From staff reports

MOUNT ULLA — It was one of the scratchiest runs of all-time, but West Rowan’s baseball team will take it.

Elijah Palmer scored on a passed ball to give the Falcons a 3-2 walk-off win against Carson on Tuesday.

West’s two-out rally in the seventh consisted of a hit batsman, an error and a walk to set up that game-winning scenario.

The narrow victory kept West tied for first in the South Piedmont Conference with South Rowan and East Rowan with 8-1 league records.

South pulled away from Northwest Cabarrus for an 8-2 victory on Tuesday, while East Rowan won 11-0 against Concord.

Casey Gouge started on the mound for the Falcons and struck out 10 in five innings.

Drew Burton (2-0) was sharp in the sixth and seventh and earned the victory.

Mikey Beasley pitched four innings for Carson and gave the Cougars a chance. Big lefty Casey Crawford was dominant with seven strikeouts in relief, but took a tough loss.

Luke Graham’s RBI single put West up 1-0 early.

Carson had a chance for a huge fourth inning with four straight hits. Pinch-hitter Samuel Safrit delivered the fourth hit and knocked in a run, but Gouge got out of a bases-loaded, no outs situation, and kept the game at 1-all.

Matthew Connolly’s double led to a go-ahead run for the Falcons. Carson got that run back in the fifth on hits by Hayden Simmerson and Jacob Efird.

The teams will play Wednesday night at Carson in a game moved up by weather concerns.

Concord at East and South at Northwest Cabarrus also have been moved up to Wednesday night.

• The South-Northwest game was tight for four innings, but the Raiders had a four-run fifth that featured a two-run homer by Haiden Leffew.

Jacob Ritchie’s two-run single in the fifth made it 4-1 Raiders before Leffew hit his second homer of the season.

Leffew knocked in four runs.

Ty Hubbard, playing against a team coached by his father,, Joe Hubbard, had a two-run double in the sixth.

Leffew (5-1) pitched six strong innings, striking out 11, walking two and holding the Trojans to two hits.

• East’s Cameron Padgett locked up Concord hitters for six innings and registered his county-leading seventh win of the season. Dylan Valley pitched the seventh.

It took East’s offense a while to get going — East didn’t score until the third in that 11-0 win at Concord.

The Mustangs got a homer and double from Aiden Schenck, a triple from Cobb Hightower and a double by Tristan Miller.

Austin Fulk. Griffin Warden and Padgett had two hits each.

•••

Gavin Trantham shut down North Rowan hitters in West Davidson’s 15-0 Central Carolina Conference win against North Rowan on Tuesday.

Clay Hunt scored four runs for the Green Dragons, while Lucas Greene drove in four. Trey Johnson had the only hit for North.

•••

Salisbury pummeled Lexington 18-2 for a CCC victory on Tuesday.

Jackson Sparger got credit for the win.

Kaleb Burleyson went 4-for-4, with four runs scored and four RBIs.

Cole Price had two hits and three RBIs, as did Evan Koontz.

Hank Webb scored three runs.

•••

There were some extra-inning games in the Greater Metro Conference, with Mooresville topping A.L. Brown 16-3, yes, 16-3, in 10 innings and Hickory Ridge edging Cox Mill 4-3 in eight.

 

SOFTBALL

Emma Clarke had a double and a triple as West Rowan pounded Lake Norman Charter 14-1 on Tuesday in South Piedmont Conference action.

Clarke scored three and knocked in two.

Karsen Simpson drove in three runs.

Arabelle Shulenberger doubled, tripled and drove in three runs.

Shulenberger and Carmen Freeze share pitching duties.

•••

Lexie Ritchie threw a one-hitter with five strikeouts as South Rowan beat Concord 10-0.

Kynlee Dextraze had a triple and knocked in two runs.

Ritchie scored three. Carmen Thomas drove in three.

•••

East Rowan lost to SPC-leading Central Cabarrus 2-1 on an eighth-inning homer.

Eleni Miller pitched brilliantly for the Mustangs, who also had one of their best defensive games.

There were only seven hits in the game, and both teams made diving plays.

•••

Carson clobbered SPC opponent Northwest Cabarrus 13-1, with Lonna Addison racking up a dozen strikeouts in five innings.

Landry Stewart had four runs scored and three RBIs, while Catawba recruit Allie Burns had three hits and four RBIs.

Cora Atwell went 2-for-3. Lenoir-Rhyne recruit Abbey Nixon drove in two runs.

•••

In the Central Carolina Conference, West Davidson outscored Salisbury 16-8.

Ashley Yang had two doubles, a triple and four RBIs for the Hornets.

Katie Peeler went 2-for-3. She scored three and knocked in two.