Post 11 knocked out of first

By Gabe Whisnant
Published in Sports on June 28, 2005 1:46 PM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- In a battle for first place in the Area One East Division, Wayne County's Senior Legion team's hitting woes continued as Pitt County Post 39 emerged with a 10-2 win at Scarborough Field on Monday night.

The loss, Post 11's second in three games, drops Wayne County (15-4 overall) to 10-2 in division play. Pitt County improves to 11-2 overall and against league foes. The two Legion rivals remain the only division teams with two losses as Beaufort County sits in third at 11-5.

Post 11 managed just four hits against the Pitt County pitching duo of Brian Hill and Clark Harrington. Hill, a left-hander, started and went seven innings -- scattering four hits and allowing only one run, which proved to be unearned. Wayne County had only two runners reach second base during the first six innings and none advanced to third.

Jes Snyder and Jackson Massey had the only two hits for Post 11 during the first six innings.

"It's so mental with this team. I don't know if we are exhausted, but we aren't coming to play," Wayne County coach Brad Reaves said. "How fast we grow up as baseball players will determine how good of a team we will be."

Meanwhile, Post 39 struck for three runs (two unearned) in the third, then opened up their lead in the fifth with a five-spot. Pitt County's Jason Cargile, one of six players with two hits, delivered the big blow of the fifth -- driving home three runs with a triple to left-center field against Wayne County starter Adam Williams, chasing the left-hander from the contest.

Williams (1-2) yielded seven runs (five earned) on seven hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Michael Sigmon came on to toss three innings of relief as the righty gave up one earned run on four hits with two strikeouts and no walks.

Wayne County committed five errors in the first five innings as Pitt County also scored one run each in the third and the seventh on first-and-third, double-steals.

"Those weren't the only things we did wrong. We kicked the ball in the infield. We hit a cut-off man, but we didn't cut it. Then, they get people in scoring position," Reaves said.

Massey pitched the final two innings, giving up a run in the eighth when Alex White's infield single scored Brandon Sneed. Massey pitched a perfect ninth, one of only two, 1-2-3 innings on the night.

Cargile, White, Sneed, Anthony Williams, Brandon Scott and Ross Warren all finished with two hits for Post 39.

"We've sputtered a little offensively, but we are aggressive. We have some guys who hit with a little authority," Pitt County coach Mike Mullis said. "When you play in a park like Scarborough, you try to swing as aggressive as you can. I figured we were looking at a two-or-three run game tonight, but I wouldn't have dreamed we would have had a one-sided win."

Wayne County finally got on the board in the seventh when Airlon Vinson smacked an opposite-field single to left and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Hill bounced back to pick up the fifth of his six strikeouts, then Garrett Sutton followed with an infield single that kicked off the shortstop's glove into the left-field grass -- allowing Vinson to race home from third.

Post 11 got their final run in the eighth when Austin Hood drove home Bennett Jeffreys with a sacrifice fly after Harrington walked the bases loaded in the eighth. Harrington pitched a perfect ninth as Wayne County finished the game batting just 4-for-28. In their last six games, Wayne County is only 29-for-163 (.151).

"It's not that they are bad hitters. They are bad decision-makers," Reaves said. "It's been like that for every pitcher we've faced. We haven't really faced a hard-thrower yet."

Wayne County returns to action tonight at 7 p.m. at Kinston on the campus of Kinston High School. Post 39 and Post 11 square off again on Wednesday in Pitt County.