Robinson 11, South Rowan 1

Miles

By Mike London

mlondon@salisburypost.com

CONCORD — The good news for South Rowan baseball fans was that the game was nonconference and the misery lasted only 90 minutes.

If South coach Thad Chrismon got paid $2 per frown, he would have been a millionaire by the end of a windy 11-1 loss at Jay M. Robinson on Monday.

Yes, that's the same Robinson that scored one run in two games against A.L. Brown last week.

"I really thought this kind of performance was behind us," Chrismon said. "It's like we thought we could just throw our gloves out there and win. We didn't show up, and that's not meant to take anything at all away from Robinson. They came prepared to play and they outhit us, outpitched us and outplayed us."

South (4-2) looked like the team that lost its last nine games in 2009, not the club that opened this season in strong fashion.

Things started fine for the Raiders. Hitting with two out and the bases empty in the first inning, Maverick Miles launched a changeup over the left-field fence for his second homer of the season.

"I knew Miles' name because (Northwest Cabarrus coach) Joe Hubbard and (A.L. Brown coach) Empsy Thompson are always talking about him as one of the best hitters in our area," Robinson coach Jason Sarvis said. "From what I saw from him today for two at-bats, I like him. He's the real deal. We made a mistake to him on a changeup that got up, and a very good hitter made us pay. But that's the only mistake our guy made."

Sarvis' guy was right-hander Tyler Sciaudone — pronounced Sha-do-nay.

Sciaudone cruised through South's lineup. He allowed two hits, struck out six, didn't walk anyone and faced only 20 batters in the six-inning game. Robinson fielders cheerfully handled one routine play after another, mostly weak groundballs.

The only ball stung by a Raider other than the homer was Miles' liner to the right fielder in the fourth. Jacob Dietz beat out an infield single leading off the sixth for South's other hit.

Preston Penninger (2-1) was on the mound for South and couldn't have gotten in trouble any quicker. Robinson leadoff man Thomas Emery hammered Penninger's first pitch out of the park to answer Miles' homer, and the Bulldogs (2-4) grabbed a 2-1 lead when Daniel Federici doubled and came around to score on two infield outs.

"Emery's our leader, and usually as he goes, we go," Sarvis said. "That homer on the first pitch was big."

Penninger had a strong second inning — 1-2-3 with two strikeouts — and made it through the third unscathed with the help of a diving catch in center field by Blake Houston.

But a two-out bunt single by No. 9 hitter Justin Lee keyed three Robinson runs in the fourth and broke open a tight contest.

South didn't make some tough defensive plays it's been making in the fifth, and the Bulldogs took advantage with a five-run frame that made it a blowout. Sciaudone ripped a two-run triple that scooted past Houston to make it 8-1, and Corbin Cochran capped the big inning with a two-run homer.

Miles would have led off the seventh, but he didn't get a chance. Logan Austin ended the game with a sac fly for the 10-run rule in the Robinson sixth. South left fielder Clay Lewis made a nice catch, but he had no shot at getting the runner tagging from third.

"It's the first time we didn't come to play as hard as we could," Chrismon said. "And the beauty of baseball is whoever plays the best on that particular day wins. It doesn't matter what it says on paper."

Another beauty of baseball is a team doesn't have to wait a week to get redemption. South gets right back out there today — at home against Salisbury.

"I expect us to come roaring out of the box," Chrismon said. "We'd better."

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NOTES: Tyler Corriher pitched the sixth for South. ... Sophomore Matt Miller (1-1) will face the Hornets, with lefty Dylan Walker (1-0) set to work against West Iredell in Friday's NPC game. ... Sarvis was a star for the Kannapolis Legion team in the late 1990s. ... Robinson's Chris Caldwell was a batboy for South Rowan and Concord American Legion teams. His primary sport is track, and he contributes to the baseball team with speed.