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Post 423, who made it to the region finals and then advanced to the state tourney in 2010, just couldn’t find its mojo like it had late last season.
An injury that sidelined their starting second baseman, Blake Myers and then losing two key pitchers late, really hurt as the regular season closed.
Rutherford County opened the five game playoff series last Tuesday against Mint Hill with a 10-6 comeback win at McNair Field. Down 6-1 by the middle of the fourth, Post 423 scored nine unanswered runs and tied the game at 6-all heading into the fifth.
Rutherford County’s Nick Houser led the team with three hits and Ben Morris added a 2-run homer run in the win. Cameron Wilkins earned the win on the mound going 7.1 strong innings, while Roberto Taft closed out the contest.
Post 423’s issue of overcoming early deficits continued the whole series. In game two, Rutherford County fell behind 8-1 Thursday, but fought back late, tying it up at 8-8 in the eight. In the ninth, Mint Hill scored once and Post 423 fell 9-8 on the road.
With the series coming back to R-S Central High for game three, the luxury of playing on a field they had practiced on all season was thought to be an advantage.
Yet, Post 423 errors doomed them early Friday. Once again, down 9-3, a pinch-hit 2-RBI double by Tyler Harth sparked a rally to tie it up at 9-9 in the seventh. Mint Hill scored three unanswered runs though to win 12-9 in game three.
Staying alive was the name of the game for Post 423 on Saturday and they did it with a 14-11 victory on the road. Danny Fraga and Dylan Hipp each had a couple of hits, while Derek Deaton blasted two homers and Dylan Parris added a Grand Slam to make game five a reality. Wilkins closed out the contest from the hill.
However, pitching finally caught up with them in the end and they lost 12-8 at Butler High School on Sunday night. Post 423 ended the season 9-12 on the year.
Over in Forest City, last Friday’s big Owls game went the way of Team Japan. Pitching was excellent on both sides, but four late Owls errors aided the Japanese to take an 8-1 win at McNair Field. However, there is some good news for Owls fans.
For the fourth year in a row, the Forest City Owls will be in the playoffs, after capturing the first half CPL West title with an 8-5 win over Asheboro, Sunday.
For a guy who has worked to try and capture wins in the upper echelon of NASCAR, it was good to see David Ragan get his first victory. It’s the third, first-time Sprint Cup winner we have seen this season.
Kevin Harvick also took the points lead from Carl Edwards after Edwards crashed early in the Coke Zero 400. It was an unintentional bump by Roush teammate, Greg Biffle that gave Edwards a 37th place result. While the wild finishes are spectacular at plate races this season, the product of two-car drafting this season continues to be terrible racing for the sport. One can only hope for change to come on that aspect for the 2012 season.
