STAFF PHOTO BY DOUG KUTTM
NORTH BRUNSWICK COACH WES COWARD (left) tries to settle down pitcher Casey McBride dur
ing the Scorpion's 5-3 loss last week to West Brunswick. North has dropped Jive straight games.
Scorpions Lose Fifth Straight
HY DOUG RUTTKR
North Brunswick's baseball team suffered its fifth
straight Waccamaw 2-A Conference loss Monday night
at Whitcville, falling 5-2 to the unbeaten Wolfpack.
After opening the conference season with three
straight wins, Monday's loss leaves North Brunswick
fifth in the league and in serious jeopardy of missing out
on the state playoffs.
"A little slump like this in high school baseball can
put you under in a hurry," Scorpion Coach Wes Coward
said prior to Monday's loss. "I'd hate to see that happen
because we started off so strong."
North Brunswick lost all three of its conference
games last week. West Columbus beat the Scorps twice,
7-5 on Wednesday and 11-9 Thursday, and West
Brunswick beat North 5-3 on Tuesday.
With five straight conference losses, North Bruns
wick entered Tuesday night's game with South Bruns
wick with a 3-5 mark in the Waccamaw Conference and
5-8 overall.
Coward, a first-year coach, said the team has been
making a few errors. But the real problem has been the
team is falling behind early and having to battle back
every game.
North Brunswick has had the tying or winning run
on base or at the plate in the final inning in six of its
eight losses.
"I'll bet I've had 20 people come up to me this year
and tell me that the kids never give up," Coward said.
| "It's good that we're not quitters, but we're tired of bat
tling and coming up short. We want to gel over ihc
edge."
Also contributing to the slump have been injuries to
North's once-strong pitching staff.
The Scorpions lost the services of sophomore pitch
er/first baseman Casey McBride in the West Brunswick
game. McBride snapped a tendon in his pitching arm
and is out indefinitely.
North Brunswick's other right-handed pitcher, Jarcd
McGce, hurt his arm earlier this season and is still re
covering. McGce and McBride are two of the team's
best hitters.
"Even with all of the injuries we're still in every
game we play," Coward said. "We're just making a few
key mistakes here and there. We need to put it together."
After Tuesday's game with South Brunswick, the
Scorpions travel to East Bladen Friday. North has just
four more conference games after that, including back
lo-back contests with Whitcvillc and West Brunswick
next week.
"Now every single game is crucial," Coward said
Monday. "We have to win every one from now on. If we
lose one or two more we're gone."
The top three teams from the Waccamaw Confer
ence qualify for the state playoffs. Going into Tuesday's
play, Whitcvillc led at 7-0 and was followed by East
Bladen at 6-2, West Columbus at 4-2 and West Bruns
wick at 4-4.
North Brunswick and Fairmont arc tied for fifth.
"It's a dog fight right now," Coward said.
Diamond Cougars Drop Three
South Brunswick's woes on the
baseball diamond continued last
week as the Cougar? dropped three
games to fall deeper in the Wac
camaw 2-A Conference standings.
The Cougars lost twice to confer
ence foe East Bladen, 7-4 Friday
night in Boiling Spring Lakes and 8
7 last Tuesday in Elizabethtown.
South also lost a non-conference
game to visiting Marion, S.C., 15-5
last Wednesday.
South opened this week 1-6 in the
Waccamaw Conference and 2-13
overall. The Cougars were sched
uled lo play at North Brunswick
Tuesday before hosting West Col
umbus Friday.
The 8-7 defeat last Tuesday at
East Bladen was South Brunswick's
sixth one-run loss of the season. The
Cougars have lost four conference
games by a single run.
South Brunswick Coach Jack
Brown was cjcctcd in the East
Bladen game last Tuesday?the sec
ond time this season Brown has been
cjcctcd. He also was thrown out of a
game in Whitcvillc April 20.
Senior catcher Mike Clewis is
leading the Cougars at the plate.
Clewis was hitting .378 going into
Friday night's game, when he
picked up two hits. Jason Braccy
and Lewis Vaught are hitting around
.300.
West Brunswick JV Leads Waccamaw
West Brunswick's junior varsity baseball team re
mained undefeated in the Waccamaw 2-A Conference
with a 7-1 win Monday at Fairmont.
The Trojans trailed 1-0 after five innings but broke
the game open with six runs in the sixth. Chris Jackson
was 3-for-4, picking up the game-tying RBI and scoring
game-winning run.
Neil Warren was 2-for-3. Chris Payne, Jay
McRoberts, Gabe Cooper and Phillip Leonard had one
hit each. Cameron Jones hit a two-run home run for
West Brunswick. Leonard was the winning pitcher.
The Trojans, 7-0 in the conference and 8-1 overall,
were scheduled to play at South Robeson Thursday.
In conference play last Thursday, West Brunswick
defeated Whitcville 5-4. Jackson and Payne both went
2-for-3 with two RBI. Payne knocked in the game-win
ning run. Leonard was 3-for-3, and winning pitcher Josh
Baker had two hits.
Earlier this season, West Brunswick snapped the
Whitcville JV's 27-garne winning streak with a 7-3 win
in Whitcville.
"1 don't know how long it's been since we've beaten
Whitcville two times in the same year. It's been many
years," said West Brunswick JV Baseball Coach David
Arrowood.
Two weeks ago, the Trojans won a pair of confer
ence games in the bottom of the seventh.
West Brunswick defeated North Brunswick 5-4 on
April 26. Baker pitched a five-hitter for the Trojans,
while McRoberts went 3-for-3 with an RBI and Cooper
was l-for-2 with two RBI.
On April 22, the Trojan JV posted a 16-15 win over
county rival South Brunswick. Joel Gupton was 2-for-5
and knocked in the game-winning run in the seventh.
Warren was 3-for-5 with two RBI, McRoberts was
2-for-4 and Jackson was the winning pitcher.
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GORE FANS 10 SCORPIONS
West Trojans Snap
Losing Skid At North
BY DOUG RUTTER
West Brunswick's Scott Gore
struck out 10 batters as the Trojans
snapped a three
game losing
streak with a 5
3 high school
baseball win last
Tuesday at
North Bruns
wick.
Gore carried
a one-hitter into \ M
the seventh in
ning, but the gore
Scorpions rallied for three runs in
their final at-bal before Eric Johnson
came on to record the save for the
Trojans.
"All the wins now arc big wins,"
West ..Brunswick Coach Mike
Aldcnson said after the game. "Scott
pitched a great game. We finally put
the bats on the ball and made some
things happen offensively."
North Brunswick Coach Wcs Co
ward said his team started slow at
the plate but never gave up. "Our
guys know until the last out we're
going after it. Sometimes they have
more faith in themselves than I do."
The Trojans started quickly with
two runs in the lop of the first in
ning. Wayne Branch scored from
third on a ground out, and Mike
Johnson camc home on Aaron But
ler's iwo-out double to left-center
field.
West Brunswick added three runs
in the sixth inning, highlighted by
Bryan Fleming's 375-foot solo
home run to center field.
Scorpion pitcher Casey McBridc
had injured his arm on a 1-1 pitch to
Fleming, but stayed in the game
long enough for West's senior catch
er drive a 3-1 fastball out of the
yard.
Paul Mint/, relieved McBridc, a
sophomore who yielded three runs
on four hits and recorded seven
strike outs. BuUer, who had two of
West's five hits, greeted Mint/ with
a single and later scored on an in
field throwing error.
West Brunswick scored its final
run one batter later when Eric Joh
nson purposely got into a rundown
between first and second base and
Kcanc Bellamy scooted home from
third.
Coach Aldcrson said the "Early
Bird" play is designed to induce a
balk. If the pitcher doesn't balk, the
runner at first base is supposed to
stay in a rundown long enough to al
low the runner at third to score.
Gore, a senior right-hander, took a
one-hit shutout into the bottom of
the seventh, but gave up two singles
and a walk to load the bases with
one out. Gore fanned Matt Mint/ for
the second out, but uncorked a wild
pitch that allowed Jeremy Child to
score from third.
The Trojans could have ended the
game on Timmy Campbell's
grounder to first. But Gregg Mott's
loss to Gore was wide of the bag and
Adrian Black and Robert Heweit
scorcd on the error.
With runners at the corners and
one out, Eric Johnson relieved Gore
and issued a walk to load the bases
for leadoff hitter Demetrius Bell.
Johnson struck out Bell to end the
game.
West Brunswick improved to 3-3
in the Waccamaw 2-A Conference
and 9-5 overall. With its second
straight confcrencc loss, North
Brunswick fell to 3-2 in the league
and 5-5 overall.
West Brunswick's win also tight
ened the race for the Brunswick
County baseball championship. All
three teams were 1-1 against county
competition going into Tuesday
night's clash between South and
North in Lcland.
Game Summary
W. Brtins. 2 0 000 3 0?5 5 2
N.Bruns. n0()()0
Trojans Post Big Win Over Visiting Vikings
Fighting to keep its state playoff hopes alive. West followed East Bladen at 6-2, West Columbus and West
Brunswick's baseball team came up with a huge 6-2 Brunswick.
win Monday night against the visiting West Columbus The top three teams from the conference will quali
Vikings. fy for the state playoffs. The Trojans had two more
Trojan pitching ace Scott Gore struck out 11 and home games scheduled this week. They were cxpccted
yielded just four hits in the complctc-gamc victory, to host Fairmont Tuesday and South Robeson Friday,
which West Brunswick needed to stay in the hunt for West Brunswick Coach Mike Alderson said he
one of the three playoff berths from the Waccamaw 2- planned to pitch Eric Johnson against the Golden Tor
A Conference. nadoes, and send Gore to the mound again Friday
Aaron Butler led the West Brunswick offense, going night against the Mustangs.
3-for-3 at the plate with two RBI. Bryan Fleming had Next week, the Trojans travel to West Columbus
two hits and drove in another run for the Trojans. Tuesday and host North Brunswick Friday. West
West Brunswick improved to 4-4 in the conference, Brunswick travels to East Bladen May 18 and wraps
while West Columbus fell to 4-2. Going into up the conference slate with a May 21 home game
Tuesday's action, Whitcvillc led the Waccamaw at 7-0, against South Brunswick.
Whiteville Turns Back West Brunswick 8-5
BY DOUG RUTTER
West Brunswick twice came back
from deficits before falling to unde
feated Whitcvillc 8-5 last Thursday
in Waccamaw 2-A Conference high
school baseball.
"We played well," West Brans
wick Coach Mike Aldcrson said.
"We had a couple of errors that hurt
us, but they got two hits with the
bases loaded. That was the differ
ence in the ball game."
Whitcvillc held a 2-0 lead after
three innings, but the visiting Tro
jans tied the score in the top of the
fourth on Bryan Fleming's two-run
home run to left field.
"Fleming hit a towering shot,"
Aldcrson said. "It must have been
430 feet. It would have been out of
Yankee Stadium. I've never seen a
ball hit that far before in high
school."
Whitcvillc reclaimed the lead in
the bottom of the fourth with three
runs. With two outs, Mark Harritan
hit a three-run double to give the
Wolfpack a 5-2 lead.
But the Trojans rallied for three
runs of their own in the lop of the
fifth to knot the score at 5-5. Mike
Johnson's double was the big blow
for West Brunswick.
Whitcville scored three times in
the bottom of the fifth to take an 8-5
lead, and West Brunswick failed to
score in its final two at-bats.
Clay Boykin pitched five innings
for the Wolfpack, and Chris Conway
pitched the final two. Eric Johnson
went the distance for West Bruns
wick, yielding eight hits. The Tro
jans had six hits.
"We went up there and hit the
ball, and we made several clutch de
fensive plays" Alderson said. "I was
pleased with the way we hit. We hit
the ball hard and made them make
the plays."
Alderson said Boykin hadn't giv
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cn up any earned runs this season
prior to West Brunswick's visit.
Fleming's home run was his
fourth of the season. The senior
catcher also smashed a homer last
Tuesday at North Brunswick. Mike
Johnson, a sophomore, went 2-foM
against Whitcvillc.
The Wolfpack, the defending Eas
tern North Carolina 2-A baseball
champion, improved to 6-0 in the
conference and 13-0 overall. West
Brunswick fell to 3-4 in the confer
ence and 9-6 overall.
"That's four losses in the confer
ence for us," Aldcrson said. "We
need to go 7-0 the rest of the way."
Game Summary
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