3A SOFTBALL: C.B. Aycock claims east regional championship

By Justin Hayes
Published in Sports on May 27, 2016 1:48 PM

• Print
• Email

PIKEVILLE -- Call it deja vu all over again.

Charles B. Aycock, two years removed from its last regional softball crown, earned another last night with a blue collar-like, 5-3 dismissal of Topsail High in the N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 3-A eastern regional championship series.

And my, did the victory prompt celebration.

Amidst flashes of traditional and new-age cameras, the Golden Falcons toured the area in front of their dugout in uniformed glee, stopping for pictures and conducting interviews with countless media outlets.

It was a celebration nearly 750 days in the making.

Thanks to Taylor Waddell, there was reason for such.

The junior, who spun a three-hit tutorial a day earlier at Hampstead, dealt another lesson Thursday. Her second complete-game effort of the series featured a quartet of strikeouts, just a single walk and no runs -- earned or otherwise.

The win moved her record to 7-0 this season.

After retiring her first six batters in clean fashion, Waddell flirted with the making of a Topsail outburst in the third inning -- until the Aycock infield stifled the notion with a rapid-fire bit of seasoned execution.

With one out and Topsail's Kyla Boyles on first base, Waddell faced lead-off hitter Hunter Bizzell. The junior laid down a textbook bunt, only to have it scooped up and fired to third for the stanza's second out.

But the fun was only beginning.

Ever alert, third baseman Mookie Powell turned to face Bizzell as she rounded second. A rifled throw later, Bizzell was snared in a run down and tagged out by Cassandra Lassiter.

In a hail of dust, the Topsail threat was gone.

Lassiter also got things started for Aycock in its half of the third, roping a line drive to left field for a stand-up double. Abbie Walton then reached on a bunt, and later scored from first on a throwing error by Pirate third baseman Keri White.

Aycock 1, Topsail 0.

Waddell continued her dealing prowess, climbing the strike zone ladder with poise and speaking to the corners in a barely-there whisper. The final three frames were perhaps her most potent, as only one Topsail batter advanced a pitch beyond the infield.

"These are probably the best two games I've ever pitched at Aycock," the righty said of the regional. "I was in total control."

So too was the oft-maligned Aycock infield, which killed 10 Topsail balls with nary a bit of worry. Madison Walton and Powell, whose star has risen this postseason, led the powder blue effort with seven assisted putouts.

Their stinginess was enough to uphold its pedestrian offensive showing, one that collected just four hits against Topsail starter Hayley Grizzle.

"We've been hitting the ball hard," Matthews said of his team. "But when you start getting in close games like this, situations we're into now -- you've got to do some manufacturing."

And manufacture Aycock did, scoring Powell on a passed ball in the fourth inning and on Allison Shingleton's go-for-broke sprint in the sixth, when yet another throwing error by Topsail provided ample room to roam.

"You've got to put some pressure on them," Matthews said.

Armed with a 3-0 lead in the seventh, Waddell took the circle and drew curtains on Topsail's season. The frame was economical, much like the past two days, and ended when Mackenzie Wheeler stabbed a Boyles' effort and stepped on first base.

As the players tossed their gloves skyward and launched into a mob around Waddell, a few familiar faces finally emerged from their usual -- and not so usual -- in-game hiding places.

There was the mom -- curfew-maker for two-thirds of the outfield -- who was finally able to take a deep breath again. There was the grandmother, clutching a portable chair and with eyes full of tears, who spoke of travel plans. There was also the proud father, whose new superstition around chewing gum undoubtedly cemented the Pikeville nine's storied run through the regional.

Aycock -- the lot of them -- now stands 29-2 on the season, and will begin the state title series next Friday at a venue and versus an opponent to be determined.

For now, they can celebrate. Just like 2014.