Weekend Roundup: Games from March 16 & 17, 2018

Friday night, in front of at least a dozen professional scouts, Carson HS’s Owen White was electric as he kept the bats of Central Cabarrus HS quiet in a 9-1 win.  White worked 5.2 innings, striking out 14 and only allowing 1 hit.

Carson would get on the board off Central’s Joe Muhonen in the 2nd.  C Hales singled to start the inning, followed by a HBP and a walk to load them up with no outs.  Muhonen competed, striking out the next two Cougar hitters before White singled through the left side to score Hales.  The single was mishandled, scoring one more run.

The two runs would be all White would need on the bump.  Surrendering his first base runner in the third, on a single through the right side from Christian Thomas, White would only face three hitters over the minimum in his 5.2 innings of work.  In the 5th, White recorded strikeouts as a slider got by a very sure handed Garrett Alewine, behind the dish. Alewine did a good job all night long handling White, allowing him to expand the zone with fastballs and breaking balls.  

The big blow came in the 5th as the Cougars hung a 4 spot, led by a two-run triple to left-center off the bat of Luke Barringer.  In total, Carson would score 9 runs on 9 hits.

Game Summary

Win: Owen White (RHP, 2018, South Carolina commit) -- 5.2IP, 1H, 0R, 14K, 0BB

Loss: Joe Muhonen (RHP, 2018) -- 5IP, 7H, 6R, 4ER, 5K, 3BB

Carson Game Notes:

+ Cameron Prugh -- 3-4, 2B, 2 Runs

+ Owen White -- 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 Run

+ Luke Barringer -- 1-3, 3B, 2 RBI, 1 Run

+ Cole Hales -- 1-3, 1 Run

Loser Game Notes:

+ Christian Thomas (OF, 2020) -- 1-3

+ Evan McGee - 1-3

Player Notes:

+Owen White’s outing will be featured in an upcoming NC HS Scout Blog.

+Sam Yelton (OF/LHP, CCHS, 2021) hit leadoff as a FR.  Good athlete with carry in the arm from CF. Player to follow.
+Christian Thomas (OF, CCHS, 2020) is a good runner that has seen the bat start to come along.  Still raw, he has a plus tool that he is still learning to use in game situations
+Cameron Pile (2B, Carson, 2021) - Solid defender with quick twitch.  Ran 4.10 on SAC. Shows a feel for the barrel in the box. Player to follow especially as he begins to add strength to the frame.

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Lake Norman Scores Big on the Road

In a rematch of the 2017 4A Western Region Finals, Lake Norman HS travelled to TC Roberson HS.  A matchup of Aces saw Justin Jarvis face off with Eric Wallington. While neither was at the top of their game, Jarvis did enough for his offense as the Wildcats scored 2 in the first and followed it up with a 5 spot in the third and 7 more in the 4th to put the game away.

In the first, Vance Anderson launched a 1-0 pitch over the centerfield wall, scoring Sam Zayicek and giving Lake Norman a quick 2-0 lead.  Roberson would threaten in the first, loading the bases with 2 outs, before Jarvis got a big punch to end the inning.

Lake Norman would strike again in the third as Anthony Palma and Anderson would lead the inning off with a single and walk respectively.  With one out, Scott Diekman singled up the middle scoring Palma. Following a walk to load the bases, and an error that scored one, Carter Sheppard doubled to left, scoring two more.  A safety squeeze from Harrison Livingston would push the lead to 7-0.

Jarvis worked with the big lead into the 4th, where Roberson finally touched him up a little.  With 2 outs and one run in, Will Butcher launched a 3-run homer to left, bringing the score to 14-4, which would hold to be the final.  Sam Zayicek came on in relief to record the final four outs for Lake Norman

Game Summary

Win: Justin Jarvis (RHP, 2018, UNCW commit) -- 3.2IP, 2H, 4R, 4ER, 6K, 5BB

Loss: Eric Wallington (LHP, 2018, WCU commit) -- 3IP, 5H, 7R, 6ER, 4K, 3BB

Lake Norman Game Notes:

+ Vance Anderson (OF, 2019) -- 3-3, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, 3 Runs

+ Scott Diekman (2018) -- 1-3, 1 RBI, 2 Runs, 1 SB

+ Gage Smith (3B, 2019) -- 2-3, 1 RBI, 2 Runs

+ Harrison Livingston -- 1-4, 2B, 4 RBI, 1 Run

TC Roberson Game Notes:

+ Will Butcher (1B/C, 2019, NC State commit) -- 1-2, HR, 3 RBI, 1 Run

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No. 1 Randleman Bounces Back in 11 Innings

As part of a two game series with Providence Grove, Randleman used 11 innings to even the series.  On Wednesday Providence Grove used a stellar pitching performance to take game one. Game 2 saw similar pitching from both clubs as Randleman used a steal of home in the 11th to take the win.

Matt Kemp worked 7 strong innings for Randleman allowing only one run on 2 hits, while striking out 10.  While Kemp would not factor in the decision he would play a big role in the winning run. For Providence Grove, Evan Stern went 6 without giving up a hit, allowing 1 run and striking out 8.  Relieved in the 7th, Jacob Switzer would punch 10 over 4.2 innings surrendering two hits and the winning run.

In the bottom of the 11th, Kemp doubled to left and was advanced to 3B on a SAC bunt attempt from Dominick Poole, where Adams reaches first with a single.  Switzer would get the next two hitters to strike out, leaving runners on 1st and 3rd. Prior to the next pitch, Poole would work to steal 2B. As the defense made a play on Poole, Kemp broke for home, beating a throw and giving Randleman the win in dramatic fashion.

Game Summary

Win: Dawson Edwards -- 4IP, 2H, 0R, 2K, 0BB

Loss: Jacob Switzer -- 4.2IP, 2H, 1R, 1ER, 10K, 1BB

Other Pitchers of Note:

Matt Kemp (Starter - RHS) -- 7IP, 2H, 1R, 1ER, 10K, 2BB
Evan Stern (Starter - PGHS) -- 6IP, 0H, 1R, 0ER, 8K, 4BB

Randleman Game Notes:

+ Matt Kemp -- 1-1, 1 RBI, 1 Run, 1SB

+ Dominick Poole -- 1-4, 1 SB

Providence Grove Game Notes:

+ Drew Needham -- 2-5

+ Stolen bases from Jackson Jones, Evan Stern, & Levi Adams

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AL Brown Stops Streaking North Iredell

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon the Kannaoplis Intimidators hosted a double header between AL Brown and North Iredell where the JV game was followed by the Varsity game.  The Intimidators, the A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox open Intimidators Stadium several times in the spring to area high schools allowing players to experience the ammenities of a professional stadium.

At the Varsity level, the two teams came into Saturday moving in different directions.  North Iredell sat at 5-2, winning several close games and limiting the chances of their opponents offensively.  AL Brown came in winless at 0-5, but seemed to be righting the ship in recent games.

The two starting pitchers were magnificent the first three innings.  Mason Staz for North Iredell faced one over the minimum through three, striking out 5 of his first 10 hitters faced.  For AL Brown, Cord Butler used a sinking fastball to stay away from the barrels of North Iredell hitters.

In the bottom of the fourth, AL Brown would send 12 hitters to the dish, scoring 8 runs.  The final blow of the inning came off Butlers bat where he drilled a double to right-center, scoring Keyon Rice and J Hendley.  From there Butler shut down any hopes of a comeback, working 5 strong innings, striking out 5, and only allowing 4 hits.

Game Summary

Win: Cord Butler (RHP, 2018) -- 5IP, 4H, 0R, 5K, 1BB

Loss: Mason Staz (RHP, 2019) -- 3.2IP, 5H, 8R, 3ER, 6K, 2 BB

AL Brown Game Notes:

+ Keyon Rice (OF, 2018) -- 2-4, 1 RBI, 2 Runs

+ Dylan Shubert (C, 2018) -- 3-4, 2 RBI, 1 Run

+ Antonio Knight -- 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 Run, 1-2 SBA

Loser Game Notes:

+ Mason Staz (2019) -- 2-2

Player Notes:

+Keyon Rice (ABHS, OF, 2018) - RHH uses a short stroke with a feel for the barrel, finding it on 3 at-bats on the day.  Sprays the ball, gearing the swing toward the middle of the field. Quick out of the box. Does expand the zone at times.

+Cord Butler (RHP/Util, 2018, UNC Pembroke commit) -- 80-83 from a high-¾ slot.  Arm side run, darting on both sides of the plate. Good athlete with a medium build and thin frame.

+A couple of North Iredell hitters will be featured in an upcoming NC High School Scout Blog.

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South Caldwell Blanks West Caldwell, 10-0

South Caldwell got a dominant outing from Junior right hander Trent Black and scored in four of five innings to beat West Caldwell and remain unbeaten on the season. The No. 5 ranked Spartans (PBR/NCBCA Coaches Poll) scored 4 in the first and never looked back. A double by junior Ian Moretz plated 2 for South in the third and they would go on to add 2 runs in both the fourth and fifth innings. Trent Black cruised through his five innings of work, allowing 3 hits and striking out 10 to earn the win.

Billed as a matchup between two committed 2019 arms, Black out-dualed Cy Smith of West Caldwell.  Two West Caldwell pitchers combined to walk 9 Spartans. While they only surrendered the 3 hits, over 5 innings, the walks and errors continually kept South Caldwell as the aggressor.

Game Summary

Win: Trent Black (RHP, 2019, Gardner Webb commit) -- CG, 5IP, 3H, 0R, 10K, 0BB

Loss: Cy Smith (RHP, 2019, App St commit) -- 3.1IP, 2H, 8R, 1ER, 4K, 7BB

South Caldwell Game Notes:

+ Owen Foxx (3B, 2019) -- 1-1, 2BB, RBI

+ Ian Moretz (DH, 2019) -- 1-2, 2B, RBI

+ Austin Reynor (OF, 2020) -- 1-2, 2BB, RBI

+ Curtis Massagee (SS, 2019) -- 1-3, RBI

West Caldwell Game Notes:

+ Dawson Garrett (OF, 2018) -- 1-2

+ Thomas Melton (C, 2018) -- 1-2

+ Shawn Hendrix (2B, 2018) -- 1-2

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