Southern Alamance wins third game in 3-A baseball championship

Posted Saturday, June 4, 2005

 E-mail this page    Printer-friendly page

Raleigh - Southern Alamance took any doubt away early, exploding for eight runs in the opening inning and coasting to a 10-0 victory over Northwest Cabarrus on Saturday night to clinch the championship in the third and final game of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state 3-A baseball championship series at Doak Field on the N.C. State campus.

The game was called due to the 10-run rule.

Northwest Cabarrus had forced a third game with a 5-1 victory earlier on Saturday afternoon, while Southern had won the opening contest Friday night 5-3.

The Patriots got two-RBI hits from Brad Thornburg and Michael Parker in the first inning of the decisive game and never looked back. Johnathan Shields and Roy Albright also drove in runs in the opening frame with base hits.

Brent Haynes was named the Most Valuable Player of the championship series. The junior pitcher-third baseman pitched a complete game victory in the opener, led the Patriots with two hits in the second game and also had a hit in the climactic contest.

Thornburg, Parker and Shields all had three hits apiece for Southern in its 13-hit attack against four Trojan pitchers. John
Crawford (7-0) got the victory on the mound.

In the afternoon game, the Trojans took advantage of three wild pitches, a hit batter, a couple of errors and a couple of timely hits in the first inning to erupt for four runs. Kyle Seager¹s RBI single was a key blow in the first.

Nick Daniels pitched a complete game to get his 11th win of the year, giving up just three this, while Richard Allred was charged with the loss.

Haynes was the only player in the second game from either side with more than one hit.

Southern finished a 27-5 season and won its third state crown in four championship appearances. The Patriots last won a state title in 1988. Northwest Cabarrus made its first trip to the NCHSAA finals in 33 years and finished its year at 25-9 with a relatively young team, with only five seniors on the roster.

****************************************

NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
STATE 3-A BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Doak Field, N.C. State University

Saturday's Results
Game Three
Northwest Cabarrus 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 4 2
Southern Alamance 8 0 1 0 1 --10 13 0
Game called after five innings due to 10-run rule.
Pitchers: NW Justin Wallace (3). SA

Game Two
Southern Alamance 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 ­ 1 3 4
Northwest Cabarrus 4 0 0 0 0 1 x ­ 5 6 2

Pitchers: SA (11-3). LP