Mountaineers Blank Wolves 6-0 And Lions 1-0 Herald Sports BY HAROLD PEARSON .SWC Has Balance I Early season results in the Southwest AAA Confer lence baseball race are playing havoc with the pre-season guessers. . After three games the standings are the same as in 1962. with one or two teams exchanging places. Last year *after three contests there were five loop members dead locked for the top spot. This year five teams are similarly knotted. „ „ _ . . Pre-season favorites, Lincolnton and Blast Rutherford, last season’s champ, Cherryville, Shelby and Kings Moun tain are the five tied for first. These standings are sure to change this week, how ever. Kings Mountain takes on Shelby and Cherryville, Lincolnton meets Belmont and Shelby, East has Cherry ville and Chase. Upcoming games notwithstanding, two facts seem evi dent in the SWC this season: (1) There is balance throughout, and (2) the top .teams are one-pitcher teams (KM being the exception here). Substantiating the balance theme are these facts: ! East beat KM, Line, beat East, KM beat Line., and Cherry ville beat Shelby after losing to Chase who had been beat en by Shelby. One-pitcher substantiation: Shelby won two with Don Patrick on the hill, lost with other pitchers in Cherryville clash; Lincolnton won two with Steve Herman throwing, lost with second-line hurlers. This season should be an up and down one for at least four teams from present indications. Cherryville doesn't figure to repeat as champ. This should be the year they take their lumps. Mountaineers Ahead Of '62 Pace Along this line it must be said that the Mountain eers are much better off than at this stage of the race in ’62. Last season the local boys did not win until they met Chase in the sixth game of the season. Including that win they went on to win seven in a row before losing to Cher iyVl Presently they own a 3-1 won-lost record after four contests This gives them a much greater start than last going out on a limb too far, it would be safe to say that the Mountaineers have better than an outside chance to go all the way this year. The only thing that shadows this possibility is the bat attack. Here they are below par for a championship 'team but this could change as the season progresses. A single here and there could be all that is needed to pick up all the marbles. In other departments they are on par or above the rest of the loop. Defensively the team is adequate. In fact, if they per form the remainder of the campaign as they did in the Lineolnton game, they will have to be rated more than adequate. . , ... On the mound the Mountaineers must be rated with the other top teams even in the absence °f a Curler corn parable with Simon Jones. Jackie Hughes, Goforth and Barry Gibson are able to get the job done, if they do lack the zip of the aforementioned Jones. Maybe the win at Lineolnton provided some momen tum for the Mountaineers to keep ahead of the ’62 pace. "Oldtimers" League? Looks like the Moose team will again be participating in the fastpitch softball loop in Shelby. Machinery will soon get into action for the local circuit’s formation. But listen recreation commission and director! Have you given consideration to another possible entry in this year’s recreation program? Talk is circulating throughout the Historical City about the possible addition of an “Oldtimers” team and/or league. 1 Audley Tignor is just finishing up the bowling season and is ready to embark on a summer of softball. He is talk ling around about organizing a team of former players, ‘“oldtimers." “Doggone” is one of those fellows who would rather nlav or watch a game than eat when hungry. Surely there are several more ex-players in town who equal his en thusiasm for another season of competition. Remembering back a few years brings one to the conclusion that the “oldtimers” would give the present teams a close race, if time hasn t taken too great a toll. Only two questions are forthcoming here: 11 How old do you have to be to qualify as an Old timer? 2) Who will supply the much-needed liniment? Director “Mag" Ross should give the team considera tion in his plans for the upcoming summer recreation pro gram. Big Race Is Underway Well, the most famous race in the world got under way Monday... No, it wasn’t the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Grand Prix or the Irish Sweepstakes. It was the annual race for the pennant by 20 major league teams. This race, also probably the longest, annually receives more coverage by the press, radio and TV folk than any other. , ,, .. It is the subject of probably more arguments and bets, favorites and underdogs than any other sporting event. It is the National Pastime no matter what the pro football publicists say. _ . . Be you Yankee, Senator, Dodger or Cub fan, this race has something for every lover of the grand old game of Vvo cpHji 11 Favorites this season are the Yankees (who else) in the American and Dodgers, Giants and Reds in the Na tional. , ^ . , You pay your money and take your chances. KMHS Golfers Score Wins Over Lincolnton, Shelby Local Keglers Win Loot In Burlington Official results are in, the local duckpin keglers are $183 richer from the state championship tournament held in Burlington during the month of March. Janet Bums tops the list of Historical City money-winners in i the tournament. She took first place in the George Manning sin gles, second in the women’s all ' events, second in the women’s team, third in singles and team ed with Jenny Oates to win first in the doubles. For her standout performance Janet is $85.50 richer. In addition to her doubles vic tory with Bums, Jenny Oates and Lib Bolin shared a third place in women’s team events. Oates had a take of $38, while Bolin won $8. In the men’s division Albert Brackett came within one pin of picking up $50 in the men’s team event. He had to take a tie for the top spot and a purse of $40. John Dilling was the other Kings Mountain kegler picking up loot at the event. Tying in two events John received $11.50 for his efforts. — BOX SCORES Shelby AB Peeler, 3b 3 Wilson, ss 2 Street, 2b 3 Wilkie, lb 3 Bankston, c 3 McSwain, rf 3 Byrd, cf 0 Addis, If 2 a—Pruitt 1 Patrick, p 2 Champion, p 1 TOTALS 23 K. Mountain AB Hilliard, 2b 3 Murphy, 3b 2 Gold, ss 2 Little, If 2 Goodson, cf 3 Leigh, lb 2 Goforth, p 2 Gibson, p, rf 0 Cooke, c 3 Harris, rf 2 b—Robbs 1 Hughes, rf, p 0 R 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 R 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 H 1 1 S: 0 0 1 0 3 H 0 0 2 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 TOTALS 22 1 5 a—Flied to left for Addis in 7th b—Struck out for Harris in 6th SCORE BY INNINGS Shelby 000 000 00—0 3 1 Kings Mtn. 100 000 00—1 5 1 E—Peeler, Murphy PO-A — Shelby 18-6; Kings Mountain 21-9 DP—Murphy - Hilliard - Leigh LOB—Shelby 6; K. Mtn. 8 S—Leigh, Goforth Pitching Patrick (L) | Champion ; Goforth (W) j Gibson | Hughes IP H R ER BB SO 4% 4 1 0 3 6 1% 1 0 0 0 2 6 3 0 0 2 4 % 0 0 0 0 1 % 0 0 0 0 0 HBP—Byrd (Gibson) Kings Mountain Hilliard, 2b Murphy, 3b Leigh, lb Little, If Goodson, ef Gold, ss Goforth, p Hughes, p Cooke, c Harris,