ASHEBORO — Unable to even its playoff series Sunday, Hamlet Post 49 saw its 2025 season come to an end.
Battling the remnants of Tropical Storm Chantal at McCrary Park, Hamlet lost game two of its playoff series with Eastern Randolph Post 81. The final score was 11-5.
The game was finalized at the start of the bottom of the fifth inning. Head coach Chip Gordon said the Area 3 commissioner wouldn’t allow any more baseball to be played Sunday due to weather.
The two options were to end the game or play the final two and a half innings Monday. Both head coaches decided to finalize the game.
Suffering a two-game sweep, No. 2 Hamlet was upset by No. 3 Eastern Randolph in the Area 3 Conference tournament. In the two games, Post 49 was outscored 15-6.
“Obviously this wasn’t the outcome we wanted,” Gordon said. “We are a much better baseball team than the way we played our last two games. We had flashes where we played well, but we couldn’t get the clutch hits or the big outs when we needed them most.
“It was difficult to play in the rain today and that impacted pitching on both sides,” he continued. “We just made a few too many mistakes and couldn’t recover from it. But I am proud of the way the guys battled and tried to force a game three. We wish we could continue our season, but this just wasn’t our time.”
Post 81 took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning and Hamlet rallied with two runs in the top of the second frame. Trailing 4-2 entering the home half of the fourth, Post 49 allowed Eastern Randolph to score seven runs.
Hamlet, which connected for five hits in the game, scored its final three runs in the top of the fifth inning.
Starting on the mound for Hamlet was Caden Nolan (Richmond), who pitched three innings. He allowed eight earned runs on five hits, while walking five and striking out five batters.
Riley Brown (Richmond) threw the remaining inning of relief. He gave up three earned runs on a hit with three walks.
Chipping into its 3-0 deficit in the top of the second, Hamlet got on the board when Garrett Manning (Scotland) recorded a run batted in with a sacrifice fly to right field. Scoring safely from third base was Jabari Douglas (Richmond), who drew a leadoff walk.
In the next at-bat, Maddox Locklear (Richmond) barreled his second of two base hits in the game, which led Hamlet’s lineup. His line drive to right field plated Jason Walker (Richmond), who reached safely on a one-out walk.
Eastern Randolph regained a two-run lead with a sacrifice fly in the home half, making it a 4-2 deficit for Hamlet.
Hamlet loaded the bases with two away in the third inning thanks to a double by Nolan, an error on a Douglas ground ball and a walk to Collin Hill (Richmond). A ground out, however, ended the potential scoring.
Post 81 scored five of its seven runs in the fourth inning before Hamlet could record its first out. Brown replaced Nolan five batters into the inning and allowed his three runs before getting the bats back in the dugout.
Jacob Williams (Union Pines) led off the top of the fifth with a base hit to center and moved to second on a ground out. Free passes to Nolan and Douglas loaded the bases with one away, and Brown was credited with an RBI when he drew a bases-loaded walk.
Two batters later, Manning recorded his team-leading second and third RBI of the game when he ripped a two-out single on a liner to center field. Scoring were Douglas and Nolan to make it 11-5.
Brown and Manning both moved into scoring position on the relay throw. Hamlet’s comeback attempt, however, ended in the next at-bat with a fly out to right field.
During the half-inning, the umpires and coaches met and decided to end the game.
No. 2 Hamlet ended its season with an 11-8 overall record and was second in the North Pod 2 Division standings.
The Richmond Observer will post a photo gallery soon, as well as a season recap article later this month.
