NCHSAA Baseball Championship Recaps:Jake Smith’s Randleman Tigers are dominant in Game One Victory(Tigers top Whiteville, 10-0)

2022 1A Baseball State Championship | Perquimans nips Cherryville 1-0 in Game 1
HOLLY SPRINGS, NC – The 2021 1A Baseball Championship MVP was in fine form again for this year’s State Championship Series opener as Tanner Thach from Perquimans pitched seven innings of one-hit baseball, picking up a 1-0 win over Cherryville in Game 1 of the best-of-three. Thach was stellar, striking out 12 Ironmen while walking just two of the 24 batters he faced.

Thach was matched well by Cherryville’s Brayden Reynolds who went five innings and gave up just the one run on seven hits, but the run proved costly, as his team could not solve Thach. The game-winning run came in the bottom of the fourth as Jakob Meads led off the inning with a double to left center. He was able to get to third on a fielder’s choice before Eli Gregory grounded out to third to allow Meads to scamper home for the game’s sole run.

The only player with more than one hit was Perquiman’s catcher, Macon Winslow who went 2 for 3 in the game, but never crossed the plate or drove in a run.

Jackson Russell from Perquimans and Brayden Reynolds from Cherryville were presented the NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Awards for the 2022 1A Baseball Championship during a pregame ceremony. Game 2 of the series is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.

2022 2A Baseball State Championship | Randleman bashes Whiteville 10-0 in five innings
BURLINGTON, NC – The defending 2A Champions looked the part in Game 1 of the 2022 2A Baseball State Championship Series as Randleman dominated Whiteville 10-0 in a five-inning contest. The Tigers got five innings of no-hit ball from Drake Purvis who struck out 12 Wolfpack batters and issued just one walk.

Randleman opened the scoring in the bottom of the first plating a single run thanks to a leadoff triple by Trey Way who scored an RBI double by Brooks Brannon to go up 1-0. The Tigers added three more in the second, doing all their damage in the inning with two outs.

The Tigers kept the pedal down in the third, adding another pair of runs thanks to a walk, a hit, and an error that loaded the bases with just one out. That brought up Kaden Ethier who promptly singled through the left side to pick up two RBI’s and extend the Randleman lead to 6-0.

Brannon led off the Randleman fourth with a double that was rocketed to left center. Then Braylen Hayes traded places with him, ripping an RBI double down the left field line to make it 7-0. The double train continued as Bryson Sweatt doubled to bring Hayes home before Sweatt came around to score on a throwing error, one of three miscues by the Wolfpack in the game.

Grayson Bell from Whiteville and Seth Way from Randleman were named the NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Award Winners for the 2022 4A Baseball Series. They were presented with the awards prior to the first pitch. Game 2 between the pair is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Saturday.

2022 3A Baseball State Championship | South Brunswick stuns South Rowan 4-3 to take Game 1
HOLLY SPRINGS, NC – South Rowan’s Haiden Leffew struck out ten, but South Brunswick scratched off four runs on six hits to down the Raiders 4-3 in Game 1 of the 2022 3A Baseball State Championship Series. The Cougars got the go-ahead run in the top of the seventh thanks to a leadoff walk by Jordan Daniels which led to a two-out RBI single up the middle by Walter Jenkins to give South Brunswick a 4-3 lead and the eventual win.

South Rowan came out hot scoring all three of their runs in the opening two innings. The Raiders tallied a pair in the first inning as Ty Hubbard crossed plate on a throwing error before Leffew drove in Cole Thomas on a two-out RBI single to left. The Raiders got another run in the second as J.D. James led off the inning with a single before coming home on a steal with two outs in the inning.

The Cougars clawed their way back in the game with single runs in the fourth and the fifth innings. Jenkins got the Cougars started in the fourth with the first of his two hits, an infield single with one out. He came home on an RBI single by Banks Hartman. The run in the fifth came courtesy a leadoff walk for Luke Dilgard who subsequently stole second and later scored on an RBI single by Patrick Boldt.

Those two runs cut the lead to 3-2 and with the Raider offense cooling off in the middle innings, gave South Brunswick an opportunity to tie the game in the sixth. The Cougars knotted the game at three thanks to an RBI triple from Jaylend Clemmons with two down. That set the table for the seventh inning heroics that gave South Brunswick a 1-0 series lead.

Jacob Ritchie from South Rowan and Alex Sanchez from South Brunswick were named the NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Award Winners for the 2022 3A Baseball Championship, receiving the awards in a pregame presentation. Game 2 of the series is slated for 11:00 a.m. Saturday.

2022 4A Baseball State Championship | Providence shuts out Pinecrest 3-0 for Game 1 win
BURLINGTON, NC – Providence stayed perfect, preserving their unblemished record with a 3-0 shutout victory over Pinecrest in the first game of the 4A State Championship Series at Burlington Athletic Stadium. The Panthers were led by senior hurler Eli Jerzembeck who spun a complete game three-hitter that included 10 strikeouts and just one walk.

The third inning saw Providence get on the board thanks to a leadoff walk for Camden Hull who scrambled to second on a wild pitch before getting sacrificed to third. He crossed the plate on an RBI-groundout by Sam Dansky to take a 1-0 lead.

The Panthers tacked on a pair of runs in the sixth as a one-out walk drawn by Tommy Walker chased Pinecrest starter Cove Mashburn. Providence pinch ran for Walker, sending Jackson Warfield out to first base and he quickly swiped second. The steal put Warfield in position to score on a single through the right side by Collin McDougall. McDougall also stole second, coming home on an RBI triple by Tyler Khanolkar..

Mashburn pitched well for Pinecrest, twirling 5.1 innings of one-hit ball with three strikeouts. But his three walks were his undoing, as two of them came around to score, giving the Panthers the cushion needed to grab a 1-0 series lead.

Ethan Masson from Pinecrest and Collin McDougall from Providence were selected as the 4A Baseball NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Award Winners for their exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season. Game 2 of the series is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Saturday.

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