1A PLAYOFFS: Rebels eliminate Panthers, again

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on May 22, 2016 1:47 AM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

CALYPSO -- North Duplin pitcher Rylee Pate fired pitch after pitch -- knee and ankle-biting throws that swarmed around the plate like a bunch of worrisome gnats.

Northside's batters frequently swung -- and missed.

Thirteen Panthers slapped their bat into the ground as they walked back to the dugout with a strikeout beside their name in the scorebook. Two reached base, while two flew out to center fielder Haley Thurston.

Pate seemed untouchable.

Until the sixth inning.

The strike zone shrunk and Pate felt like she had to throw the ball through a Mason jar just to get a called strike. She recovered and the Rebels advanced to the eastern regional championship series with an 8-5 victory during the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 1-A softball playoffs on a breezy Friday evening.

North Duplin (20-3 overall) faces conference foe Princeton (20-1) in the best-of-three battle, which begins Tuesday at Princeton. Game time is 6:30 p.m.

"They're very good and we're very fortunate to advance," Rebels head coach Ricky Edwards said. "At this time (in the playoffs), any time you advance, it's great. We knew Northside was an extremely good team. It was a good ballgame."

And the Rebels seized control early.

Pate belted a two-out double to the wall in left-center field and trotted home on Shaily McCarty's second home run of the season. Haley Brogden followed with a double and scored on Alyssa Santos' RBI single.

Designated player Brooke Cottle capped the four-run, first-inning outburst with an RBI double.

North Duplin got a second-inning homer from Brogden, a ball that landed over the batting cage behind the left-field fence. Pate drove home Rayanna Koch with her second double down the left-field line.

"We knew it was going to be a big game," Pate said. "They wanted it since we beat them both times (in the regional final) last year. Tonight, we jumped on them, which is something we wanted to do right from the start."

Brogden plated the Rebels' eighth run in the fourth inning.

Northside (18-6) refused to go quietly and snapped North Duplin's string of 24 consecutive scoreless innings in the playoffs during the sixth inning.

Pate, as usual, worked the corners and tried to jam the Panthers inside on occasion -- only to see the umpire fall silent with his delayed strike call. Mackensi Swain swatted a solo home run and catcher Kendall Alligood belted a three-run shot, which closed the gap to 8-4.

"They started hitting, they were rallying through and it was big for them," Pate said of Northside's late charge. "I've always been one to keep my cool. It's hard to do with everything going on around you, especially all the (trash) talking. I don't really pay much attention to it and I keep focused on what I have to do to get the job done."

Swain mashed a home run with one out in the seventh inning.

Pate induced a groundout and caught Rachel Lang looking at a third strike to end the game.

"I thought we handled (the last two innings) pretty well," Pate said. "We settled down. We got done what we had to get done. They can hit, I will give that to them."