SENIOR LEGION: Post 11 drops season opener

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on May 25, 2016 1:46 PM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

DUDLEY -- Losses never sit well with fifth-year Wayne County Post 11 manager Jason Sherrer.

Nor do they linger.

But he also understands that when each Senior Legion approaches, new players come through the turnstiles and an evaluation period normally takes place.

Sherrer learned plenty Tuesday evening.

So did his players during their season-opening, 12-8 loss to perennial Area I West powerhouse Garner on the Doyle Whitfield Athletic Complex diamond.

"You take the loss. You learn from the mistakes you made on the bases, can't get picked off. Team at-bats," Sherrer said. "If we can learn from that, we're going to be a good team. If we don't and we kind of sit back, just let the game to come to us, we may have a long summer.

"We'll see how they react. We've got to come back on Friday and take care of the things we can take care of, and see what happens."

Just six players return from last year's team that finished runner-up in the Area I East Division playoffs.

The newcomers didn't seem too frazzled.

Wayne County cranked out nine hits and scored runs in four of nine innings. Ethan Chapin delivered a second-inning RBI single in his Legion debut and Lee Daniels, in the lead-off position, plated Chapin.

Post 11 tied the game at 4-4 on wild pitches in the fifth and sixth innings. Sherrer's club added four unearned runs in the eighth, sparked by Hayden Amodeo's routine ground ball that turned into a three-base scoring error.

"It's always good to see how fast they react in certain situations," Sherrer said. "Nobody got tight. It was good to see everybody get in there, not play scared, get after it when they got their shot and see what happened."

Here are some observances from the Post 11 opener:

LEADERSHIP

* Daniels batted 3-for-4 with an RBI, and logged three putouts and three assists at second base.

"From last year, there are so many guys who have stepped up their game," Sherrer said. "It was very good to see Lee do what he did tonight. Played solid defensively. Had great at-bats. It's the maturity from playing and confidence, and he really stood out.

"That's a good thing because we've got returning guys who need to take over and kind of be a leader on a new team."

Lee is expected to sign a national letter-of-intent with JUCO member Brunswick Community College.

ON THE HILL

* Sherrer used three pitchers against Garner -- Aryc Chrisman, Jonathan Peacock and Josh Jernigan.

Chrisman suffered a concussion during football season for Southern Wayne, and worked 2 1/3 innings against Garner. Peacock showed some mettle on the rubber and yielded eight runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings -- the longest stint by a pitcher on either team.

Jernigan tossed 1 1/3 innings of no-hit scoreless relief.

"We're getting to know the pitchers and they're getting to know us," Sherrer said.

TIP OF THE CAP

* Garner's Cole Hinnant, who played at Francis Marion University, was a tough out from the lead-off position. The center fielder batted 4-for-5 with a double, two home runs and five RBI.

He swatted home runs during the seventh and eighth innings.

"I know him, he's a good player," Sherrer said. "The good players are the ones who are game changers, and when you make mistakes pitching or you make mistakes defensively, good teams, good players make you pay.

"That's what happened."

Hinnant's eighth-inning home run started a seven-run, two-out rally that put Garner in command 12-4.

DIVERSITY

* Don't expect to see the same starting lineup when Post 11 takes the field this season. Sherrer, as usual, searched for diverse players who can play multiple positions.

His main goal is to not burn out arms in an attempt to keep them fresh for the playoffs.

"If we make a long enough run in the postseason, we'll have plenty of guys with experience from throwing throughout the whole season," Sherrer said.

NEXT

* Wayne County (0-1 overall) returns home Friday to face West Craven. First pitch is 7 p.m. at Southern Wayne.