Staff report

GIBSONVILLE — Rowan County’s American Legion team can rest for the next two days, mostly because Wayne Mize’s bat rarely does.

Mize belted three extra-base hits, scored three runs and drove in three runs to lead Rowan to a 6-1 win at Greensboro on Saturday night. That victory gave Rowan a 2-0 sweep of the first-round series. Greensboro closed up shop with a 6-14 record.

Round 2 will be tougher. Rowan (22-10) starts it on the road at Davidson County (14-7) on Tuesday. Runner-up in the Northern Division of Area III, Davidson Post 8 will host Rowan at home in Game 1 on Tuesday. Game 2 will be at Newman Park on Wednesday.

Rowan County starting pitcher Daniel Durham (3-0) allowed quite a few hard-hit balls — there were five line-drive outs and several deep fly balls — but he was effective again, mostly because he rarely walks anybody. For the season, the lefty has struck out 27, while walking four. A Catawba signee, Durham is 7-1 in two seasons of Legion baseball, so he’s doing a lot of things right.

Greensboro left-hander Brandon Leonard was stellar for the first three innings of a scoreless game, but Rowan broke through for two runs in the fourth to take control. Bo Rusher hit a hard ground ball off the first baseman’s glove to start the inning. Mize’s run-scoring double put Rowan on top. After Chandler Lippard singled Mize over to third, Luke Barringer’s single gave Rowan a 2-0 lead.

An error in the bottom of the fourth extended the inning for Greensboro, and Post 53 scored an unearned run against Durham on Jonathan Todd’s two-out single to cut Rowan’s advantage to 2-1.

Rowan made it 3-1 in the sixth when Mize opened the inning with a double. He scored on an error on CP Pyle’s ground ball.

In the bottom of the sixth, after two loud outs started the inning and with Cameron Edmonds, who was 2-for-2 against Durham coming to the plate, Rowan turned to the bullpen. Scout Nichols entered and struck out Edmonds.

It was still tense until the top of the seventh, but that’s when Rowan tacked on three runs against Greensboro’s bullpen to provide some breathing room. Cole Hales singled. Rusher walked. Mize, who is batting .449 for the summer, smashed another one off the wall to score both runners and lift his RBI total to 44. After Lippard was hit by a pitch for the second time, Barringer’s sacrifice fly plated Mize and made it 6-1. Barringer, who missed the first eight Legion games during Carson’s playoff run, is second on the team with 25 RBIs.

Hales pitched the seventh to finish off the game and the series.

 

Rowan  County    000  201   3   — 6   6   0

Greensboro           000  100   0 — 1     6   3

W — Durham (3-0). L — Leonard.

HR —  None.

Leading hittters  —  Rowan: Mize 3-for-4, 3 RBIs; Barringer 1-for-3, 2 RBIs. Greensboro: Edmonds 2-for-3; Todd 2-for-3, RBI.

 

 

 

 

 

Rowan 6, Greensboro 1

Game 2, at Eastern Guilford High

Rowan Greensboro

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Hales 3b-p 4 1 1 0 Kolessar cf 3 0 0 0

Rusher c 3 2 0 0 Weber lf 3 0 0 0

Mize lf-1b 4 3 3 3 Dilday ss 3 1 1 0

Lippard 1b 2 0 1 0 Edmnds 1b 3 0 2 0

Barringer rf 3 0 1 2 Donnell 3b 3 0 0 0

Goodine dh 3 0 0 0 Todd c 3 0 2 1

Pyle cf 3 0 0 0 Brown dh 3 0 0 0

Burns ss 3 0 0 0 Brady rf 3 0 1 0

Smith 2b 3 0 0 0 Nichols 2b 2 0 0 0

DDurham p 0 0 0 0 Leonard p 0 0 0 0

Nichols p 0 0 0 0 Bognar pr 0 0 0 0

Sell lf 0 0 0 0

Wagner 3b 0 0 0 0

Totals 28 6 6 5 Totals 26 1 6 1

Rowan County 000 201 3  — 6

Greensboro 000 100 0 —  1

E— Smith, Dilday, Donnell, Edmonds.  LOB —Rowan 5, Greensboro 4. 2B — Mize 3.  SB — Goodine, Pyle. CS — Sell. S — Donnell.

IP H R ER BB SO

Rowan County

DDurham W, 3-0 5.2 5 1 1 0 3

Nichols .1 0 0 0 0 1

Hales 1 1 x x x 1

Greensboro

Leonard 5 4 3 1 0 3

Stanley 2 2 3 3 1 1

  Leonard pitched to 2 batters in the 6th.

  WP — Leonard. HBP — by Leonard (Lippard), by  Stanly (Lippard).