So. Wayne eliminates Triton, 5-1

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on May 2, 2012 1:49 PM

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DUDLEY -- Southern Wayne got a solid pitching performance and earned a 5-1 victory over Triton in the opening round of the Eastern Carolina 3-A Conference baseball tournament on Tuesday night.

The Saints entertain North Lenoir in semifinal-round play Thursday.

"I thought we played about as clean of a game as we have played all season," Southern Wayne head coach Trae McKee said. "We didn't make any errors and we got some timely hits."

Southern Wayne (15-9 overall) jumped on top in the second inning when Ashton Cox reached on an error and Taylor Brock delivered an RBI double. Brock later scored on Jacob Sasser's sacrifice fly to make the score 2-0.

The Saints added a run in the third inning before Triton rallied in the top of the fourth.

Tyler Tyndall got the Hawks started with a double and moved to third on Brett McLamb's groundout. Austin Lee plated Tyndall with a ground ball to second base that made the score 3-1.

Southern Wayne put the game away in the fifth.

Keith Jones belted his first career varsity home run with one out. Tyler Gainey followed with a single and later scored on a Triton error to complete the 5-1 tally.

"I was really happy for Keith," McKee said. "He plays the game the right way and he works hard, so it was nice to see that ball get out."

Jacob Sasser tossed five innings to get the win on the pitcher's mound. Sasser allowed one run on two hits and walked one batter. Jackson Hayes pitched two scoreless innings of relief.

"I thought Jacob did a really nice job and he battled," McKee said. "Really, both guys threw the ball well tonight."