Staff report

SALISBURY — Rowan County’s American Legion team played one of its sharper games of the season on Sunday night and pummeled Concord 11-1 at Newman Park.

Rowan County (7-8, 3-1) was able to end it via the 10-run rule in five innings. Rowan started the season 2-7, but has won five of its last six games.

With the Southern Division of Area III reduced to four teams this summer, Rowan only will play nine games that count in the division standings. That’s three games each against Concord, Kannapolis and Mocksville.

Only the top two teams in the division will make the Area III playoffs.

Kannapolis (7-6, 2-2) and Mocksville (6-8, 2-1) have split two tight division games already. Their third meeting will be critical and is coming up at Kannapolis on Tuesday.

Rowan has prevailed easily in two league games against Concord and won a close one against Kannapolis, but Rowan lost a division game with Mocksville.

Kannapolis owns one win against Concord that counted in the standings, so they’ll play two more times.

Mocksville and Concord still have all three of their meetings left on the schedule. Those programs will square off three times in eight days.

Concord stroked the ball well in the top of the first against Rowan pitcher Drew Burton (2-1), getting three solid hits, but Burton limited the damage to one run.

Then Rowan scored four runs in the bottom of the first to take charge. Rowan showed the most power it has so far this season with doubles by Logan Dyer, Matthew Connolly and Luke Graham. Those doubles produced Rowan’s first two runs. Wild pitches got two more home.

Burton walked two batters in the top of the second, but helped himself by making a nice fielding play on a ball hit back up the middle and turning it into the third out.

In the top of the third, Krys Hernandez, playing second base for Rowan, gloved a hot shot to end the inning.

Burton singled home a run in the bottom of third to make it 5-1.

Rowan blew it open with a five-run fourth that included four singles, a hit batsman, three walks and Connolly’s sacrifice fly.

Graham singled home Dyer in the bottom of the fifth for Rowan’s 11th run and ended it early.

Dyer scored three runs, while Graham, Elijah Palmer and Nate Hayworth scored two each.

Connolly and Graham drove in two apiece. Everyone in the lineup had a hit or a walk.

Rowan plays Wadesboro at home on Tuesday. The Kannapolis game on Wednesday at Newman Park counts in the division standings and will be one of the key games of the regular season.

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Kannapolis clobbered Davidson County 12-2 at home on Sunday.

Colin McKissick was the winning pitcher for Post 115.

Zach Helms homered. Aaron Jones and Wade Turner had two hits each.