Matoaca alum and Yellow Jackets senior Travis Lodge started the season hot. Over the past couple of weeks, he has gotten even hotter.
Both the ODAC and D3baseball.com have taken notice of his outstanding play.
On March 28, Lodge was named Old Dominion Athletic Conference player of the week. In that span of seven days, the opposition hardly had a chance. The former Warriors collected 11 hits over 16 at-bats, good for a .688 batting average. He launched four home runs, scored 11 runs and knocked in 12. His slugging percentage was an eye-popping 1.438. To put that in perspective, major-league leader in 2015, Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper slugged .649.
On March 22 vs. Virginia Wesleyan, Lodge and the Yellow Jackets had a day they won’t soon forget when they defeated the Marlins in a wild affair, 16-15. During that contest, Lodge was 5-5 with two home runs, five runs batted in and four runs scored. His other two home runs during the week came at the hands of York and Eastern Mennonite.
March 29, D3baseball.com selected Lodge to their “Team of the Week.” The team is selected from all the Division III schools in the United States and winners are elected at each position.
Lodge is one of the best hitters at the Division III level this season. Currently, he ranks third in the nation in slugging percentage (1.067), is tied for second with three other players with nine home runs. He also ranks in the top 25 in runs batted in (27), and total bases (54). These stats were accurate as of March 27 on the NCAA’s official website.
Randolph-Macon is currently ranked No. 5 in Division III baseball in the country, and boasts a record of 19-4-1. The roster has four players from Chester/Chesterfield and another five athletes from the Midlothian area.
