Staff report

CHINA GROVE — It wasn’t a great situation for Carson’s baseball team, taking on a very good 4A squad between two conference meetings with East Rowan.

Carson’s bats stayed quiet in a 7-0 loss to Hickory Ridge (10-3) on Thursday.

Sam Alessi pitched six innings for the Bulls and held Carson to one hit. Carson (5-6) got three hits in the seventh against the HR bullpen, but still didn’t score.

Austin Efird, Will Bradshaw, Daxton Savage and Emory Taylor had hits for the Cougars.

Taylor started on the mound. Walks got him in trouble in the third inning and he took the loss. Savage and Ben Grubbs also pitched for the Cougars.

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South Rowan and Lake Norman Charter split their South Piedmont Conference series.

The Raiders pulled out a 3-2 win in eight hotly contested innings on Wednesday in Huntersville in a game moved back by weather.

Lake Norman Charter won 4-2 at South on Thursday in a game moved up by more weather concerns.

South (6-6, 4-2) scored twice in the sixth to tie Thursday’s game, but Lake Norman Charter (7-5, 3-3) scored two in the top of the seventh.

Jacob Dudan, an N.C. State recruit who has been clocked at 92 mph, struck out 11 in five innings for LNC on Thursday.

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East Davidson battered North Rowan 11-1 on Thursday in a game moved up weather concerns.

Tripp Beck had a strong start on the mound for the Golden Eagles (7-3, 3-0). North is 2-5 overall and 1-4 in the Central Carolina Conference.

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A.L. Brown lost to East Meck 6-4 on Thursday.

Scheduled for Friday: Central Cabarrus vs. West Rowan. Carson at East Rowan. Concord at Northwest Cabarrus. South Davidson at Salisbury.

The Northwest Cabarrus-Concord game has been moved up to the afternoon.