Saints present Massey with first victory

By News-Argus Staff
Published in Sports on March 1, 2014 11:23 PM

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astevens@newsargus.com

SEVEN SPRINGS -- Kevin Williams constantly wiggled out of trouble Friday afternoon.

His Southern Wayne teammates gave him the run support he needed and presented Jackson Massey with his initial victory as the Saints' head coach.

Williams allowed just one earned in 5 1/3 strong innings during the a 4-1, non-conference victory over county foe Spring Creek.

"It feels good," Massey said. "It's good to get that first one out of the way. Now, we've just got to pick up where we left off and I'm happy for these guys."

Williams coaxed the Gators' Matt Rogers into an inning-ending double play in the bottom of the first inning with runners on first and third base. Three innings later and with two outs, Williams got Will Rouse to ground out with runners on first and second.

In the fifth, Williams escaped a bases-loaded, no-outs jam.

A senior right-hander, Williams permitted one hit, struck out three and walked one. He provided two hits offensively.

"Kevin did a good job," Massey said. "He battled the whole entire time. He went a little bit longer than I wanted him to, but he's a bulldog out there. He's never going to tell you he wants to come out.

"We made some big plays (behind him)."

Southern Wayne capitalized on a two-out error in the top of the third inning to take a 1-0 lead. Two batters later, Hunter Barwick drove in Jacob Hollingsworth with a single to center field.

Rouse's RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning pulled Spring Creek to within 2-1. It was the missed opportunities early in the game that left the Gators wondering what could have been.

"Both teams hit a couple of balls hard," Spring Creek head coach Heath Whitfield said. "I know we hit two that ended up being double plays. Those outcomes could have been different and led to big innings for either team."

The Saints (1-2 overall) tacked on two insurance runs in the top of the seventh inning. Hollingsworth lined an RBI double to right field and Chris Reedy drew a bases-loaded walk.

Gators' starting pitcher Logan Miller was the tough-luck loser. Miller allowed two unearned runs, walked two and struck out four Saints in three innings on the mound.

"Logan threw the ball well I thought," Whitfield said. "He should have been out of it with no runs at all. I was real pleased with a lot of things."

Spring Creek (0-1) plays host to Goldsboro on Monday. Southern Wayne entertains North Lenoir on Tuesday.