With the letdown of having let a lead slip away at St. Peters a day earlier, Warrenton Post 122 Junior Legion Coach Ken Dildine was determined to avoid deja vu.His concern was as much for his team would maintaining its positive morale than sustaining its advantage on the scoreboard. To Dildine, the two practically coincide.“I told them after the St. Peters game, that our intensity starts in the dugout,” said Dildine. “I don’t want to ever see our intensity leave the dugout again like that, because our intensity faltered, it was a turning point for us.”Thankfully for Dildine, Post 122 never surrendered the lead nor its energy in the dugout during a 9-1 win over Sullivan on Friday.“Hopefully, this proves to the boys that whenever we’re up, we’re tough to beat,” said Dildine.A five-run second inning propelled Warrenton to just its second win of the season — the other also coming against Sullivan.Austin Dixon scored Post 122’s initial run in the second inning, driven home on a single by Brandon Purkaple.“We did a lot of work during our off days trying to get the kids to stay closed and not open up their shoulders so much,” said Dildine. “Purkaple really hit the ball well today.”Warrenton’s bats came alive in the second inning, with Owenby connecting on a double, while Ryan Adams, Devon Oden, Allen Shepard and Dixon each hitting singles. By the end of the barrage Post 122 was leading 6-0.It was one of three base knocks for Oden.“Devon painted the line three times tonight,” said Dildine. “He was deadly down the first base line. And the way he plays shortstop is just effortless.”Warrenton remained active on the bases, adding a run in each of the next three innings to go ahead 9-0 before Sullivan finally scored in the top of the seventh.A walk and a pair of subsequent singles helped advance the scoring base runner.“We minimized our strikeouts, we hit the ball and made some good plays on defense,” said Dildine.Post 122 also had a strong showing on the mound from Dalton Owenby, who struck out nine, walked three and allowed four hits.“Dalton pitched a good game,” said Dildine. “He got a little tired, but was able to respond and finish strong.”Purkable finished with two hits, while Shane Emge, Dixon and Adams each scored two runs.Even with the victory, Warrenton is still near the bottom of the league standings and will need to finish exceptionally strong.“We’re making a lot of progrees, but we’re going to have to put a lot more wins together to get into that Top 8,” said Dildine.JUNIORS DEFEAT SULLIVANDerrick Forsythe photo.