Post 11 legion

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on June 16, 2009 1:47 PM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- Tyler Edwards broke out of a three-game slump at the plate and Wayne County Post 11 bested Pitt County Post 39 by a 12-7 count on Monday evening.

Mired in an 0-for-12 slump, Edwards tripled in a five-hit effort and collected three RBI to lead Post 11's offense. Wayne County finished with 16 hits.

"This is going to be a hitting team," said Post 11 head coach Brad Reaves. "I knew coming into the season that we had plenty of hitters so the key was going to be pitching."

Eastern Wayne standout Josh Frederick took the mound for the first time since the Warriors' appearance in the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A baseball championship series. It took some time to adjust to the mound at Mount Olive College.

Pitt County opened a 4-1 lead in the second inning.

Zach Stoll drew a one-out walk and Brien Phillips belted a double two batters later. Trevor Spencer walked to load the bases and Tyler Nichols delivered a two-run double. Clark Massey followed with a two-run double to create the three-run advantage.

"I was actually pretty happy with how we pitched tonight," said Reaves. "I think Frederick just was a little too strong at the beginning of the game and he was throwing instead of pitching.

"Once he settled down, I thought he did a good job."

Post 11 bailed out its starting pitcher in the third inning.

Kevin Wise led off with a single, Edwards followed with a base hit and both players advanced on a wild pitch. Nick McGee drove in two runs with a single and moved to second when Cambric Moye was hit by a pitch.

Two batters later, Colton Fulghum broke the game open with a two-run double. Cody Richards capped the five-run outburst with an RBI double that made the score 6-4 in Wayne County's favor.

Taylor Allen entered the game to pitch in the fifth inning, but control issues cut his outing to just one inning. Jesse Randolph finished the contest with three sterling innings of relief.

"It had been a while since Taylor has been on the mound and that showed a little bit tonight," said Reaves. "But Jesse came in and did a great job of throwing strikes, and getting some key outs."

Having multiple pitchers that can throw on short notice will be an asset due to Post 11's hectic schedule over the next six days. Wayne County (4-3 overall, 2-1 South) will complete a home-and-home set with Post 39 tonight, battle Clayton at home Friday and travel to long-time nemesis New Bern on Saturday.

"We have about nine or ten arms that we can throw," said Reaves. "And during this stretch we are going to probably need all of them."