Mocksvile continued to play at a very high level on Saturday night.
Fortunately for the Rowan County American Legion baseball team, centerfielder Nick Lefko, played like he was on Mount Everest.
Lefko’s already sterling career found a new peak in a 9-4 Rowan’s win that clinched the second-round series four games to one and sends Rowan into Tuesday’s third-round opener against Eastern Randolph or Burlington. ER currently leads that series 3-2.
Had there been no Lefko, there would have been a Game 6 tonight. He was all that he could be, going 4-for-4 with four RBIs at the plate and stealing three bases. Defensively, he made three fine catches, one so good it left fans screaming, another one so amazing it left them speechless.
“Lefko does things that maybe we all take for granted because he makes it look so routine,” said Rowan coach Jim Gantt. “But he’s really an outstanding player.”
Two of Lefko’s hits last night broke ties and sent Rowan ahead. Two of his catches broke the backs of Mocksville, which finally called it a season at 17-13.
“I’m proud of our guys, the way they battled,” said Mocksville coach Mike Lovelace. “It was a great series with lots of great plays. Rowan just capitalized more often than we did.”
Rowan (28-3) knocked Mocksville out of the playoffs for the sixth time in the last 11 years. It’s also beaten Mocksville 27 times in their last 30 meetings.
But as Gantt, Lovelace and everyone else pointed out, Rowan won the first two games in the series by a single run. And last night’s game was certainly much closer than that final scoreboard reading would lead you to believe.
“It was a lotta fun,” grinned Gantt. “Let’s just say some interesting things happened. That’s about the only way to say it. It’s just a big rivalry because the kids know each other and the teams are so close together.”
“I’m just glad this series is over,” added Lefko. “Friday’s game knocked a little wind out of them, but they still gave us a run for our money.”
Gantt started young lefty Jacob Cooper on the mound and the kid did fine. He gave up four runs in six innings, one on a first-inning wild pitch, one on Chris Seaford’s sac fly, two on a clutch two-out hit by Ricky Bentley after Rowan messed up a bunt play to give Mocksville an extra out.
A running catch and a belly-flopping diving catch by Lefko got Cooper through the sixth.
Mocksville never quit, but it was essentially all over once Gantt summoned veteran lefty Julian Sides from the bullpen in the seventh to protect a 6-4 Rowan lead.
“Julian was out there chomping at the bit to get in there,” said Gantt.
Sides (4-0) didn’t start on the mound because he’s going to start Game 1 of the next series, but when he did appear he was nothing short of spectacular, retiring all nine he faced and fanning seven.
“I felt strong,” said Sides. “I had everything working.”
The only pitch that Sides threw that didn’t work was to pinch-hitter Jeffrey Jones. The stocky Jones lit into one to start the ninth, sending it high and deep to center.
“I didn’t think he got all of it, but I’m thinking that one swing is gonna mess my whole night up,” said Sides.
Instead, Lefko didn’t mess around. He went back, back and back some more. Finally, fans heard a loud smack against the fence. At first, they thought it was the ball, as Jones pulled into second base. Moments later, they learned that the noise had been caused by Lefko banging into the fence in dead center.
Then they saw the right arm of the umpire go in the air, signifying that Lefko, prone on the ground had not only gotten to the ball, but had held on to it for one of the remarkable plays of the year.
There wasn’t a sound in the stadium for several seconds. But then a disbelieving Jones slowly trotted back to the dugout and fellow outfielders Jimbo Davis and Aaron Rimer came over to bump gloves with
Lefko, who did his best to act like it hadn’t been that big of a deal at all.
“The thing about that play was that it was totally unexpected,” said Lefko. “Nobody had been hitting Julian at all and then that big ’ol boy got him a good shot. He drilled it. The sign says 360 out there, so he hit it 360.”
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Contact Mike London at 704-797-4259 or mlondon@salisburypost.com
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