In mid afternoon, around 2:30 to 3:00 pm, Confederates advanced against the Union position on Bushong's Hill, one-half mile ahead, where Gen. Franz Sigel had placed four regiments of infantry and 17 cannon on a narrow front from the bluffs above the river down to the Valley Turnpike. Because the ground before the hill was mostly open, the attacking Confederates were exposed to concentrated Federal infantry and artillery fire so intense that one Confederate said the shot and shell seemed to keep the air blue, while a Union soldier recalled seeing shells mow them down by scores and the first line melt away. The 30th Virginia and the right half of the 51st Virginia stalled on the Bushong Farm under heavy fire, while the 62nd Virginia on their right pushed 100 yards farther, became isolated, and drew the bulk of the Federal fire. Woodson's company of Missourians, attached to the 62nd, came within pistol shot of Union cannon and was torn apart by shrapnel, prompting Col. George Smith to pull the regiment back for fear it would be annihilated. Federal fire then shifted back to the 51st and 30th Virginia, and parts of both regiments gave way, opening a dangerous gap in the Confederate line. To fill it, Gen. John C. Breckinridge committed his only reserves, the young VMI Corps of Cadets, saying, "Put the boys in," and, "And may God forgive me for the order." With the Confederates staggered, Sigel ordered a Union counterattack, but an ill-considered cavalry charge and a disjointed infantry attack were both easily repulsed.