FAYETTEVILLE — The Richmond Senior High School baseball team continued to feed its winning streak Wednesday, taking both games of a doubleheader against Seventy-First High School.
The Raiders squeezed together Tuesday’s rain out and Friday’s anticipated rain out, and outscored the Falcons 26-0 in eight total innings of play. The first game was a three-inning mercy-rule victory, followed by a five-inning run-rule win in the finale.
WIth the pair of wins, Richmond (15-3, 11-1 Sandhills Athletic Conference) won its 10th and 11th consecutive games. The Raiders also took sole possession of first place in the standings thanks to Jack Britt High School’s 9-5 win over now second place Pinecrest High School.
Junior southpaw Luke Preslar earned two wins on the night, throwing every pitch in both games. It was the first two wins of his season, as he threw just 80 total pitches (28 in Game 1). He also collected 10 strikeouts on the night.
“Luke was able to keep his pitch count low, so we let him go,” head coach Ricky Young said. “He continued to throw good pitches. He hadn’t pitched a lot this season, so it was good to get him some more experience.”
GAME 1: Raiders rout Seventy-First in three innings
The Raiders scored seven runs in the top of the first inning and added 10 runs in the second frame to jump out to a fast start. To cap the Game 1 win, Richmond used a solo run in the third inning to roll to an 18-0 victory.
Five first-inning walks got things started, as senior Garet Weigman was able to connect for a two-RBI double to score teammates Jake Ransom (hit-by-pitch) and Cameron Carraway (single).
A mixture of an error, a wild pitch and two passed balls allowed Richmond to add four runs to its lead, and senior Nolan Allen recorded an RBI single to right field to score Preslar.
The Raiders scattered 11 hits through the three innings, with eight players recording at least one. Allen, Carraway and Preslar each had two, as Weigman and Logan Moore each slapped a double.
In the second inning, Carraway had an RBI single to left field, and later scored on a passed ball. Weigman would steal home, senior Garret Richardson scored on an error and junior Dallas Cowick scored Preslar on an RBI single.
A Brett Young ground out scored Hunter Parris, while Moore’s double to left field brought in Allen. An error, a Preslar single and a Dawson Bryant bases-loaded walk capped the inning.
Junior Blake Hall hit an RBI single to center field in the third to end the scoring. Preslar faced just nine batters, and allowed only one hit in the game (that runner was picked off trying to stretch it to second).
Weigman had a game-high two RBIs, while eight other Raiders recorded one apiece.
GAME 2: Carraway, Preslar combine for four RBIs for second win
A pair of four-run innings was the difference maker in the second game, as the Raiders won 8-0 in five innings. Preslar went the distance again, throwing 52 pitches and recording seven strikeouts.
He and Carraway each tallied two RBIs apiece, while Ransom and Richardson each had one. Carraway blasted a two-run shot in the bottom of the first inning (Richmond was the home team in Game 2) for his second homer of the spring.
Preslar’s two RBIs would come via a two-run double down the left-field line in the bottom of the third, scoring Carraway (walk) and Richardson (error). Courtesy runner Jahan Jones would score in Preslar’s place following an error at third base.
In the two games, Richmond drew 14 walks and was hit by a pitch five times.
“We just wanted to stay focused and play the game the right way,” Young said. “The focus was on getting ready for tomorrow (Charlotte Christian).
“All year we’ve wanted to focus on ourselves and play the game we want to play,” he added on taking first place in the standings. “We don’t want to focus on other teams — if we did that, it would work out.”
The Raiders will face a tough Charlotte Christian team Thursday on the road. The Knights are 14-4, with first pitch set for 7 p.m.
