Cape baseball handles the Riders 6-2

Cape junior pitcher Luke Johnson allowed just four hits April 30, as he threw six-plus innings to lead the Vikings to a 6-2 win over visiting Caesar Rodney at Cape’s Chris Short Field.

Johnson moved his record to 5-0 on the mound, striking out eight Riders batters in the process.

“Luke did an amazing job pitching in some very high-stress situations,” said Cape head coach Ben Evick.

The Riders had lead-off runners on second base in three separate innings.

“He pitched masterfully to keep these runners from scoring,” Evick said. “Mixing his pitches, and locating pitches in and out, he kept their hitters guessing. He continues to be an offensive power for us. He drove in two runs in a big spot to keep our big inning going.”

The Vikings’ big fourth inning started with a walk by Mason Fluharty, who then stole second on an attempted hit-and-run. Robbie Baxley followed two pitches later by driving a ball into the left-center gap for an RBI triple. Jackson Ostroski singled in Baxley to make it 2-0. Timmy Vitella, Johnson and Fluharty delivered with three consecutive singles to make the score 6-0.

Ty Husbands and Sean Clendaniel came in during the seventh and got the last two outs.

“We’re really proud of how hard our guys played and how focused they were from the start,” said Evick. “They are playing with a goal in mind and competing at the plate. Our pitchers have continued to improve with their command all year long. Our game in Hawaii and the two scrimmages got all pitchers innings, and a chance to work on pitches and feel comfortable in defensive schemes. We have a big one [May 2] versus Dover, and Mason Fluharty is ready to go on the mound.”

Brandon Hatch was 2-for-4 with an RBI to lead the Riders.

Cape will host the Senators at 4:15 p.m., Thursday, May 2.