ROCKINGHAM – Pinecrest High School’s varsity baseball team managed to turn eight hits into seven runs in Thursday night’s showdown with Richmond at Raider Field.
Richmond matched the Patriots’ hit count with eight, but failed to plate a single runner resulting in a 7-0 home loss.
Richmond (4-3, 3-1 SAC) and Pinecrest (5-2, 3-1 SAC) have now split their regular season meetings for four consecutive seasons.
Pinecrest senior Bryce Calcutt lit up the scoreboard first. The Patriot designated hitter’s two-run shot over the right field wall in the third inning gave the Patriots a 2-0 lead.
The Raiders managed to put at least one runner on base in six of the seven innings, but the closest they were able to get to scoring was third base. Their biggest opportunity came in the bottom of the fourth inning.
With Richmond still only trailing by two, Cameron Carraway (double), Hunter Parris (single) and Luke Preslar (walk) loaded the bases with two outs on the board. Jahan Jones, who made several big plays in center field, went down swinging to end Richmond’s threat.
That shifted all of the momentum back to Pinecrest, which added five more runs in the next two innings to put the game away.
Carraway (1-2) allowed four runs on five hits, walked three, and struck out four in his 5.2 innings on the mound. Evan Hudson pitched 1.1 innings, surrendering three runs on three hits and recording a single strikeout.
Nygie Stoman gave the Raider fans something to cheer about in the top of the seventh inning. The sophomore lefty retired the Patriots in order (all strikeouts).
Tyler Bass was the only Raider to find success at the plate. The senior hit two singles and drew a walk. Jake Ransom, Carraway, Garet Weigman, Garret Richardson, Parris and Preslar all recorded a single hit.
The Richmond-Pinecrest split coupled with Jack Britt’s loss to Scotland on Wednesday erased any hope of any Sandhills Athletic Conference team finishing with an undefeated conference record. Only two weeks in, the traditionally top-heavy region is proving once again to be one of the most competitive in the state.
Richmond, Pinecrest and Hoke County all sit at the top of the SAC standings with a 3-1 record. Jack Britt (2-1) has not yet played its fourth game due to postponements caused by weather.
The Raiders will return to the diamond next Tuesday when they play host to Jack Britt. Game time set for 7 p.m.
