NCHSAA State 1-A Baseball Championship: South Stanly Wins 3rd Game 14-12

SOUTH STANLY TAKES 1-A BASEBALL TITLE WITH 14-12 VICTORY IN DECISIVE THIRD GAME

GREENSBORO – Chase Poplin’s three-run homer in the six-run second inning got South Stanly off and running and the Rowdy Rebel Bulls rolled past Midway 14-12 on Saturday in the third and decisive game of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state 1-A baseball championship series at NewBridge Bank Park.

Poplin, who was four for five at the plate, drove home four runs and scored three times. He also the winning pitcher, pitching three and one-third innings in relief, and earned championship series Most Valuable Player honors.

South Stanly led 12-2 at one point but Midway refused to quit, scoring five runs in the fourth to make it 12-7, and then closing the gap to two runs in the final frame.

Every starter for South Stanly had at least one hit in an 18-hit assault, Vance Deese was three for four with four RBI.

Designated hitter Tyler Pope led Midway with three hits in three trips, including a double, and Luke Clark was three for four. Heath Smith drove in three runs for the Raiders.

In Friday night’s opener, pitcher Russ Weiker limited Midway to just one hit and went two for four at the plate himself to lead the Rebel Bulls to a 3-0 triumph. But Midway tied the series in Saturday’s earlier game, with Taylor Calcutt hitting a pair of homers and driving in six runs to lead the Raiders to a wild 16-12 triumph, so the two teams combined to score 54 runs on Saturday alone.

South Stanly was in the finals for the fourth in the last five years and earned its second consecutive state 1-A championship, finishing the season with a record of 30-6. Midway, in the championship series for the first time since 1981, wound up 27-5.

This is the 97th year for baseball championships in the NCHSAA.

NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
STATE BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
NewBridge Bank Park, Greensboro
Class 1-A: Game Three

                  1  2  3  4  5  6  7   R   H  E
   South Stanly   1  6  5  0  2  0  0  14  18  2
   Midway         0  2  0  5  0  2  3  12  14  2

WP—Chase Poplin (9-2)
LP—Ryan Lee (5-1)
HR-Chase Poplin, South Stanly.