MAY 31,2017
BERTIE LEDGER-ADVANCE
Sports
The fabric of Bertie County since 1832
Harrell
was home for me,” Har
rell said. “Their base
ball program is getting
better every year - two
years ago they won their
conference champion
ship, and last year they
made it there. There is
a lot of talent going into
Chowan next year, espe
cially the freshmen.”
Count Harrell as one
of the talented fresh
men.
At the plate, he hit .346
(27-for-78) with 29 runs
scored (tied for second
on the team) and 27
RBls (tied for first). His
10 doubles, two triples
and two home runs led
the team.
Behind the plate, Har
rell had a .979 fielding
percentage as the War
riors’ catcher. In 189 to
tal chances, he had 164
putouts, 21 assists and
just four errors.
As a pitcher, Harrell
was 5-0 in 13 appearanc
es with three saves and
Junior
a 1.04 earned-run aver
age. In 40.1 innings, he
allowed 29 hits and 15
runs (six earned) with
68 strikeouts and only
five walks.
Baseball runs in Har
rell’s family. His father
is an avid baseball fan,
and both of his siblings
are LA alumni.
His brother, Joe, was
on a state champion
ship team at Lawrence.
Currently, his other
brother, Jacob, is the
head coach at Gates
County.
“Jarrett is a real stu
dent of the game, and 1
think it came from his
household growing up,”
said LA baseball coach
Jason Wynne. “He has
always been around it
and has a general love
for it, and he’s always
trying to do the best in
any situation that pres
ents itself to him.”
Harrell picked up a
baseball at a young
age and played first in
the Ahoskie recreation
league for several years.
He then further honed
his skills playing travel
ball - first for the Riv-
ercats of Windsor, and
then for Carolina Elite
out of Greenville.
“1 feel like travel ball
strengthened me men
tally and physically,” he
said. “Sometimes you’d
be playing two games
on Saturdays and Sun
days, and even three or
four games in one day.”
After completing his
seventh grade year
at Hertford County
Middle School, Harrell
transferred to LA as
an eighth grader and
quickly became a three-
sport athlete, playing
football, basketball and
baseball.
At last week’s athletic
awards banquet, he was
named the Male Athlete
of the Year.
While he proved solid
in football and basket
ball, earning team MVP
honors multiple times
in both sports, it was
baseball that became
his main passion.
“There is nothing else
like it,” he said. “Nothing
like lacing the cleats up
and the smell of pine tar
and sunflower seeds.
“It’s a thinking per
son’s sport,” he contin
ued. “There is a lot of
time and dedication in
volved, as well as strat
egy.”
During his career, Har
rell was a part of a state
championship team (as
an eighth grader), two
final fours, two state
championship series
and five conference
championships.
This past season, the
Warriors were picked
seventh' by North Caro
lina Independent School
Athletic Association
coaches after suffer
ing heavy losses due to
graduation.
Still, the Warriors - de
spite being young - won
22 games in a row and
reached the state 1A fi
nals, where they fell two
games to one to Kerr-
Vance Academy.
“We knew we were
young, but we also
knew we had talent,”
he said. “We wanted to
prove that we were go
ing to be a better team
than what everybody
predicted.”
Harrell was the team’s
emotional leader.
“Regardless of the
sport he was playing,
he wore his heart on
his sleeve,” Wynne said.
“Sometimes that was
positive; other times we
had to work on some
things, which we were
able to do the past two
years. 1 am just glad 1
had the opportunity to
coach him.”
Harrell said, “I’ve al
ways been like that,
ever since Little League.
1 don’t like to call them
out and embarrass
them, but if 1 see they’re
doing something wrong,
1 will pull them to the
side and try and help
them out.”
Harrell is grateful
for the opportunities
and successes he has
had while at Lawrence.
He credited his brpth-
ers, parents, baseball
coaches Wynne and
Robert Kravitz, basket
ball coach Jon Powell
and football coach/ath
letic director Lee Hoff
man for their support
and guidance.
He described Law
rence athletics as a fam
ily.
“In all of my years
here, it’s been more of
a family than a team,”
he said. “We’ve all got
ten close over the past
five years, we have each
other’s back, and 1 still
talk to guys who have
graduated.”
Harrell hopes to earn
a degree in health and
physical education.
“1 would like to find a
good teaching job and
coach baseball, football
or both,” he concluded.
Ball and White (who
tripled), a walk and an
error.
White earned the win
after going 6.2 innings.
He allowed five hits and
four runs (two earned)
with six strikeouts and
one walk.
Evan Wells recorded
the final out in the bot
tom of the seventh to
pick up the save.
Askew and White led
Post 37 with two hits each,
while Cottle, Ball, Wood
Trowell and Lace Slachta
added one hit each.
(Game Two)
Windsor 14,
Clayton 1
WENDELL-Windsor had
no trouble with Clayton
in the nightcap of the
doubleheader.
Post 37 scored five
runs in the first inning
and eight more in the
second frame on its way
to a 13-hit barrage.
Jarrett Burden toiled
the first three innings
and allowed two hits
with a walk and a strike
out for the Rebels.
James Brooks worked
two innings and allowed
a run and a hit with one
strikeout and one walk.
Trenton White led
Windsor with three hits,
while Cottle and Caleb
Damo collected two
hits each. Wood Trow
ell, Brandon Ball, James
Brooks, Aydan Harmon,
Burden and Josh Morris
managed one hit each.
May 25
Perquimans 13,
Windsor 1
HERTFORD - The Rebels
managed just six hits
and plated their lone
run in the third inning
in their first loss of the
Trenton White and Al-
den Cottle each had two
hits for Post 37. Caleb
Damo and Brandon Ball
added one hit each.
Cottle absorbed the
loss on the mound, go
ing 3.1 innings and al
lowing 10 hits and 10
runs (seven earned)
with one strikeout and
two walks.
Jarrett Burden gave up
two hits and three runs
with one strikeout in
two-thirds of an inning.
Cottle doubled home
White (who led off with
a double) for the Reb
els’ only run.
Fourth
Jimmy Graham -
Looks like a default
created player in a
video game.
J.J. Redick - Sketchy
car valet who might
take your car for a joy
ride.
Chip Kelly - Looks
like the guy who
leaves comically low
tips to service people,
then shoots the finger
gun and says, “Don’t
spend it all in one
place”.
Orel Hershiser
Looks like the father
in the picture of the
frame that you buy at
Walmart.
Shane Battier - Ten
nis coach who gets too
close to your wife.
Charlie Weis - Looks
like he was cut in half
and accidentally had the
bottom half of his body
sewn on backwards.
David Friedman is a
long time sports writer
and columnist. A Bertie
High School graduate, he
and his family currently
reside in Wilmington. Da
vid can be reached via
e-mail at fourthandlong-
column@gmail. com.