Staff report

SALISBURY — You have to get back on the horse, and Morgan Padgett did.

Padgett was roughed up for six hits in the seventh inning in a Sunday afternoon relief effort, but with the help of a double play was able to close out an 8-4 win against Cleveland County before anything disastrous happened.

Rowan County American Legion coaches gave Padgett a chance to get right back on the mound on Tuesday as the starting pitcher and he was a different guy. The UNC Pembroke signee turned in a sharp outing, five shutout innings, as Rowan smashed Davidson County 10-0 at Newman Park. Padgett struck out five, walked none and allowed two hits.

Padgett (2-1) looked a lot more like the pitcher who won a county-leading eight games during his high school season with East Rowan. Padgett was good. He won even more high school games than East teammate Chance Mako and Legion teammates Hayden Simmerson and Corbin Bailey.

Matthew Connolly pitched a low-stress sixth.

JT Taylor had a two-run double and scored three runs. He leads the team with 10 doubles, 31 RBIs and 35 runs scored.

Luke Graham is a hot hitter and had a two-run single in the first inning. Padgett helped himself with a two-run double in the second.

Blake Hill collected his 24th and 25th RBIs with a sacrifice fly and a bases-loaded HBP. That HBP ended the game in the bottom of the sixth via the 10-run rule.

Cole Johnson and Cameron Burleyson scored two runs each. No. 9 hitter Burleyson walked three times in a row to get Rowan back to Taylor at the top of the lineup.

Rowan (25-3, 5-0) only had five hits, but got them at good times, and Davidson County handed Rowan a ton of free baserunners with 11 walks, two HBPs and three errors.

Rowan will try to keep its latest winning streak going on Wednesday when it plays Mocksville in a division game at Rich Park.

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• Randolph County lost its second game of the season on Tuesday, falling 8-5 to High Point.

• Kannapolis scored eight runs in the fifth inning and beat Concord 14-6 on Tuesday.

Joe Javier drove in four runs for Post 115.

Daniel Savage, Jalan Chambers, Zack Helms, Brett Morris and Jaden Johnson had two hits each.

Chambers was the winning pitcher in relief.