Watson and Daughety help Patriots overcome slow start versus Frink
The Frink Cavaliers faced a tough loss on Tuesday, falling to the Arendell Parrott Academy (APA) JV Patriots 15-4 in a non-conference baseball game. The Cavaliers are now 2-3 and the Patriots move to 2-1 for the season.
The Cavs took an early 4-0 lead thanks to hot bats from Jacob Jones, Henry Hall, Daniel Boyette, and Israel Almanza. Hunter Southerland, a seventh-grader, pitched three good innings for the Cavs. Coach Chad Kearney liked how he could find his pitches and disrupt the Patriots' timing at the plate.
Unfortunately, bullpen struggles plagued the Cavaliers, with Coach Kearney admitting, "The bullpen has struggled our last two games, and we rely on them to get the job done and close the door, but that didn't happen."
Only two eighth-graders were in the starting lineup for Frink's young team, which showed promise as they hit well and kept their plates in order, which helped them get an early lead.
"We put the ball in play and made their defense work," coach Kearney noted,
The APA Patriots demonstrated resilience as they overcame their rocky start. Patriots eighth grader AB Daughety came in as a relief to regain control of the game and picked up the win. APA stringed together some big hits from Holt Hinton and Cole Watson that fueled their comeback. Watson notably contributed an inside-the-park grand slam.
"We had a rocky start in the first two innings," APA coach John Tyer said. "But as the game progressed, our pitchers got into a groove and our hitters started to have more competitive at-bats, which allowed us to chip away at the 4-0 deficit and take the lead in the fourth inning."
The Patriots are looking to maintain their momentum as they play away against North Raleigh Christian tomorrow. The Cavs are set to face Woodington next Wednesday for their final home game of the year.
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