Prince William County, Va. –– As the Memorial holiday weekend approaches, police in Prince William are taking no excuses about not wearing seat belts in vehicles.
Officers want drivers and passengers to know it’s the law, and that they’re cracking down.
“More than ever, we need to continue to make the case that seat belts really do work,” he said.
“We will do that by hitting the roads and enforcing all traffic laws 24/7, no excuses, no warnings, and we will be paying particular attention to seat belt use,” said Prince William County Police Chief Charlie T. Deane.
Prince William police say there have been five fatal car crashes during the first five months of the year, adding urgency to this year’s campaign.
Drivers should expect to see more police officers on patrol both day and night, from now until Monday June 6.
Seat belts are required in Virginia, and police also remind drivers:
– All children under the age of eight must ride in a secured safety seat that’s federally
approved.
– Children between eight and 15 must use a safety seat, booster seat, or seat belt no
matter where in the vehicle the child is riding.
-It is the driver’s responsibility to make sure all children age 15 and under are properly
secured.
Lynchburg, Va. –– Steven Souza hit a home run in his third straight game, but Potomac came up one run short in a 7-6 loss to Lynchburg on Sunday afternoon.
The power-hitting first baseman launched his 8th homer of the season in a five-run sixth for the P-Nats. Shortstop Jose Lozada and right fielder Destin Hood both led off the inning with doubles, getting Potomac on the board for the first time in the game. After a J.P. Ramirez strikeout, Souza crunched a two-run shot that went more than 400 feet. It went just to the left of straight-away center, which is label as 390 feet at City Stadium. It gave Souza his league-leading 31st and 32nd RBI.
A walk from Brian Peacock (his second of the day) forced Hillcats manager Luis Salazar to go to the bullpen to replace starter Cory Rasmus. The former supplemental first round draft had a strong afternoon until the sixth. He had not allowed a run and struck out six P-Nats. But when Potomac started to get to him, Salazar called on Dan Jurik.
The first batter Jurik faced was Justino Cuevas. The infielder was just called up from extended spring training to replace Francisco Soriano, who went on the DL. Cuevas was abruptly inserted into the lineup on Saturday and Sunday because every day third baseman Justin Bloxom is sick. With Peacock on first, Cueavas turned on a fastball and hit a two-run homer to left field, cutting Lynchburg’s lead down to 6-5.
Cuevas continued his fast start with the P-Nats in the 8th inning.
After Hillcats reliever Andrew Wilson (who went to Liberty University in Lynchburg) retired the first two batters, the 22-year-old Cuevas went deep for the second time in the game. His solo shot made things 7-6, the eventual winning score for Lynchburg.
Adding to Cuevas’ impressive weekend was the two-RBI double he had on Saturday night. The Dominican Republic native went 4-8, with two home runs, one double, and five RBI in his first two games with the P-Nats.
Destin Hood’s hot bat didn’t cool off either. The Mobile, AL native went 3-5 with three doubles. He is now tied for first in the Carolina League with 16 two-baggers (Salem’s Reynaldo Rodriguez also has 16).
Lynchburg jumped out to an early lead with a five-run third inning off of P-Nats starter Paul Demny.
The righty has been one of Potomac’s best pitchers this year, with an ERA under three, but today was more difficult for him. The big hit of the inning came from DH Adam Milligan, who roped a two-RBI double. Keenan Wiley and L.V. Ware also had RBI singles. First baseman Barret Kleinknecht rounded out the inning with a sacrifice fly. Demny did not make it out of third.
The P-Nats bullpen trio of Evan Bronson, Josh Smoker, and Marcos Frias pitched a strong 5.1 innings. Bronson allowed the only run, and it was unearned. All totaled, they only gave up five hits and walked no one.
The game-winning run for Lynchburg came home in the bottom of the sixth. Andrelton Simmons singled to left field, but Chris Curran’s return throw to the infield got away from shortstop Jose Lozada and rolled all the way to the P-Nats bullpen on the right field line. Simmons raced to third on the overthrow. Curran was charged an error. The next batter, Phil Gosselin, singled to center to score Simmons and make it 7-5 Lynchburg.
The loss snaps a four-game winning streak for Potomac and keeps the P-Nats from sweeping the three-game series against Lynchburg. But the Nats are still 6-4 in the last 10 games and look to continue their hot play tomorrow at home against Kinston. The starting pitcher for the Indians is schedule to be Drew Pomeranz, the number five overall pick in last year’s draft.
-Press release
A Lorton man was killed in a crash Friday morning in Spotsylvania County.
Marshall Mitchell, 34, was killed when he was riding in a 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe traveling south on Benchmark Road, near Mine Road.
The SUV ran off the right side of the road, and Mitchell was ejected when the driver crossed over the left side of the road and over corrected, said Virginia State Police Sgt. Les Tyler.
Mitchell was not wearing a seatbelt.
The driver of the SUV, 32-year-old Jui Shelton of Spotsylvania, is charged with driving under the influence, said Tyler.
By Uriah Kiser
There are many restaurants to choose from the Potomac Communities. They offer everything from fast food, late night diners, and some offer a salad bar and all you can eat buffets.
One restaurant that lies off of the beaten path in Occoquan, Bistro L’hermitage, is unlike any place I’ve been to in the Potomac Communities.
The setting is cozy, as the restaurant is nestled inside what feels like a classy French stone country home. We went to the eatery recently for a family celebration, but the food on our plates turned out to be a celebration of its own.
While I wish I had ordered the chicken dish my fiancé did because it looked and tasted so delicious, I ordered the Entrecote –– a New York strip steak served with mashed potatoes and baby spinach. The meat was cooked to perfection, with just a small amount of pink to satisfy my medium well temperature request. The potatoes have the dish just the right amount of starchiness and saltiness, and cooked spinach made for an all around impressive presentation.
Then it was time for desert, and while everyone else was ordered his or her favorite Crème Brulee, I ordered the Mousse au Chocolat alamode. It was a rich chocolate lava cake served with berries and just the right amount of ice cream.
It was enough to make me pull out my cell phone and snap a photo of the colorful dish.
After coffee, we managed to pull ourselves away from this wonderful fine dining experience. Eating here was enough to make you want to make every dining experience a special occasion and give up the frequent visits to the late night, fast food all you can eat places.
Uriah Kiser is the Senior Producer of PotomacLocal.com.
County leaders still at odds over planned Brooke development
Stafford’s Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission have long been at odds with each other on a plan to place 4,000 planned residential units. But a recent move by the Planning Commission to remove a planned development area from the county’s Brooke area may not have been completely legal, Fredericksburg.com reports.
And the tailgate played on
Though Jiffy Lube Live has banned the practice of tailgating before shows, some tailgating faithful on Saturday found a way to continue the tradition outside the concert venue, reports Insidenova.com.
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Lynchburg, Va. –– The bats stayed white hot for Potomac in a 13-8 win over Lynchburg from City Stadium on Saturday night.
The P-Nats have scored 39 runs and are hitting .331 (50-151) as team during the current four-game winning streak.
A theme has developed with the hot hitting, and that’s fast starts. In a 14-6 win over Frederick on Thursday, the P-Nats scored nine runs by the end of the third inning. Last night in Lynchburg, the P-Nats scored three in the first. And tonight was nothing different, as a five-run third inning propelled Potomac’s bats for the rest of the night.
Entering the third Potomac had a 1-0. Jeff Kobernus jump-started the hitting with a single to right field. Number three hitter Destin Hood followed with the double that scored Kobernus all the way from first. J.P. Ramirez played copycat and doubled to score Hood. After a Sandy Leon single, Jose Lozada laced the third double of the inning. The fourth and final double of the inning came from Justino Cuevas. The two-RBI hit scored Leon and Lozada and gave the P-Nats a 6-0 lead. Justino Cuevas was just called up from extended spring training to replace infielder Francisco Soriano, who went on the DL.
A sacrifice fly in the top of the fourth from Destin Hood made it 7-0 Potomac. That’s when the game started to look like a basketball game – a game of runs.
The Hillcats answered the P-Nats 7-0 run with a 6-0 run of their own. Lynchburg scored four in the fifth and two in the sixth. In the fifth, the key hits came from Andrelton Simmons and Phil Gosselin. Simmons, the league’s third leading hitter in terms of batting average, knocked a two-RBI double, and Gosselin grabbed an RBI triple. In the sixth, both runs came home on a double from the number nine hitter, L.V. Ware.
Then it was time for the P-Nats to counter. They came with a 6-0 run to balloon the lead to 13-6.
The loudest of all the swings came in the bottom of the ninth, when Steven Souza slugged a solo shot over the left-field wall. The first baseman went deep for the second straight night and now has seven on the season. He also added two RBI, giving him 30 this year. He is now tied for first in the Carolina League with Buck Britton of Frederick.
P-Nats starter Trevor Holder picked up the win, improving his record to 2-5. The University of Georgia product was strong before running into trouble in the fifth and sixth innings. Overall, his final line was 5.1 innings pitched, seven hits and five runs. Holder’s best statistic continues to be his strikeout to walk ratio. Tonight he set down six Hillcats and walked none. On the season Holder has 30 Ks to four walks.
With wins from Wilmington and Frederick tonight, Potomac stays five games back of the second place Keys and seven games back of first place Wilmington. The first half ends exactly one month from tonight.
The P-Nats lead the season series with Lynchburg 3-1.
Potomac goes for the three-game series sweep tomorrow at 2:05 pm. The Nats toss RHP Paul Demny (1-3, 2.95) and the Hillcats go with RHP Cory Rasmus (0-5, 7.17).
-Press release
Woodbridge, Va. –– JCPenney has decided to close its doors at Potomac Mills mall.
Mall officials have not yet said when the outlet store will close for good, nor have they announced what will replace the stores.
The outlet store offered discounted clothing and home goods found at regular JCPenney company stores.
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Stafford County, Va. –– Work to repair the drainage on Decatur Road is complete and the road reopened to traffic.
Earlier this month, transportation officials announced a detour for traffic on the roadway that would take drivers around where the work was being done at Widewater and Decatur roads.
The project was expected to cost $150,000, and it was aimed at improving the drainage on the roads at that intersection.
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Stafford, Va. –– You won’t have to go far to find quality entertainment this weekend.
Students at Brooke Point High School will present Godspell on stage, tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30.
Tickets are $5 for children and $10 for adults. Students get in free with any school or college ID.
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Update 5:45 p.m.
The occupants of a car that fled from police this morning following a bank robbery have been identified.
Police say a man walked into a Union Bank and Trust on Morris Road in Spotsylvania County at 10:30 a.m. Friday. The man handed the teller a note and asked for money, which the teller provided to the man.
