July 31, 2023 – SPECIAL FEATURES
Dennis Garcia spoke with pitcher Robert Garner and Post 45 coach Ronnie Pugh in the lead-up to the 2023 American Legion Southeast Regional for the latest SPECIAL FEATURE from SportsTone.
July 31, 2023 – Monday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
2023 SOUTHEAST REGIONAL
July 30, 2023 – Sunday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 29, 2023 – Saturday Results
LEGION BASEBALL - STATE TOURNAMENT (Day 5)
All games at Campbell University
Wayne County 5, Rowan County 3
Wayne County scored in each of the first four innings for a 5-1 lead and held on for the chance to play Fuquay-Varina in the state championship game.
Rowan scored in the top of the first when JT Taylor walked and eventually scored on Morgan Padgett's sacrifice fly.
In the bottom of the first Davis Albert drew a 2-out walk and scored on a double by Mason Moffett. In the second, Daniel Kornegay walked and scored on Landon Sutton's home run. Moffett and Sutton singled and scored in the third and fourth innings respectively for the 5-1 advantage.
Cole Johnson led off the fifth inning with a walk and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Taylor to cut the Rowan deficit to 5-2. Rowan then loaded the bases in the seventh inning with no outs but could only manage 1 run before a strikeout and a double-play ended the game with two runners in scoring position.
Fuquay-Varina 5, Wayne County 2
Post 116 Nationals from Fuquay-Varina win the 2023 North Carolina Championship.
Wayne County opened division play with a win over Fuquay-Varina in mid-June. Down the final stretch of the summer, however, Post 116 had Wayne's number.
Fuquay-Varina swept Wayne County for the Area I western division title in three games, handed Post 11 a 10-4 loss on day two of the state tournament and won again over their division rivals for Post 116's second state title in three years.
Post 11 started the scoring with their 2 runs crossing the plate in the top of the fifth inning but Fuquay-Varina responded immediately with 2 runs in the bottom of the inning then scored 3 in the sixth. The other 10 half-innings had zeroes in the runs column.
Fuquay-Varina won the 2021 title in Cherryville with wins over Wilmington on day two and again in the championship game.
The Post 116 Nationals will begin play in this year's Southeast Regional against Florence, SC in the third game of the day on Wednesday.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
2023 SOUTHEAST REGIONAL
July 28, 2023 – Friday Results
LEGION BASEBALL - STATE TOURNAMENT (Day 4)
All games at Campbell University
Wayne County 7, High Point 6
A back-and-forth game came down to the bottom of the seventh and Wayne County's Daniel Kornegay drove in the run Post 11 needed to break a 6-6 tie and eliminate Post 87.
High Point led 1-0 after one inning when leadoff batter Yates Sikes singled, moved around on Landon Mowery's double and scored on a Tanner Royals sacrifice. Wayne County went up 3-1 after two and led 3-2 after Royals tripled and scored on a Tyler Shafer sacrifice in the third.
Post 87 went back in front 4-3 in the fourth when Sikes scored and then Mowery on Wyatt Stanley's double. In the top of the fifth inning High Point went up 6-3 with contributions from Evan Goodwin and Devin Villaman but Post 11 scored three in the bottom of the inning for the 6-6 tie to set up the seventh inning drama.
Rowan County 7, Fuquay-Varina 3
Rowan County handed Fuquay-Varina their first loss of the week and advanced to the final day of the 2023 State Championship Tournament.
Starting pitchers – Hayden Simmerson (Rowan) and Henry Good (Post 116) – were controlling the scoreless game through three-and-a-half innings but Post 342 batted around in the bottom of the fourth with 5 singles, a hit batter and a catcher's interference call. Five of those baserunners scored for a 5-0 lead for Rowan County.
Fuquay-Varina scored 3 runs in the sixth with a Chace Chaplin double and a walk to Zack Chavis followed by an rbi single for Jalon Jones and a 2-rbi hit by Jacob Grimes.
Eight Rowan batters came to the plate in the bottom of the sixth without the benefit of a hit. The bases were left loaded but 2 insurance runs scored. Post 116 got a hit in the seventh but could not score.
J T Taylor and Morgan Padgett had two hits each for Rowan but Padgett, Hayden Simmerson and Blake Hill all reached base four times and Taylor reached three times.
Simmerson got the win, Alex Hagler a save and Good took the loss.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 27, 2023 – Thursday Results
LEGION BASEBALL - STATE TOURNAMENT (Day 3)
All games at Campbell University
Rowan County 6, Pitt County 2
The first four Rowan batters in the top of the seventh reached and scored to break open a tie game and advance Post 342 into day 4 action at Campbell University. Rowan took advantage of two singles, two walks, a hit batter and two Pitt errors in the final frame before Luke Graham set the three batters he faced in the bottom of the inning down in order.
Rowan County went up 1-0 in the third when Morgan Padgett drew a bases loaded walk. Rowan fans thought their team had gone ahead 4-0 in the fifth when Hayden Simmerson hit a ball out of the park but it was ruled to be a foul ball and they had to settle for one run in the inning on an rbi single by Aiden Schenck which scored Graham.
Pitt County's Mason Hobbs hit a triple in the bottom of the fifth driving in Owen Boyd and DeMarcus McCray to tie the game at two.
Corbin Bailey started for Rowan but left with the game tied after 5 innings. Alex Hagler pitched the sixth and got the win.
Wayne County 9, Wilmington 7
Wayne County led 1-0 after the first inning and added 2 more runs in the third with an rbi triple by Wyatt Lassiter scoring Collin Woolard and Lassiter scoring on a wild pitch.
In the bottom of the third a triple by Wilmington's Luke Nixon led to Nixon scoring the first run for Post 10 but another Post 11 run made the score 4-1 in the fourth inning.
Wilmington heated up in the bottom of the sixth, with Bromley Thornton's three-run home run highlighting Post 10's five-run rally which put the defending state champions ahead 6-4.
Not to be outdone, Post 11 answered with 5 runs in the top of the seventh to regain a 9-6 lead and held on for the win.
Fuquay-Varina 6, High Point 1
Post 87 took their first loss in the championship tournament, falling to the host team - and Area I runner-up - Post 116 Nationals.
Fuquay-Varina led 1-0 after the first inning and that score held up until the sixth when Landon Mowery tripled and then scored on Wyatt Stanley's sacrifice to tie the game 1-1.
Post 116 came alive in the bottom of the inning however, scoring 5 runs and holding on for the win.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 26, 2023 – Wednesday Results
LEGION BASEBALL - STATE TOURNAMENT (Day 2)
All games at Campbell University
Wilmington 13, Cleveland County 5
Cleveland County led 2-1 after two innings but Wilmington scored 5 runs in the third to pull ahead and 6 runs in the fifth to stretch out their lead. Trey Pierce had a two-run home run in the third, Cam Matthews hit a solo shot in the fourth before Post 10 sent eleven batters to the plate in the fifth inning.
Between the two big innings for Wilmington, Cleveland County scored two in the fourth when Connor Gantt reached on an error and scored on an Aiden Taylor triple. Taylor then scored on a sacrifice fly by Steven Spaes.
Rowan County 11, Cherryville 4
Trailing 2-1 after the first inning, Rowan County plated 5 runs in the top of the second to take control of the game then added two more in the fourth for an 8-2 lead. Cherryville cut it down to a four run advantage in the fifth but Rowan answered with 3 in the sixth for the final total.
Post 342 had 7 hits but also took advantage of 10 walks and 3 hit batters.
Cherryville had 9 hits, including a 2-run homer by Ashton Pope, but only drew 2 walks for additional baserunners.
High Point 12, Pitt County 1
Post 87 led from the beginning with 2 runs in each of the first two innings Single runs in the fourth and sixth gave High Point a 6-1 lead after Pitt County got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth.
In the seventh however, High Point added 6 runs on 6 hits to complete the scoring.
Fuquay-Varina 10, Wayne County 4
Post 116 scored their runs in the first four innings while giving up just one run at a time to Wayne County. The result was the third team of the day to record 14 hits as all four winning teams on day two scored in double digits.
High Point and Wilmington also produced 14 hits in their wins.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 25, 2023 – Tuesday Results
LEGION BASEBALL - STATE TOURNAMENT (Day 1)
All games at Campbell University
Pitt County 2, Cleveland County 1
Mason Hobbs provided Pitt's one-and-only hit, a lead-off home run in the bottom of the seventh, for the walk-off win.
Cleveland County struck first when Parker Dixon singled in the fourth and eventually scored on an error but Pitt County answered with an unearned run by Ethan Ipock in the bottom of the fourth.
High Point 5, Wilmington 1
High Point scored a run in the top of the fourth and added more in the sixth for a 5-0 lead then limited Wilmington's seventh inning rally to 1 run to get the win for Dylan Storey.
Wayne County 4, Rowan County 1
Once again the scoring began in the fourth with a single run by Wayne County. Post 11 added three runs in the sixth to put Wayne up 4-0.
Rowan, held to one hit through the first five innings, saw J T Taylor hit his second double of the game in the sixth then advance to third on walks to Blake Hill and Luke Graham before scoring on a wild pitch. The inning ended with the bases loaded.
Elijah Palmer added a double in the seventh inning.
Fuquay-Varina 3, Cherryville 1
Post 100 had the early lead after scoring their run in the bottom of the second inning but it was short-lived.
Post 116 responded with two runs in the third, added another in the sixth and held on to complete the Day One sweep for teams from Area I.
The 18 total runs scored in the opening round (4.5/game) is the fewest scored since NCAL adopted the 'tournament' format in 2000. Last year's event saw 28 runners cross the plate (7.0/game) in the first four games which just edged out the 29 runs (7.25/game) scored to start the 2013 tournament.
The most runs on opening day came in 2009 when 68 runs (17.0/game) were scored in the first four games.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 24, 2023 – Monday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 23, 2023 – Sunday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 22, 2023 – AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL
Wilmington Post 10 became the eighth and final team to qualify for the 2023 State Championship Tournament by defeating Carteret County for the Area II Championship Friday night.
The tournament begins Tuesday at Campbell University in Buies Creek with the winner advancing to the Southeast Regional in Asheboro next week.
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 22, 2023 – Saturday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 21, 2023 – Friday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 20, 2023 – Thursday Result
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Championship Game)
Rowan County 6, High Point 5
Rowan County needed all seven innings but managed to win Post 342's third straight Area III Championship with the one-run win over Post 87.
High Point led 5-0 when Rowan got on the scoreboard with a solo home run by Aiden Schenck in the sixth. In the seventh, a walk and a single led to an rbi hit by Morgan Padgett, a walk to load the bases and a walk-off Grand Slam by Hayden Simmerson.
Post 87's Devin Villaman scored in the third inning when he placed the ball between two rowan outfielders for an inside-the-park home run. In the top of the sixth, the first four batters reached and scored to stretch the lead up to 5 runs.
High Point will play the Area II Champion in the second game of day one Tuesday and Rowan County will face the #3 team from Area I, Wayne County, in the third game of the Championship Tournament at Campbell University.
AREA III PLAYOFFS
2023 STATE TOURNAMENT
July 19, 2023 – Wednesday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 18, 2023 – Tuesday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 17, 2023 – Monday Result
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Semifinals; best of 5 games)
Rowan County 5, Randolph County 0 (Rowan wins 3-2)
Rowan County struck for five runs in the first inning and held on for the game 5 win, advancing to the Area III Championship Game as well as the North Carolina State Championship Tournament.
All three of Rowan's hits came in the first inning giving Randolph starter Samuel Asbill his first loss of the summer.
Hunter Atkins and Grat Dalton managed hits for Post 45.
Atkins followed Asbill on the mound for three innings and Tanner Marsh worked the final two.
Randolph County will host the American Legion Southeast Regional beginning Wednesday, August 2.
Rowan County will play High Point Post 87 in a one-game Area II Championship scheduled for Thursday at a location to-be-determined.
July 16, 2023 – Sunday Result
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Semifinals; best of 5 games)
Randolph County 11, Rowan County 2 (Series tied 2-2)
For the second time in three days, Post 45 scored 10 runs in the sixth inning and even their semi-final series with Rowan County.
Rowan scored one run in the second on a bases-loaded walk and another in the third when Aiden Schenk hit a solo home run.
In the bottom of the third, Braylen Hayes drove in Grat Dalton to get Randolph to within 2-1.
A single by Post 342's Luke Graham provided the only baserunner through the fourth, fifth and top half of the sixth inning as Randolph's Robert Garner and Rowan starter Corbin Bailey regained control of the game. Then, much like in Game 2, two singles, a double, two home runs and five walks put Randolph up 11-2 before Garner got the 3 batters out in the top of the seventh.
Tanner Marsh hit a grand slam in the sixth inning, the second for Post 45 in the series and the fourth this season. Hunter Atkins followed Marsh with his fourth homer (3rd of the series). Marsh, Atkins and Braylen Hayes had two hits each. Hayes and Tyler Parks recorded doubles. Carter Brown had a single and 2 rbi.
Robert Garner went seven innings for the complete game win allowing 2 (earned) runs on 6 hits and 2 walks with 5 strikeouts. Bailey left the mound with two runners on in the sixth inning and took the loss.
AREA III PLAYOFFS
July 15, 2023 – Saturday Results
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Semifinals; best of 5 games)
High Point 5, Kannapolis 4 (8 innings) (HP wins 3-0)
The Post 87 Junior Hi-Toms swept Kannapolis and have advanced to the Area III Championship as well as to the North Carolina State Championship Tournament.
High Point will play the winner of the Randolph County-Rowan County series for the Area III title on Thursday and then on to the state double-elimination tournament which begins on Tuesday, July 25 at Campbell University.
Rowan County 10, Randolph County 0 (Rowan leads 2-1)
Like Hayden Simmerson in game one who gave up 3 hits in five innings and Morgan Padgett in game two who surrendered 2 hits and 1 run in 4.2 innings in game two, Rowan's Mike Beasley allowed just 2 hits in five innings of game three.
Thanks to Post 342's offense, that was all he needed for the win.
Rowan County scored 5 in the first inning, increased the lead to 6 after a solo home run by JT Taylor in the fourth and finished off Randolph County with four more in the bottom of the fifth inning. Simmerson hit a 2-run homer in the final inning.
Braylen Hayes and Carter Brown had the Post 45 hits. Austin Lemons worked into the fifth inning and took the loss before giving way to Tyler Parks. Lemons gave up 10 runs (7 earned) on 12 hits with 3 walks and 2 strikeouts.
July 14, 2023 – Friday Results
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Semifinals; best of 5 games)
Rowan County 8, Randolph County 2 (Rowan leads 1-0)
Randolph County trailed 6-1 when the game was suspended due to rain and lightning in Salisbury at the conclusion of the fifth inning. Eager to close the difference, Post 45 used a double, single, hit batter and a bases-loaded walk to plate a run Friday afternoon but Rowan added 2 runs in the bottom of the inning for the final score.
Hunter Atkins had 3 hits and scored the Friday run. Alex Martinez scored on a Braylen Hayes ground-out in the third inning. Atkins had 2 doubles; Grat Dalton hit a double.
Braxton Walker pitched three innings and took the loss. Drew Harmon pitched the fourth and fifth with Connor Adams working the sixth.
Randolph County 11, Rowan County 0 (Series tied 1-1)
Carter Brown's first American Legion home run put a crack in the pitching duel which was the story of the first half of Game 2 in the Area III semi-final series.
Braxton Walker had the only hit of the game and walks to Blake Hill and JT Taylor were Rowan's only baserunners until there were two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning. That's when Brown's long ball to left field put Randolph up 1-0 with what turned out to be the winning run.
Rain began shortly after the homer but lightning stayed away so the game continued with Post 45 adding the fireworks in the bottom of the sixth. Six hits, 2 walks and a hit batter created a 10-run inning and a run-rule win to even the series.
Hunter Atkins hit two home runs in the sixth inning – a two-run shot and a walk-off grand slam – driving in 6 of the 10 Randolph County runs in the inning.
In the meantime, Drake Purvis pitched a no-hitter.
Purvis struck out six and walked two in the six-inning complete game.
High Point 5, Kannapolis 1 (HP leads 2-0)
July 13, 2023 – Thursday Results UPDATED 10:00 pm
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Semifinals; best of 5 games)
Randolph County at Rowan County (Game 1 suspended - weather)
Game will resume Friday, 5:00 at McCrary Park with Rowan leading 6-1 after 5 innings.
High Point 3, Kannapolis 1 (HP leads 1-0)
July 12, 2023 – EAST-WEST ALL-STAR GAMES
The North Carolina Coaches Association annual East-West All-Star games will be held next week in Greensboro. Recent high school graduates from across the state have been selected to participate in basketball, soccer and football.
The East-West basketball doubleheader will be Monday, July 17, at the Greensboro Coliseum. The women's game will tip-off at 6:30 followed by the men's game about 8:30 pm. Eastern Randolph's Brecken Snotherly (East Tennessee State) and Randleman's Gracyn Hall (Emory & Henry) are included on the women's West Team roster.
Tuesday night, July 18, features a soccer doubleheader at MacPherson Stadium in Brown's Summit with the women's match at 6:30 and the men playing at 8:30. Asheboro's Cristian Ortiz and Calvin Smith (Chowan University) have been selected for the match on the West Team.
The annual East-West football game will be Wednesday, July 19 at 8:00 pm at Jamieson Stadium.
NCCA EAST-WEST GAMES WEBSITE
July 12, 2023 – Wednesday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 11, 2023 – Tuesday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 10, 2023 – Monday Result
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Quarter-finals; best of 3 games)
Randolph County 6, Davidson County 1 (Randolph wins series 2-0)
Post 45 led from the third inning when Connor Adams scored on a wild pitch but a one-out walk to Grat Dalton in the fifth inning, followed by an Adams single then Tanner Marsh's seventh home run of the year gave Randolph County some breathing room with a 4-0 lead.
Both teams scored in the sixth with Carter Brown driving in Josh Meadows in the top half and Luke Weldon scoring on a Trip Beck single in the bottom of the inning.
Drake Purvis drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh which pushed across Marxh for the final score.
Meadows (1 run) and Brown (double, 1 rbi) recorded two hits each with single hits by Marsh (HR, 3 rbi, 2 runs), Hunter Atkins and Adams (2 runs).
Samuel Asbill (5-0) pitched six innings for the win giving up 1 run on 8 hits. Asbill struck out 8 and didn't walk anyone. Braxton Walker struck out 1 in one inning of relief.
Randolph County will play Rowan County in the Area 3 semi-finals beginning Thursday.
AREA 3 PLAYOFFS
July 9, 2023 – Sunday Result
LEGION BASEBALL (AREA III Quarter-finals; best of 3 games)
Randolph County 8, Davidson County 1 (Randolph leads 1-0)
Braylen Hayes had two hits including a two-run home run and totaled four rbi and Tanner Marsh had two hits including a two-run homer to lead the Randolph County offense. Hunter Atkins doubled and Post 45 got singles from Tyler Parks, Carter Brown and Pierce Leonard.
Robert Garner gave up one unearned run in six innings for the win. Tanner Marsh pitched a 1-2-3 seventh inning.
Carter Benson picked up an rbi for Davidson County when he drove in Luke Daniels.
Post 45 can wrap up the best-of-three series with a win Monday night at Holt-Moffitt Field in Lexington.
AREA 3 PLAYOFFS
July 8, 2023 – SPECIAL FEATURES
The playoffs are scheduled to begin Sunday as Dennis Garcia and Coach Ronnie Pugh chronicle the 2023 American Legion Baseball season for Post 45 in the latest SPECIAL FEATURE from SportsTone.
July 8, 2023 – Saturday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 7, 2023 – Friday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 6, 2023 – Thursday Result
LEGION BASEBALL
Randolph County 5, Chatham County 3
Chatham County led 3-0 after two innings but Randolph County scored two in the third and three runs in the fifth to close out the regular season with a win.
Connor Adams had two hits and scored twice while Hunter Atkins had two hits – including a double, scored a run and drove in two more for Post 45. Atkins and Tanner Marsh both hit triples.
Drew Harmon pitched three innings and was followed by Austin Lemons who got the win with three innings of scoreless relief. Marsh pitched a 3-up, 3-down seventh inning for his fourth save of the season.
The Area III playoffs begin Sunday night with a home game scheduled for Randolph County.
July 5, 2023 – Wednesday Result
LEGION BASEBALL
Randolph County 7, Foothills 3
Post 45 used three hits, three walks, a dropped third strike and a hit batter to plate six runs in the second inning and complete the season sweep of Foothills Post 123.
Carter Brown had two hits with an rbi and a run scored as seven Randolph County players scored one run each. Tanner Marsh (double), Pierce Leonard, Hunter Atkins and Grat Dalton recorded one hit each.
Starting pitcher Connor Adams got the win giving up both earned runs on 4 hits and 2 walks with three 3 strikeouts. Samuel Asbill, Braxton Walker, Alex Martinez and Hunter Atkins also saw action on the mound.
July 4, 2023 - Independence Day
No Events Scheduled
July 3, 2023 - Monday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 2, 2023 - Sunday Schedule
No Events Scheduled
July 1, 2023 – Saturday Result
LEGION BASEBALL
Randolph County 10, Foothills 0
A solo home run by Tanner Marsh and a grand slam by Josh Meadows were highlights in the Post 45 win.
Randolph County took advantage of some first inning errors by Post 123 for a 3-0 lead but left the bases loaded in each of the first two innings.
Marsh led off the fourth inning with his 5th home run of the season to make the score 4-0 and Meadows led off the fifth with a walk, moved to third on a Grat Dalton double and scored on a wild pitch.
With one out in the sixth, Pierce Leonard singled, Hunter Atkins was hit by a pitch, Austin Lemons walked and Meadows came up again, clearing the bases with his third home run of the summer and putting Post 45 up 9-0.
Drake Purvis scored on a Leonard sacrifice fly in the seventh inning for the final score.
Robert Garner (2-0) gave up 1 hit and 2 walks with 8 strikeouts in six innings for the win. Connor Adams faced three batters in the seventh to preserve the one-hitter.
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