HS Rewind: 3 CMS baseball teams advance; Ardrey Kell softball moves on
Three Mecklenburg County teams advanced Friday night to the Round of 16 in the N.C. 4A baseball playoffs, and the newly named No. 1 team in The Charlotte Observer Sweet 16 poll was upset.
Moving on from Mecklenburg County were Myers Park, Providence and Hopewell.
Meanwhile, Cuthbertson upset Hickory Ridge 4-2. Hickory Ridge moved to No. 1 in The Observer’s regional poll earlier Friday.
▪ In Taylorsville, Providence High – the reigning state champions and No. 11 seed – upset No. 6 seed Alexander Central 3-2. The Panthers scored two runs in the top of the fifth to break a 1-1 tie. Alexander Central scored once in the seventh, in its final at-bat. Brady Thompson was 2-for-3 with one run scored, and he got two strikeouts in the seventh inning to preserve the win.
The Panthers advance to a Tuesday game at Northwest Guilford (24-5).
▪ Myers Park (22-5) won its 12th straight game, beating Weddington 3-1. The Mustangs trailed 1-0 after the first inning but exploded for three runs in the top of the sixth to win. Myers Park will host Cuthbertson in the third round Tuesday.
▪ Cuthbertson (17-11) ended the season for Greater Metro 4 Conference champion Hickory Ridge. Since dropping three straight games in early April, the Cavaliers won have 10 of 12.
▪ In another game, Hopewell advanced with an 11-6 victory over South Caldwell. The Titans’ next opponent is the West’s No. 1 seed, T.C. Roberson (20-6).
Quick Links
Complete state pairings for all sports
Hopewell rallies to beat South Caldwell.
Friday’s #BIG5 Top Performers
Anna Dew, Hickory Ridge softball: threw a two-hitter in a 3-0 N.C. 4A second round playoff win over McDowell.
William Fowler, Cherryville: triple, three RBIs in a 6-1 win over South Stanly in the 1A playoffs. Cherryville has won 12 straight.
Dan Lloyd, North Iredell baseball: four-hit complete game shutout in a 1-0 win over Northwest Cabarrus.
Tyler Steele, Lincoln Charter baseball: two doubles, homer, four RBIs in a 15-6 win over McMichael.
Brady Thompson, Providence baseball: 2-for-3 with one run scored, and he got two strikeouts in the seventh inning to preserve a 3-2 at Alexander Central.
NCISAA Saturday
A recap of Saturday’s NCISAA playoff action
▪ Charlotte Latin’s girls soccer team beat Cannon 3-0 in a state quarterfinal match. The Hawks got goals from Lucy Dempsey, Avery Cheatwood and Eleanor Fisher. Mary Stewart Hunter, Ella SMith and Dempsey McMahon had the assists.
Latin (16-2-1) will play either Ravenscroft or Covenant Day in Tuesday’s state semifinal at Latin.
▪ Charlotte Christian’s softball team beat Wesleyan Christian 12-0 in a state quarterfinal. The Knights (14-1) are the No. 1 overall seed and will host North Raleigh Christian or Covenant Day in Tuesday’s state semifinal.
Pitcher Morgan Banks threw a one-hitter Saturday. She walked two and struck out 13. Anna Hinde had a double and a home run.
Baseball
3A PLAYOFFS
Fred T. Foard 9, South Point 2
North Iredell 1, Northwest Cabarrus 0: After finishing fourth in the Western Foothills 3A Conference, North Iredell (14-11) has reached the third round of the playoffs. Dan Loyd pitched a four-hit complete-game shutout. Loyd scored the game’s only run, on an RBI hit by Bryson Morrison. Next up for the Raiders … top-seeded Ledford, on the road Tuesday.
West Henderson 8, North Lincoln 0
2A PLAYOFFS
Burns 2, East Gaston 1: Josh Taylor pitched the top-seeded Bulldogs to victory. Burns beat East Gaston three previous times this season – twice in Southern Piedmont 1A regular-season games, and in the conference postseason tournament last week.
Chase 6, Mount Pleasant 2
Lincoln Charter 15, McMichael 6: The Eagles (20-5) advanced to a third-round game Tuesday at top-seeded Burns, as Tyler Steele slammed two doubles and a home run, driving in four runs. Brady Swadley also had four RBI.
1A PLAYOFFS
Cherryville 6, South Stanly 1: The top-seeded Ironmen (23-4) won their 12th straight game, with William Fowler delivering a triple and three RBI. Starting pitcher Brayden Reynolds got the victory, working five shutout innings. Cherryville hosts Union Academy in the third round Tuesday.
Highland Tech 1, South Stokes 0: The Rams (13-12) stunned fourth seed South Stokes, as Liam Fulbright fired a one-hitter. Connor Redmond scored the only run. Highland Tech travels to fifth seed Hayesville (13-3) on Tuesday.
North Stokes 16, Christ the King 6: The Crusaders’ season ended with a 13-8 record. In his final high school game, senior Parker Shipman had two hits and two RBI.
Union Academy 20, Corvian Community 6: Gavin Esp slammed two doubles and drove in four runs, and Nick Henry also drove in four runs for Union Academy (13-11).
Softball
One Mecklenburg County team remains alive in the 4A playoffs – Ardrey Kell, which won Thursday night. But three other Charlotte-area teams remain alive, including top seed Hickory Ridge. The others are Union County’s Marvin Ridge and Cuthbertson.
4A PLAYOFFS
Alexander Central 2, South Mecklenburg 0: The Cougars’ Laney Wike won a pitchers’ duel with South Mecklenburg’s Taylor Barlow, tossing a four-hit shutout. Lainey Russell had three hits for the victors (20-4), the West’s No. 2 seed.
Cuthbertson 5, Mooresville 4: The Cavaliers’ softball team duplicated the baseball team’s feat, knocking off a Greater Metro 4 power. Cuthbertson (12-13) got two RBI from Gabby Martens, who singled and tripled. Grace Murray had two hits and scored twice. The Cavaliers’ opponent in the next round is a familiar one: neighborhood rival Marvin Ridge.
East Forsyth 1, Weddington 0 (10 innings): The Warriors finished with a 13-13 record.
Hickory Ridge 3, McDowell 0: The Ragin’ Bulls (22-2) got a two-hitter from Anna Dew, and Karcen Burnette drove in two runs. Hickory Ridge hosts Ardrey Kell in the third round Tuesday.
Marvin Ridge 5, Northern Guilford 2: The third-seeded Mavericks, last year’s regional finalists, improved to 20-3, as Ella Tracy drove in two runs and Taylor Erb had two hits and an RBI. Marvin Ridge hosts Cuthbertson on Tuesday.
Northwest Guilford 5, Porter Ridge 3: The Pirates led 3-0 early, but Northwest Guilford scored five times in the bottom of the fifth. Kayden Purdy had two hits for the Pirates (12-9).
South Caldwell 12, Hough 4: Ashlyn Rogers had one of Hough’s two hits and drove in a run.
3A PLAYOFFS
East Lincoln 5, Pisgah 1: Jaelyn Freeston had three hits and an RBI, as the fifth-seeded Mustangs (19-1) advanced to a third-round game Tuesday at fourth-seeded West Rowan. Winning pitcher Leah Correll scattered seven hits.
2A PLAYOFFS
McMichael 4, West Lincoln 1: West Lincoln (18-9) fell to the West’s No. 1 seed.
Mount Pleasant 4, Burns 0: Haley McManus pitched a three-hit shutout and helped her cause with two hits and a run scored. Caylin Herring singled and doubled, driving in a run. The Tigers (16-10) travel to second seed Southwestern Randolph in the third round Tuesday.
1A PLAYOFFS
East Wilkes 12, Cherryville 2: Cherryville (17-9) was held to four hits. Ava Miller had one of those hits and scored a run.
North Stokes 12, Piedmont Community Charter 1: The Patriots finished with a 10-8 record.
Uwharrie Charter 4, South Stanly 1: Uwharrie Charter pulled a stunned, knocking off the defending 1S state champion. South Stanly, which entered the game with a 22-3 record, was held to two hits.
NCISAA 2A PLAYOFFS
Hickory Grove Christian 7, Wake Christian 4: Hickory Grove scored three times in the bottom of the third and added three in the fourth.
High Point Christian 12, Gaston Christian 2: Olivia Kennedy had a hit and an RBI. Gaston Christian led 2-0 early.
Boys’ lacrosse
4A PLAYOFFS
Charlotte Catholic 13, R.J. Reynolds 6: The Cougars, seeded second in the West, improved to 21-2 and advanced to the state semifinals.
Lake Norman 9, Marvin Ridge 8: Owen Canata and Braden Houlihan each had two goals and an assist for Marvin Ridge (17-5), but top seed Lake Norman (21-2) played strong defense down the stretch and held on. The Wildcats will face Charlotte Catholic in Tuesday’s state semifinals. Lake Norman beat the Cougars in a regular-season game.
1A-2A-3A PLAYOFFS
Lake Norman Charter 18, Christ the King 5: The Knights (15-5) moved on to the state semifinals, with Jake Rombough (five goals, three assists) and Jack Dalton (two goals, six assists) leading the way. Lake Norman Charter will host Bishop McGuinness on Tuesday in the state semifinals.
NCISAA DIVISION 1 PLAYOFFS
Durham Academy 11, Charlotte Country Day 9: The Buccaneers (13-12) fell in the quarterfinals.
Providence Day 14, Charlotte Christian 6: The second-seeded Chargers (17-5) move on to Tuesday’s state semifinals.
NCISAA DIVISION 2 PLAYOFFS
SouthLake Christian 16, John Paul II Catholic 3: The Eagles have advanced to the state semifinals, set for Tuesday.
Girls’ lacrosse
4A PLAYOFFS
Charlotte Catholic 7, Weddington 6
1A-2A-3A PLAYOFFS
Bishop McGuinness 23, Lake Norman Charter 7
Hickory 15, Community School of Davidson 8
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle
