From staff and wire reports
Rowan County Little League’s 12U softball team moved a step closer to defending its Southeastern Region title on Friday — and a step closer to returning to the World Series.
Rowan routed South Carolina champ Irmo, 13-0, in a second-round game in Warner-Robins, Ga.
Taylor Walton struck out seven in three inningsbefore Kary Hales and Madleyn VonCanon pitched an inning apiece in the five-inning contest.
Walton struck out three batters in a row when South Carolina had a threat in the first inning.
Rowan scored four runs in the first inning, with Kary Hales and Ellie Wilhelm driving in runs for a 2-0 lead. Kaylin Dowling’s two-run single made it 4-0.
Ellen Yang’s run-scoring single in the second inning made it 5-0.
Errors helped Rowan move ahead 7-0 in the third.
Rowan scored six times in the fifth. Hales tripled to the fence, and Walton and Yang had doubles. VonCanon hit a three-run, inside-the-park homer to deep center.
Rowan out-hit South Carolina 15-2. Bentli Meadows, Walton, Yang, Hales, Wilhelm and VonCanon had two hits each. Allison Ennis, Tate Barger and Dowling had one hit.
Rowan won’t play again until Sunday when it takes on the Tennessee champs at 12:30 p.m.

Rowan LL 412 06 — 13 15 2
S.Carolina 000 00 — 0 2 3

Intimidators win
KANNAPOLIS — The Kannapolis Intimidators picked up a 6-4 win over the Greensboro Grasshoppers on Friday.
Antonio Rodriguez had a two-run single in Kannapolis’ four-run first inning.
The Intimidators later tacked on two runs in the second when K.J. Woods hit an RBI single and Rodriguez smacked an RBI double.

Knights lose
CHARLOTTE— Bradley Zimmer hit a run-scoring single to give the Columbus Clippers a 1-0 win over the Charlotte Knights on Friday.
Collin Cowgill scored on the play after he led off the inning with a single.

Wonder legend dies
Gary Sherrill, a tackle who was the first player from Kannapolis named to the Greensboro Daily News All-State team, died at 81 on Thursday.
Sherrill was a senior in 1952-53 at A.L. Brown High when the Wonders went 10-0 and won the SPC championship. No WNCHSAA title game was played that year.
Sherrill was named to the 1952 Shrine Bowl squad and made the All-State team that year alongside local stars such as Boyden’s Ken Owen and Landis’ Billy Barnes.
Sherrill graduated from Catawba, served in the U.S. Army and had an outstanding career as a principal and teacher in Rowan County.

College hoops
Jonathan Rucker, a 2015 Carson graduate, will play basketball this season at Pitt Community College in Greenville, N.C.
Rucker averaged 10.1 points for the Cougars as a senior when he was second-team all-county. He enjoyed 23-point outings that season against Salisbury and Central Cabarrus.
Rucker played two seasons for Carson after transferring from Northwest Cabarrus and also was a starting cornerback for the Carson football team.