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MOCKSVILLE — The over-achievers made a few more believers.
The wild, crazy Kannapolis American Legion snowball is rolling to the state tournament in Caldwell County after beating Mocksville 11-8 at Mando Field on Saturday night in a game with more twists and turns then Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
Ninth-seeded Kannapolis (21-13) took the best-of-five series from No. 4 Mocksville three games to two, somehow coming all the way back after being shelled 14-1 and 12-2 in Games 2 and 3 and needing a certified miracle to win Game 1. Kannapolis beat a very good Mocksville team that not only won 25 games this season, but has three Division I college signees on its powerhouse roster. Mocksville is also an extremely veteran team that starts seven 18-year-olds.
“It’s just been unbelievable,” said Kannapolis catcher Zach Gurley, who powered a third-inning homer. “We’re just a team full of comebacks. We’re a team full of magic. The big guys tonight were a sophomore (pitcher Adam Russell) and a freshman (shortstop Jonathan Goodman).”
Maybe it was just supposed to happen, but Mocksville coach Mike Lovelace wasn’t buying into any Tooth Fairy theories.
“Kannapolis is a good team,” said Lovelace. “We played hard, but they beat us. Yeah, they just beat us.”
Lovelace stated candidly after his team’s 10-6 Game 4 loss on Friday that if Kannapolis could beat his team in Game 5 in its home park and with its best pitcher (Skipp Crider) on the mound, then there wouldn’t be anything more to say except “Kannapolis deserves to go.”
And a gracious Lovelace said exactly that after last night’s game.
“I like the way my team battled,” he said. “But Kannapolis — that’s just a team that finds a way.”
Kannapolis trailed on three different occasions and by as many as three runs. Each time it recovered, finally winning with a four-run rally in the ninth. Kannapolis got huge efforts from no fewer than 11 players. You’d quickly run out of medals if you wanted to pin one on every hero.
There was Goodman, the 15-year-old shortstop, who bounced back from two errors to deliver a monster three-run double out of the No. 9 spot. There was Ryan Craft, who came up with the go-ahead hit in the ninth one more time. There were Chad Tuttle and Gurley who had two hits each. There was second baseman Steve Swann, who cracked three hits and made all kinds of defensive plays. And there was little Matt Harris who took a pitch off the knee, but hobbled to first and then delivered another big hit in the ninth before limping to the bench for good.
Most of all, there was Adam “Eggs” Russell, who overcame adversity of his own making. Russell air-mailed a throw to third on a bunt to hand Mocksville two gift runs, but that was the only time he lost control all night. Russell gave Kannapolis coach Joe Hubbard five strong innings in relief of starter Justin Bonds. He took Kannapolis from the fourth right up to the last out in the ninth when it was Nick Cadolino’s time to take over.
“I just tried to throw strikes and keep my composure,” said Russell modestly. “We were all pumped up and I didn’t want to let anyone down.”
Composure-keeping was easier said than done. Words were exchanged on the field and in the stands on an explosive evening.
“It was emotional out there,” said Hubbard. “These are kids and at times you have to keep reminding them to stay within themselves. You have to pull them back in a little bit.”
Kannapolis scored first on Swann’s RBI single in the second inning, but Mocksville went up 2-1 in its half, with the key blow coming on Chris Brake’s disputed double down the right-field line. Mocksville had a chance to break the game open early, but Goodman, Swann and first baseman Tuttle turned a huge double play behind Bonds.
Gurley’s solo homer tied it in the top of the third, but Kannapolis’ defense unraveled in the bottom half and Mocksville scored three for a 5-2 lead.
Nate Amerson’s RBI blooper chipped a run off the Mocksville lead in the fifth.
Then Kannapolis got its first huge break in the sixth. Craft hit a grounder to third that should have ended the inning, but third baseman Drew Ridenhour and second baseman Andrew Daywalt missed connections on a force play. Moments later, Goodman surprised Crider for his three-run blow.
In the bottom of the inning, Russell fired Daywalt’s bunt into left field and Kannapolis trailed 7-6. But Russell shook off potential disaster to fan Matt Dellacona and Brake to escape the inning.
Then Tuttle’s infield single scored Amerson in the seventh to tie the game one more time.
It stayed that way until the ninth with Russell matching up with Mocksville’s fire-balling reliever Cody Wright, who had replaced Crider.
Kannapolis got another break to start the ninth when Daywalt, battered and bruised after being hit three times by pitches, dropped Gurley’s pop up. Tuttle forced Gurley, but Bobby Helms stroked a single to left. Then Wright, who had five quick Ks, went down in agony on a pitch that hit Dusty Carmichael to load the bases.The extent of Wright’s injury wasn’t known, but he was rushed to the emergency room.
Lovelace then went to Game 3 hero Erik Walker to face Craft. With the infield in, Craft smashed a ball through the left side to score two runs for a 9-7 lead. Then Swann and Harris delivered RBI hits to give Russell insurance.
He needed it. Mocksville wasn’t about to quit and put two on for Zach Greene, who drilled a two-out double to left to extend the game.
With the score 11-8 and the tying runs on, Hubbard went to Cadolino. Like all his moves in the series it worked out. With the ominous figure of Kannapolis killer Drew Ridenhour looming on deck and with Steve LeFaivre, who already had three hits coming after him, Cadolino struck out Crider looking on a pitch at the knees. Kannapolis fans were cheering wildly before plate umpire Tommy Caudle’s upraised right hand came back to his waist.
“You know it all has to end sometime,” said Lovelace, but this was really tough.”
But the only thing tough for Hubbard was to dodge the canisters of ice and liquid refreshment that were coming his way courtesy of his players.
“We’ve been underdogs in three straight series,” he said. “But I haven’t done a thing. These kids are just amazing. Give them all the credit.”
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