Rosewood-Dixon
By News-Argus Staff
Published in Sports on May 12, 2011 1:47 PM
Courtesy
Jacksonville Daily News
HOLLY RIDGE -- Rosewood didn't go easy, but the pesky Eagles were no match for Dixon senior right-hander Rookie Davis on Wednesday evening.
The East Carolina signee recorded 17 strikeouts and allowed just three hits in a 4-1, opening-round victory in the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-A baseball playoffs. The contest was a rematch of last year's best-of-three eastern regional series, also won by the Bulldogs.
Dixon, ranked No. 2 in the latest ImpactBaseball.com 1-A poll, will face the winner of the South Robeson-Pender game in the second round next week.
Rosewood concluded the year 9-14 overall.
Dixon scored three runs in the first inning behind Joey D'Zurilla's RBI double and a run-scoring single by Daniel Brown off right-hander Garrett Burns (4-3), who settled down after that and allowed only one more run.
That run, which was unearned, came in the fifth.
Rosewood scored its lone run in the fourth.
Jonathan Franks doubled to center field on a 1-2 pitch off Davis (9-0) and came around to score on a strikeout. Cody Harris struck out, but catcher Zack Sicknick misplayed the pitch and then bounced the ball to first, which allowed Franks to race home from second.
Rosewood loaded the bases in the fifth when Logan Waters reached on a passed ball after striking out followed by a single by Burns and a walk by Taylor McGill. But Davis, whose fastball was hitting the low to mid 90s, struck out Reed Howell. He got Franks to ground into a fielder's choice and then struck out Harris looking to end the threat.
The Eagles didn't get a batter on in the final two innings.
Franks paced Rosewood with two hits, while Ian Speight batted 1-for-3.
Burns (4-3) threw a complete game and yielded four runs (one earned) on five hits. He struck out five Bulldog hitters.