LANDIS— On a hot, humid night, the starting pitchers for South Rowan and Mocksville-Davie weren’t expected to go the distance.
South’s Andrew Morgan baffled Mocksville for 5 1/3 innings, striking out nine. Travis Allen, returning from injury, also pitched well. Both headed for the bench after allowing two runs and waited to see what followed their no-decisions.
The starters may have been even, but the battle of the bullpens went to Mocksville on Tuesday night. A pair of relievers allowed just four hits over the final five innings and Mocksville exploded for six runs in the seventh inning to win 11-3. The team’s fifth-straight victory evened its Southern Division record at 3-3 and improved its overall American Legion mark to 7-4.
“The relief pitching was outstanding,”Mocksville-Davie head coach Mike Lovelace said. “The pitching’s been there and tonight the guys came out and swung well. This was the first game we had double-digit hits — our team batting average is .250.”
Mocksville pounded out 11 hits, but got just four off Morgan. The rising junior from South Rowan High surrendered a first-inning run on a groundout and an unearned tally in the sixth on a passed ball.
When Morgan walked Joseph Brewer in the sixth inning, South head coach Allen Wilson trotted to the mound to talk to his starter.
“He just got tired,”Wilson said. “I walked out there thinking Imight leave him in and I asked, ‘How tired are you?’ He said, ‘I’m beat, Coach.’ ”
Jared Hinson got South out of the sixth inning, but Brad Bullard blooped a single and Ricky Bentley walked with one out in the seventh to force Wilson to the mound again.
He called on Tim Cook to face the heart of the Mocksville order. Andrew Daywalt drilled a run-scoring double to left to make it 3-2. Following an intentional walk and a strikeout, Brewer stepped in and blasted a shot over third base that rolled into the corner.
Bentley and Daywalt scored easily, and Casey Stanley raced around from first just ahead of the throw to put Mocksville up 6-2.
“Morgan did a tremendous job for them. He had our guys in a mess,”Lovelace said. “We hung in there and Brewer’s hit blew it open for us.”
Chris Seaford added a little insurance when he lifted a 1-0 pitch over the left-field fence to plate the frame’s sixth run and end Cook’s night.
“Cook has been slamming the door for us,”Wilson said. “They came up hacking. They did their job. When we had runners in scoring position we haven’t had that double to the gap, the triple into the corner.”
South (2-8 overall, 1-6 Southern Division) stranded nine runners. Allen pitched out of trouble in the second inning, allowing three hits and a walk but surrendering just one run on a groundout.
After a 1-2-3 third, Allen again found trouble when Aaron Safrit singled, Greg Deal walked and Justin Miller got hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Catcher Justin Pinyan walked on five pitches to force home South’s second run when Lovelace called on Ryan Weavil to end the threat. Leadoff man Matt Morgan made solid contact, but his liner headed right to Brewer in left field to strand three.
Weavil worked the next three innings and allowed just two hits, then gave way to Adam Richardson in the eighth and ninth.
South scratched for another run in the eighth on a groundout, then watched Mocksville tack on three in the top of the ninth on Brewer’s double and a Charlie Ross single that went for three bases — and two runs — when his liner to right was misplayed.
“I hate that we wasted Morgan’s effort. We got up 2-1 and we coasted,”Wilson said. “We were happy to be up instead of trying to make it 8-1.”
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NOTES:The game was delayed 10 minutes in the ninth inning when the light stanchions in right and right-center went dark. Both coaches finally decided the play on in the semi-darkness, and in another few minutes the lights blinked back on. … South lost pitcher and third baseman Jeremy Teague for a week after he turned an ankle in practice Monday. … South returns to action tonight at Concord, Friday at home for a non-league makeup against Montgomery County and Saturday for a rematch at Mocksville. … Davie plays host to Rowan County tonight.
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Contact Steve Hanf at 704-797-4287 or shanf@salisburypost.com
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