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With the New Hope Trojans threatening to give Oxford High its first lost of the year, sophomore Ben Bianco ended the game and their hopes in walk-off fashion.
Through four complete innings, New Hope had given Oxford one of its more challenging opponents of the year, posting one run to Oxford’s zero. Junior Jason Barber, Oxford’s standout pitcher, had given up his first earned run of the year, and spirits were bleak in the Oxford dugout.
Oxford eventually tied the game up with a base hit from senior Drew Phillips; a tie that sent the two powerhouses into extra innings.
In the eighth inning, New Hope blasted their sixth hit off of Barber, and sent the winning run to second base. Sam Taylor hit a hard ground ball to freshman Drew Bianco, who mishandled it. The ball rolled into right field, and the runner scored from second to give the Trojans a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth.
A pop out and a groundout led to two quick outs for the Chargers, who were down to their last out. Senior Jack McClure, faced with two strikes, was hit in the foot to give life to Oxford. With a runner on and two outs, it was Ben Bianco’s time to shine.
Again faced with two strikes, Bianco blasted a ball over the left-field fence and trotted around the bases to secure the victory.
“You couldn’t have written a better script for how it ended,” Chargers head coach Chris Baughman said. “Those are the moments you dream about growing up and playing this game for so long.”
photo credit: Sarah Grayzel-Ward
