By Mike London

mike.london@salisburypost.com

MOCKSVILLE — Bryson Wagner’s first win of the summer was worth the wait.

Wagner dominated on the mound for six innings at Mando Field — no runs, two hits, two walks, seven strikeouts — and led Rowan County to a 6-1 NC3 baseball win against Mocksville.

Wagner struck out four in the first two innings and kept getting stronger. He fired a lot of fastballs past hitters.

Rowan (18-6, 9-4) still had a difficult time pulling away from Mocksville (9-12, 6-9) because Mocksville hurler Troy Clary refused to walk anyone. He worked around errors, escaped jams and kept his team in the game for a long time.

Rowan was still clinging to a meager 1-0 lead after five innings. It was 3-0 after seven. Rowan finally managed some breathing room with a three-run eighth. Mocksville got on the board in the ninth with the help of two Rowan miscues.

Everyone in the Rowan lineup had at least one hit. Cole Hales led the way with three hits, including two loud doubles. Charlie Klingler, Logan Rogers, Jake Harris and CP Pyle got two hits each.

Hales doubled and scored on an error in the fourth for a 1-0 Rowan lead.

In the sixth, Ryan Street got an infield hit with two men out. Zeb Burns bunted for a hit, and Klingler’s single gave Wagner a 2-0 cushion.

A dropped flyball presented a scoring opportunity, and Goodine’s RBI groundout gave Rowan a 3-0 lead in the seventh.

Rowan finally knocked out Clary in the eighth when Klingler’s RBI double made it 4-0. Mize, the last Rowan starter to get a hit, singled sharply past third base to make it 5-0. Logan Rogers’ single pushed the lead to 6-0.

Clary was charged with five runs, but only two were earned.

Scout Nichols pitched the seventh, eighth and ninth for Rowan to earn a save. Nichols was aided by a double play in the eighth and another twin killing in the ninth that ended the game.

Rowan out-hit the home team, 15-5, but Rowan stranded 12 baserunners.

Center fielder Pyle made several good catches to help Rowan’s hurlers.

Catawba signee Aaron Williams had two hits for Mocksville.

Rowan is off Thursday and is home for a doubleheader Friday against Union County.

 

Rowan            001   001  130  — 6  15  3

Mocksville    000  000 001   — 1   5    5

W — Rogers (1-0). L — Clary. S — Nichols (1).

HR — None.

Leading hitters — Rowan: Hales 3-for-5; Jake Harris 2-for-4; Klingler 2-for-5, 2 RBIs; Rogers 2-for-5; Pyle 2-for-5. Mocksville: Williams 2-for-4.

•••

DOBSON — Rowan was fortunate to win 8-3 in 10 innings at last-place Mount Airy on Tuesday.

Rowan had mauled Mount Airy 15-0, 11-1 and 10-0 in three previous meetings, but the winless home team got outstanding pitching on Tuesday and nearly pulled off an unthinkable upset.  It was 2-all at the end of regulation.

Rowan pitchers Ryan Street, Daniel Sell and winner Cole Hales, who pitched the last three innings, combined for 16 strikeouts, but Mount Airy outfielder Tristan Harless threw out two runners at the plate and made it anyone’s game for a long time.

Rowan’s Street and Mount Airy’s Reece McDuffie were the starting pitchers. They’d also matched up recently in a 10-0 league game at Newman Park.

Street, who struck out eight in six innings, was superb again. This time, McDuffie was, as well. His breaking ball was much sharper than in his earlier encounters with Rowan hitters.

Rowan trailed 2-1 until it scored a run on an error in the seventh against reliever Logan Dowell.

Mize had two key hits for Rowan, with a run-scoring single in the first and a go-ahead single in the top of the 10th after international rules were employed. Teams started the 10th with a runner at second base.

 

Rowan             100  000  100  6   — 8   9   3

Mount Airy     002  000  000 1   — 3   8    5

W — Hales (1-0). L — Dowell.

HR — None.

Leading hitters — Rowan: Mize 2-for-5, 2 RBIs. Mount Airy: McDuffie 2-for-5; Brandon Goins 2-for-5.