From staff and wire reports

Catawba’s baseball team clinched a tie for first place in the SAC by winning 7-1 at Mars Hill on Sunday.

The Indians (33-9, 21-5) took two out of three from the Lions. Catawba now holds a three-game lead over second-place Newberry. Catawba closes regular-season SAC play this weekend at home with three games against third-place Tusculum.

Blake Houston put the Indians ahead 1-0 with a solo homer in the fourth.

T.J. Wharton’s opposite-field grand slam was the key blow for the Indians. It came in the sixth after hits by Nick Williams and Houston and an intentional walk to Will Albertson.

Willams and Craig Brooks drove home insurance runs. Luke Setzer had a triple.

Connor Johnson (5-0) fanned seven and was the winning pitcher. He lasted into the sixth. Avery Bowles got the Indians out  of a jam in the sixth. Ryan McClintock pitched the ninth.

  • Lenoir-Rhyne’s Chase Hathcock (East Rowan) had two hits and four RBIs in an 11-8 win against Anderson on Sunday.

• Guilford’s Avery Rogers (East Rowan) earned  the win in a 10-5 victory against Eastern Mennonite on Sunday.

Rogers struck out seven and pitched 7 2/3 innings. He walked two and allowed four earned runs.

Nathan Fulbright (East Rowan) was Rogers’ catcher. He went 1-for-3 at the plate and scored a run.

Intimidators win

Thad Lowry pitched six shutout innings as the Kannapolis Intimidators won 8-0 at Lakewood on Sunday.

Brad Salgado pitched three scoreless innings.

The Intimidators (2-2) erupted for five runs in the third inning.

  

College softball

J.C. Smith won 9-0 and 18-0 in a CIAA doubleheader against Livingstone.

The teams played on Sunday at Jaycee Optimist Park in Salisbury.

College tennis

Catawba’s men’s tennis team finished the season on a positive note by defeating Brevard 8-1 on Saturday at Johnson Tennis Center.

Catawba’s men finished  14-10 overall and 4-7 in the SAC.

Catawba’s women  also won 8-1 against Brevard. They finished 11-12 overall and 2-9 in the league.

College football

Michael Church (A.L. Brown) had a good Spring Game Saturday for Coastal Carolina.

Church was 8-for-14 passing for 92 yards, including a 36-yard TD.

College golf

Catawba’s women’s golf team shot 333 to open play at the SAC Women’s Golf Championships on Sunday at the par-72 River Course of the Sevierville Golf Club.

Catawba is sixth after the first day of the three-round event.

Newberry holds the first round lead after posting a score of 310.

Alexis Kershaw shot 81 to lead the Indians. Anthea Gnielinski shot 82, and Madison Kennedy (Salisbury) shot 83.

Newberry’s Karly Mims and Grace Glaze, of Queens shot 74s to lead the tournament.

•  In the  Irish Creek Intercollegiate in Kannapolis, South Florida shot 1-over to win the three-round event.

   East Carolina placed fourth and Charlotte fifth.

Three golfers tied for first at 208.

UNC Greensboro’s Roy Dixon (Salisbury) shot 72-74-72 — 218 and tied for 28th.

Davidson’s Alex Nianouris (Salisbury) shot 79-84-81 — 244.

Sandhills Community College’s Alex Austin (Salisbury) shot 87-84-83 — 254.

Mocksville Legion

Mocksville-Davie American Legion baseball registration and a parents meeting will be held on Sunday, April 19, at 5 p.m. at Rich Park’s Mando Field.

Players should bring a certified birth certificate.

Opening night in May 17.

Contact Charles Kurfees at 336-940-7503 for information.

West Junior Legion

West Rowan Junior Legion baseball is holding sign-ups on Saturday, April 18,  at 4 p.m. at West Rowan High School in the Media Center.

Players need to bring a certified birth certificate to the meeting, and at least one parent needs to attend to sign medical forms.

Contact Jeff Link 704-310-6529 or Jeff Bernhardt 704-267-1146 for more information.

Junior Legion  is for players born on January 1, 1998, or later.

Prep track

The Rowan County Championships will be held  at East Rowan on Tuesday afternoon.

Prep baseball

The South Piedmont Conference teams will be playing Monday, Wednesday and Friday this week.

Key games Monday include Concord at East Rowan and West Rowan at South Rowan.

• North Rowan has a big CCC matchup for first place against West Davidson on Tuesday.

MLB: Yanks beat Sox

NEW YORK  — Alex Rodriguez had a three-run double in a seven-run first-inning outburst, and the New York Yankees broke out the bats and avoided their worst start in more than 25 years with a 14-4 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Sunday night.

Chase Headley and Stephen Drew had consecutive homers as a New York lineup that entered hitting .193 throttled Clay Buchholz (1-1) to avoid a three-game sweep and win for just the second time in six games.

Masahiro Tanaka survived one wild stretch to earn his first victory  with five solid innings