Rosewood powers up against Chargers

Published in Sports on March 17, 2006 1:47 PM

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Rosewood hurler Kyle Bunn overcame a shaky start and shut down Wayne Country Day the final four innings, fanning 10 Chargers and going the distance to give the visiting Eagles a 9-4 victory over their non-conference county rivals on Thursday.

"Kyle is our workhorse, he is our No. 1 guy and he shut them down when he had to," Rosewood head coach Josh Smith said of his senior right hander. "Going into the seventh, he had thrown a lot of pitches, but he wanted to finish. I just couldn't take the ball out of his hands."

Wayne Country Day pitcher Trent Davis also threw a complete game, giving up only seven hits and five earned runs, but the Eagles also flexed their muscles at the plate early. Rosewood leadoff hitter Trey Kriger blasted a home run over the left field wall in the second inning and Kevin Shanle added another round-tripper in the third for the Eagles.

Smith said he was pleased with the victory, but noticed a disturbing pattern.

"We put up numbers in the early innings and then it seems like we sit back on our heels, it is definitely something we need to work on," he said.

Rosewood scored first in the opening inning. After one out, Bunn singled and Davis walked the next two hitters to load the bases. Bunn scampered home on a fielder's choice, but Davis worked his way out of a bases-loaded jam by striking out the next two Eagle batters.

Rosewood added two more runs in the second on Kriger's two-run shot. Wayne Country Day picked up its first run in the bottom of the second. After one out, Kevin Herring singled and scored on a Kyle Pender double.

Neither pitcher looked as if he would last the third inning. Rosewood scored four times in the top of the third to take a 7-1 lead. Just when it seemed the Chargers were out of it, they countered with three runs in the bottom of the inning.

Both teams left the bases loaded in the third, and a timely hit could have turned the tide for either team. The Eagles scored their four runs on just two hits. Shanle's home run was the big hit of the inning for Rosewood as Davis temporarily lost his control in the inning as he walked one and hit two batters.

Fourth-year Wayne Country Day head coach Michael Taylor was pleased with his team's grit.

"We matched them hitting, we hit the ball through four innings but had six errors," he said. "Bunn is a great pitcher. He put the ball where he needed to in the last four innings. Travis also did a good job pitching for us."

Davis shut down the Eagles in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings before surrendering two more runs in the top of the seventh on a walk, hit batter, and a two-RBI single by Bunn.

The Rosewood coach said he was expecting a tough game and got one.

"Wayne Country Day will fight hard, and coach Taylor does a good job," Smith said. "Coach Taylor and I go back a long ways, playing ball together when we were little. His team plays hard just like he used to."

The Chargers will begin Conference play next week after today's game at Goldsboro.

"We have no seniors and an eighth grader starting," Taylor said. "The future is bright for us. We have come a long way in four years being able to compete with a public school team like Rosewood."

The Eagles are idle until back-to-back games with Goldsboro High next Tuesday and Wednesday. Rosewood will travel to Goldsboro on Tuesday and host the Cougars on Wednesday.

Rosewood 124 000 2 -- 9 7 4

WCDS 013 000 0 -- 4 7 6

Leading hitters -- Rosewood -- Trey Kriger 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, 2 runs; Kyle Bunn 2-4, 2 RBI, run; David Smeltzer 1-3; Kevin Shanle 2-3. HR, 2 RBI, run; WCD -- Cameron Ford 1-3, Ryan Ford 1-4, 2B, run; Travis Davis 1-3; Kevin Herring 2-4, 2 RBI, run; Kyle Pender 1-4, RBI; Robert Cory 1-3

IP H R ER BB SO

Rosewood

K. Bunn (W) 7 7 4 3 3 10

WCDS

T. Davis (L) 7 7 9 5 6 6