South Lenoir Shuts Out Eastern Wayne to Advance to Round Two
DEEP RUN, NC — The South Lenoir Varsity Devils, holding the #6 seed, commenced their playoff campaign with a strong showing, shutting out the #27 seed Eastern Wayne Lady Warriors 2-0 in the first round of the state playoffs on Tuesday.
The game was a showcase of South Lenoir's dominant pitching. Callie Tyndall started the game, delivering a solid four innings where she allowed just one hit and struck out six. Jade Sasnett closed the game with three innings of similarly effective pitching, also allowing one hit and matching Tyndall's six strikeouts to earn the save.
Offensively, the Devils capitalized on an Eastern Wayne error in the third inning to open the scoring. Key hits from Payton Bryan and Kiley Smith, with Bryan notching an RBI, underlined their timely hitting. The team’s aggressive base running paid off, with six stolen bases putting continual pressure on Eastern Wayne's defense. Rylee Wade and Smith played crucial roles, executing pivotal steals that led to scoring chances.
Despite the defeat, Eastern Wayne's pitcher Mallory Reed delivered a commendable performance, striking out 13 and giving up only two unearned runs over six innings.
South Lenoir's strategy was tailored to exploit their opponent's weaknesses. Coach Madison Harvey shared her game plan, "Our approach going in was that we knew we had to have good at bats, and we also knew they struggled with bunt defense, so we bunted a lot to get runners in scoring position. It wasn't pretty, but it worked."
South Lenoir now prepares for a second-round clash against Whiteville. The #22 seed Whiteville advanced after an impressive 13-0 upset over the #11 seed, setting the stage for what promises to be a gripping encounter. This Friday’s game will be a crucial test of the Devils’ readiness to delve deeper into the playoff bracket.
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