Babe Ruth Series

By Cydney Cappello

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

The Greater Loudoun Lions went into Tuesday night's game hoping for a win to continue their way through the Babe Ruth League World Series, but the Ohio Valley team had other ideas.

The hometown Lions fell to the Ohio Valley team, 7-5, Tuesday evening at Fireman's Field in Purcellville.

“It was a terrible ending,” said Leesburg resident Ed Lang, whose son's friends took to the field Tuesday night. “It was a great game. The kids played hard. It was nice having the Babe Ruth World Series here, but it was very disappointing for the fans and for the kids.”

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Loss Ends Loudoun's Run in Babe Ruth Series

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The Greater Loudoun Lions line up for the singing of the National Anthem before the game. (Cydney Cappello)

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The bleachers are filled with eager fans of the Greater Loudoun Lions. (Cydney Cappello)

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A view from the field as the Lions get ready to bat. (Cydney Cappello)

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One of the Lions waits for the perfect pitch. (Cydney Cappello)

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The Greater Loudoun Lions watch on the edge of the dugout as a batter takes a base. (Cydney Cappello)

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No. 22 Matthew Macmahon, waits for the ball as the team practices between innings. (Cydney Cappello)

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First baseman Matthew Macmahon, with glove ready, prepares for an out. (Cydney Cappello)

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Mitchell Bowers, pitcher for the Lions, pauses before his pitch. (Cydney Cappello)

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A volunteer attends to the concession register. (Cydney Cappello)

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A Loudoun Lion prepares for the pitch. (Cydney Cappello)

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Matthew Reed, of the Loudoun Lions, keeps his eye on the ball. (Cydney Cappello)

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Some of the Loudoun Lions fans take a quick break from the game. (Cydney Cappello)

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Mitchell Bowers, No. 11, and Travis Burke, No. 1, watch their teammates from the dugout. (Cydney Cappello)

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Loudoun Lions manager Mike Lockhart watches his players as another batter takes the plate. (Cydney Cappello)

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Bill Delsignore, manager of the Ohio Valley team out of Youngstown, tries to make a call after a ball slips past the Lions' outfielders. (Cydney Cappello)

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Loudoun Lions manager Mike Lockhart and coach Eric Lemley meet with an umpire about switching pitchers. (Cydney Cappello)

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Two boys find a substitute for the bleachers. (Cydney Cappello)

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Loudoun Lions' Tyler Mocabee, No. 38, pauses at the base with Ohio Valley first baseman, Brad Smith, No. 8. (Cydney Cappello)

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Loudoun Lions coach Paul Macmahon looks on as Tyler Mocabee, No. 38, prepares to run for second and Brad Smith, No. 8, from Ohio Valley gets to stop him. (Cydney Cappello)

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With the bases loaded, the Loudoun Lions hope for some runs-in with the next at-bat. (Cydney Cappello)

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The Ohio Valley team has a quick meeting before taking the field and the Loudoun Lions return to their dugout. (Cydney Cappello)

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Both teams fought hard to move on to the next round of the series, but errors hurt the Lions as they tried to shake off their loss from earlier in the day to a team from Hopewell, N.J.

“(The game is) better tonight than it was this morning. This morning was pretty ugly -- just made a few too many errors,” said Ashburn resident Tracy Rentfro, mother of Lions pitcher and first baseman Ryan Rentfro. “Last night, I think they were just frustrated with the rain and having to come back this morning.”

The Lions were the underdogs at the beginning of the series, although they kept finding game-winning scores to finish on top. But Tuesday night, the Ohio Valley team was too much to handle.

“The whole time they’ve been here, they’ve been one of the teams to come up at the end to win it. The first game they won in eight innings, the other one they won in the seventh, and of course the one they lost, but they’re looking a lot sharper than they did this morning,” Ashburn resident Dale Myers said near the start of Tuesday night's game. Myers has served as president of the Babe Ruth World Series since 2000.

Even though their late performance was cleaner than the morning game, the errors that plagued the Lions earlier might have leaked through to the night game.

“They fielded well. They had a couple good defensive plays,” Lang explained. “Offensively, they did OK; left some runners on a couple times, which may have had a different outcome of the game, but for the most part the defense was good. They were hitting the ball.”

There was one error in the second inning that ended in a double play when the Ohio Valley team was at bat.

“What happened was the (batter) running crossed over the other runner so that one was automatically out, so it was just the kid obviously thought the other (team) had caught (the ball) when he hadn’t and that’s what called the cross off,” Myers explained.

As the host team of the series, the Lions got a bye and didn't have to qualify as the other teams did. They held the Ohio Valley team off throughout the first half of the game, but couldn't get the win.

“Normally when you have a host team, the host teams are not very strong. These kids have worked hard, the coaches have worked hard and they have a lot to be proud of,” Babe Ruth World Series umpire George Burke said.

Burke has been an umpire for 18 years and an umpire for Babe Ruth Baseball for the last two years, serving as an umpire in the Cal Ripken Jr. World Series for 12-and-under last year.

Although the Lions are out of the competition, the series will continue until the prized trophy is given away at the end of the week.

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