Foothills Athletic Conference play began this week, with four of Burke County’s middle school baseball teams collecting victories.
Thursday’s action saw Liberty (1-0) defeat host East Burke (1-1) — which previously knocked off Walter Johnson by a 22-0 final in two innings on Monday in Morganton — by a 6-1 score. Additionally, Heritage (1-0) was a 19-8 winner over the Yellow Jackets (0-2) on Thursday in Valdese, while Thursday’s remaining contest saw Table Rock (1-0) earn an 11-0 road win over East McDowell after Monday’s home game against West McDowell was suspended due to darkness with the score tied at 12-all in the bottom of the sixth and will be completed when the Falcons visit the Spartans on March 26.
Liberty pounded out 10 hits against the Raiders, getting a home run, a double, a single, four RBIs, and two runs scored from AJ Duckworth, who also walked and stole a base as part of a 3-for-3 day at the plate. Cason Scott added three singles and an RBI, while Hank Ledford (two singles, run), Edward Stoudenmire (double, run), and Brody Lozano (single) also had hits for the Knights.
Duckworth also earned the win on the mound, tossing 6 1/3 innings of one-run, three-hit ball during which he struck out 11 and issued two walks before Jackson Puckett retired the final two batters in the seventh. The only hits allowed by Duckworth came from EB’s Tripp Hullette (homer, double) and Sawyer Houston (single).
Hullette (5 2/3 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 11 K) was effective as a pitcher as well, with all four runs he allowed being unearned.
Offensive standouts for the Raiders on Monday included Jace Wilson (three singles, two RBIs, run), Miles Seagle (single, three RBIs, two runs), Hullette (double, two RBIs, two runs), Alex Prestwood (single, two RBIs, two runs, three SB), Tucker Hart (single, two RBIs, run), and Jaxon Blumke (single, RBI, run), while Wilson struck out three and pitched around three walks — Walter Johnson’s Noush Yang, Joe Berry, and DeeDee Williams each walked once — in his only inning of work before Abel Fredrick struck out all three batters he faced in the second.
Heritage then received solid performances from Skylar Garland (3-for-4, three RBIs), Anderson Clark (3-for-4, two RBIs), Remy Treadway (3-for-4, RBI), Luke Lowman (2-for-3, RBI), and Noah Clark (RBI single) on Thursday against the Yellow Jackets, who didn’t report any individual statistics. Anderson Clark (4 K), Treadway (K), and Lowman (K) also combined for six strikeouts on the mound.
Finally, Table Rock’s Easton Tollison (4 IP, BB, 11 K) and Luke Webb (IP) combined for a five-inning no-hitter during Thursday’s game, with Spencer Wall (three singles, two RBIs, run) and Jaxxon Williams (two doubles, three runs) accounting for half of their 10 hits to go with three RBIs apiece from Tollison (double, single, two runs) and Werner Sahling (single).
Other offensive leaders for the Falcons were James Miller (single, three walks, RBI, run, two SB) and Webb (single).
SOFTBALL
Liberty, EB, TR, Heritage all win big
Following an unbeaten season last spring, Liberty (1-0) picked up right where it left off on Thursday, cruising to an 18-1, five-inning road win over East Burke (1-1) thanks to two-hit days from Emma Fish (double, single, two RBIs, four runs), Malorie Messer (double, single, two RBIs, three runs), Whitley Strange (two doubles, two RBIs, two runs), and Lyrikah Bristol (double, single, two RBIs, two runs) to go with one hit each from Janiyah Benjamin (single, RBI, two runs, three walks), Presley McCoy (single, RBI, two runs), Serenity Waycaster (single, RBI, run), and Ava Hensley (single, two runs).
Strange also tossed a complete game in the pitcher’s circle, limiting the Lady Raiders to an unearned run and one hit with six strikeouts and a walk. Jaiden Bame (single, run, SB), Addison Lowman (RBI), and Harper Lowman (walk) were the offensive standouts for EB.
Speaking of EB, it started FAC play with a 20-0 triumph at Walter Johnson on Monday, although neither team reported any individual stats.
Table Rock also played on Monday, losing to visiting West McDowell by a 12-6 final despite receiving a hit apiece from Kelly Scales (three RBIs), Megan Robinson, Harper Best, and Kendal Coffey to go with two walks from Emily Banner.
The Lady Falcons (1-1) bounced back with a 17-0 rout of East McDowell on Thursday in Marion, notching 12 hits as a team behind two hits and three RBIs apiece from Robinson (homer, three SB), Scales, and Lily Thompson (two walks). Furthermore, Best was the winning pitcher after surrendering no runs and no hits with eight strikeouts and three walks in 3 2/3 innings.
And Heritage (1-0) blanked visiting Walter Johnson (0-2) by a 16-0 score in three innings on Thursday behind a no-hitter from Brianna Maynor (9 K), three singles and two runs scored from Ivy Brown, and a double and two runs scored from Piper Smith.
