- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 411,755
- Reaction score
- 43
Here’s a look at the top matchups on the docket this week for high school baseball and softball teams in Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties.
Crest (7-3, 4-0 Big South 3A) has won four consecutive games, sweeping two-game sets with Ashbrook and Hunter Huss in which it outscored them by a combined tally of 78-1. The Chargers are 4-0 in Big South 3A play, tied with Kings Mountain and South Point.
Competition ramps up significantly this week, taking on a Stuart Cramer (4-4, 2-2) team reeling from back-to-back losses against rival South Point. Cramer pitching was the difference last season, allowing two runs and three hits in two meetings, one of those a no-hitter.
After losing three of four games going into last week, North Gaston (5-3, 2-2 Big South 3A) rebounded with a two-game sweep of Forestview last week. The Wildcats outscored Forestview 15-1, giving them a pair of much needed wins in Big South 3A competition.
Kings Mountain (4-4, 4-0) has won four of its last five following an 0-3 start. Wesley Turner leads the Mountaineers with a .391 batting average to go with six RBIs. Just getting to the meat of its conference schedule, we’ll learn much about the Mountaineers in coming weeks.
North Lincoln (5-5, 4-0 Western Foothills 3A) has now won four in a row, a convincing sweep of rival East Lincoln on the back end. Since a March 6 loss to Asheville, the Knights have not allowed more than three runs in their last five games.
North Iredell (9-1, 4-0) has been impressive in its own right, winners of nine consecutive games. Hunter Baldwin and Thomas Shumaker provide a potent 1-2 punch, both hitting better than .400 through 10 games.
Lincoln Charter and Burns meet in a non-conference clash between NCHSAA 2A West powerhouses. The Eagles (9-1) are averaging 20.3 runs per game, tallying double-digit run totals in five of their nine victories.
Burns (10-2) has done a good job of stymieing a typically vaunted Lincoln Charter lineup the past two years, however, Colby Putnam allowing a total of three runs in those games. WIth him again likely taking the hill for Wednesday's matchup, runs could again be tough to come by.
The race for a Southern Piedmont 1A/2A softball title should again be tightly contested, four teams within a game of the league lead. Burns and Bessemer City find themselves in the running, with their two-game set this week potentially looming large.
Burns (5-3, 3-1 Southern Piedmont 1A/2A) has lost two of three following a four-game win streak. As for Bessemer City (4-4, 4-2), it snapped a three-game skid this past week by outscoring Thomas Jefferson 40-6 during their two-game series.
Crest and Kings Mountain seek a leg up in what’s expected to be a fight to the finish in their pursuit of a Big South 3A title. Kings Mountain swept the series last season, taking a pair of tightly-contested one-run games.
Hits and runs again should come at a premium, Kings Mountain and Crest sending experienced pitchers in Maddie Huffman and Aidan Ledbetter to the circle. Ledbetter begins the week with an 8-1 record, 72 strikeouts and a 0.48 ERA. Huffman has been equally impressive, off to a 4-1 start with a 0.38 ERA and 88 strikeouts.
Kings Mountain is 7-1 (5-0 Big South 3A), while Crest is 9-1 (5-0).
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: NCHSAA: What's on deck for Gastonia, Shelby area baseball, softball?
Continue reading...
Baseball
Crest-Stuart Cramer (March 25 and 29)
Crest (7-3, 4-0 Big South 3A) has won four consecutive games, sweeping two-game sets with Ashbrook and Hunter Huss in which it outscored them by a combined tally of 78-1. The Chargers are 4-0 in Big South 3A play, tied with Kings Mountain and South Point.
Competition ramps up significantly this week, taking on a Stuart Cramer (4-4, 2-2) team reeling from back-to-back losses against rival South Point. Cramer pitching was the difference last season, allowing two runs and three hits in two meetings, one of those a no-hitter.
North Gaston-Kings Mountain (March 25 and 29)
After losing three of four games going into last week, North Gaston (5-3, 2-2 Big South 3A) rebounded with a two-game sweep of Forestview last week. The Wildcats outscored Forestview 15-1, giving them a pair of much needed wins in Big South 3A competition.
Kings Mountain (4-4, 4-0) has won four of its last five following an 0-3 start. Wesley Turner leads the Mountaineers with a .391 batting average to go with six RBIs. Just getting to the meat of its conference schedule, we’ll learn much about the Mountaineers in coming weeks.
North Lincoln-North Iredell (March 25 and 29)
North Lincoln (5-5, 4-0 Western Foothills 3A) has now won four in a row, a convincing sweep of rival East Lincoln on the back end. Since a March 6 loss to Asheville, the Knights have not allowed more than three runs in their last five games.
North Iredell (9-1, 4-0) has been impressive in its own right, winners of nine consecutive games. Hunter Baldwin and Thomas Shumaker provide a potent 1-2 punch, both hitting better than .400 through 10 games.
Lincoln Charter at Burns (March 27)
Lincoln Charter and Burns meet in a non-conference clash between NCHSAA 2A West powerhouses. The Eagles (9-1) are averaging 20.3 runs per game, tallying double-digit run totals in five of their nine victories.
Burns (10-2) has done a good job of stymieing a typically vaunted Lincoln Charter lineup the past two years, however, Colby Putnam allowing a total of three runs in those games. WIth him again likely taking the hill for Wednesday's matchup, runs could again be tough to come by.
Softball
Bessemer City-Burns (March 25 and 29)
The race for a Southern Piedmont 1A/2A softball title should again be tightly contested, four teams within a game of the league lead. Burns and Bessemer City find themselves in the running, with their two-game set this week potentially looming large.
Burns (5-3, 3-1 Southern Piedmont 1A/2A) has lost two of three following a four-game win streak. As for Bessemer City (4-4, 4-2), it snapped a three-game skid this past week by outscoring Thomas Jefferson 40-6 during their two-game series.
Kings Mountain at Crest (March 29)
Crest and Kings Mountain seek a leg up in what’s expected to be a fight to the finish in their pursuit of a Big South 3A title. Kings Mountain swept the series last season, taking a pair of tightly-contested one-run games.
Hits and runs again should come at a premium, Kings Mountain and Crest sending experienced pitchers in Maddie Huffman and Aidan Ledbetter to the circle. Ledbetter begins the week with an 8-1 record, 72 strikeouts and a 0.48 ERA. Huffman has been equally impressive, off to a 4-1 start with a 0.38 ERA and 88 strikeouts.
Kings Mountain is 7-1 (5-0 Big South 3A), while Crest is 9-1 (5-0).
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: NCHSAA: What's on deck for Gastonia, Shelby area baseball, softball?
Continue reading...
