Chris Stanfield of the Crosscutters runs to second base on a steal against West Virginia at Bowman Field. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

It doesn’t take much time to discover a teams’ identity.

Williamsport Crosscutter manager Kenny Thomas would say it only takes 10-15 games to see “who we are,” but it may take even less time to figure out the key aspects of the game that will be quickly relied upon.

And after just one game played, a dreary 2-5 loss at the behest of the reigning champion West Virginia Black Bears, one aspect of the team’s offense has been discovered.

This is a team that runs. And runs. And runs some more.

In Tuesday night’s defeat, Williamsport only managed to find their way on the base paths 10 times. In spite of that, eight stolen bases were successful out of nine attempts.

Five different athletes would swipe a bag in the loss, with potential lineup cornerstones Owen Prince (two) and Kelly Robertson Jr. (three) besting Black Bear catcher Jose Fernandez on multiple occasions. The result was, even on a day which saw two total hits for Williamsport bats, a game that the Crosscutters felt they were in until the last out of the Opening Day contest.

“When I got my roster from MLB, I realized we were gonna be able to run,” discussed Williamsport manager Kenny Thomas after Tuesday’s loss. “It was funny, I was telling the coaches a couple of times that their pitching guy would go out when we had a runner at first and I’d say, ‘You know he’s telling him that we are fixing to steal second!'”

The roster from top to bottom in Williamsport’s first half squad oozes base stealing. Of the 13 college field players from the Crosscutter Opening Day roster, eight stole at least five bases in the previous collegiate season with five taking a bag at least 15 times.

Prince, who captured two bases on Opening Day, took 29 bags across 55 appearances with VMI in 2026; a number that is actually a low in comparison to the 46 he took in 53 games in 2025. In his previous Summer League campaign with the Martinsville Mustangs of the Coastal Plain League, the Roanoke native stole a Hendersonian 30 bases in just 35 contests.

But the athlete in pole position for stolen bases in the previous year is utility infielder KJ White Jr. Taking his trade for the last four seasons as a member of Southern University, the Atlanta native posted a combined 60 stolen bases across the past two seasons with 31 successful steals in 2026.

His off-the-bench presence was felt in more ways than one on Tuesday. Conceding two errors in the field late in the game, the switch hitter proved he belonged at the plate with a walk at the plate and glimpses of competitive base running that will be used in abundance this summer.

The other athlete on the roster coming off of a 20-stolen-base season is Brody Acres. Residing with division two’s Walsh University, Acres took the lead off role in stride with a single and a stolen base providing early heat to West Virginia pitching.

“I used to say this all the time,” Thomas echoed. “That you are not gonna bring great pitching to the ball park every night.You’re not going to bring great (offense) to the ballpark every night, and you’re not gonna bring great defense to the park every night. But if you can run, you have a chance.”

Across Matchday one of the MLB Draft League, only the Trenton Thunder (5) came close to matching Williamsport base stealing tally. With nine total attempts on the night, the Cutters nearly double any other side on attempts from Opening Night.

The Crosscutters conclude its opening series of 2026 on Thursday, with Williamsport hosting the Black Bears at 6:35 p.m. at Historic Bowman Field. From there, the Cutters will cover a six game road trip in seven days before taking the Mexican youth national team for a three game set beginning Friday, June 12.

Based on early returns, when one visits Bowman field, you’d best not take your eyes off the action when someone reaches.