SPENCER — Carson’s Caleb Martin, wearing No. 22 on his jersey, was hit by a pitch to force home run No. 22 for the Cougars.
That was appropriate because Carson played 22 different people in a 22-1 romp at North Rowan. Carson broke the 20-run barrier for the second time in school history and rolled behind unbeaten hurler John Daugherty (6-0).
The most runs the Cougars ever scored were piled up in a 24-11 win against Cox Mill in 2010, but Wednesday’s game will go into the record books as the most lopsided win in the 7-year-old school’s history.
Carson (16-3) batted around three times in the five-inning game and brought some serious focus to Spencer after having its 12-game winning streak shattered by Mount Pleasant on Monday.
“Every one of our players felt like they let themselves down Monday,” Carson coach Cauble said. “But we got back to work Tuesday and talked about getting refocused, and then we had a very good response tonight. The other side of it is North had to be a little flat coming off that big league win they had on Tuesday.”If you’re wondering what the heck 1A North Rowan is doing playing what is, by far, the county’s deepest team, well, it was no sure-fire mismatch.
Carson came into the night leading the all-time series only 6-4, and the Cavaliers had won the last two meetings and three of the last four.
North also sent Travis Holshouser (1-5) to the mound, and he threw a complete game to beat the Cougars in 2012.
“But Travis wasn’t locating, we weren’t making plays, and Carson is a really good team without a single flaw,” North coach Aaron Rimer said.
The night started with a pretty routine flyball by K.J. Pressley that fell for a single. After Dylan Carpenter bounced a single past third base and Greg Tonnesen walked, the bases were full, and a merry-go-round started. The Cougars got seven. Bryson Prugh had a two-run double, Connor Bridges doubled one in, and Pressley capped the big inning with a triple.
Chance Mazza and Clint Veal had first-inning singles for North, but the Cougars’ defense produced a double play, and that’s the last time North (7-8) had any sort of chance.
Carson, which got 20 hits, got five runs in the third, one in the fourth and tacked on nine in an ugly fifth in which North’s defense really struggled.
John Patella, who had two hits all year, got two more during Carson’s marathon fifth.
“Everyone hit well tonight, and it felt good,” Patella said. “But we can’t be satisfied.”
Daugherty agreed.

“After the loss we had Monday, practice Tuesday was very intense,” he said. “We got back to working on our hitting and hustling and diving.”
Daugherty has walked just six men all season. He pitched four more shutout innings. Blake Cauble pitched the fifth, and Jaylon Brown had an RBI single to break up the shutout.