Copperheads Bottle Up Owls, 8-4
Published on June 30, 2011 under Coastal Plain League (Coastal Plain)
Forest City Owls News Release
FOREST CITY, N.C. - The Forest City Owls had the First Half West Division Championship in their sights, but the Asheboro Copperheads knocked them off, 8-4, Thursday night at McNair Field. Both teams are now tied atop the West Division standings, sporting 16-11 records. Tonight's result makes next Monday night's game at Asheboro a winner-take-all tiebreaker contest. The winner of that meeting will be crowned the West Division champions of the first half of the season and will earn an automatic berth in the CPL Petitt Cup playoffs.
Both teams sent their studs out to the mound this evening. Forest City handed the ball to Jeremy Fant (Rice), who threw six innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits, striking out and walking four batters apiece. Meanwhile, Asheboro called on Charlie McCready (Charleston Southern), who boasted the fifth best ERA in the CPL entering tonight's game. McCready could only work 3 1/3 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits, recording four strikeouts and walking one.
The Copperheads relied on a strong showing by its bullpen. The combination of Tate Parrish (North Carolina), Zach Bernard (North Carolina), and Corey Deighan (Charleston Southern) allowed just three hits in 5 2/3 shutout innings. Parrish took home his first win of the season, while Owls reliever Brennan Huelse (Virginia Commonwealth) was tagged with his first loss of the season.
Although the Copperheads scored the first run of the game in top of the third inning, the Owls controlled the first six innings. Forest City scored a pair of runs apiece in the third and fourth innings. Owls LF Cameron Conner (N.C. State) doubled home 1B Dusty Quattlebaum (Gardner-Webb) with two outs in the bottom of the third inning. RF Axel Johnson (TCU) helped the Forest City cause an at-bat later, smacking a single that brought Conner home. The next inning, CF Buddy Sosnoskie (Francis Marion) blasted a double to right field that brought 2B Michael Basil (Indiana) racing home from first base. Sosnoskie would later score on SS Reed Harper's (Austin Peay) single up the middle. Forest City took a 4-1 lead into the sixth inning.
Asheboro tied the game in the top of the sixth inning. With LF Lucas Witt (Kentucky) and 1B Trey Holmes (Appalachian State) on first and second, SS Tommy Simis (Cal State Northridge) cracked a double into left center, driving the runners home. Simis himself would score on the next at-bat, when RF Adam McFarland (Gardner-Webb) poked a single. The ballgame was knotted up at 4-4 in the seventh inning when CF Austin Kingsolver (Cal State Fullerton) scored on DH Hunter Ridge's (UNC Wilmington) groundout. Asheboro led 5-4 heading into the fateful eighth inning. The eighth would prove to be the death knell for Forest City. Nine Copperheads went up to bat, leading to three Asheboro runs and giving the Copperheads the 8-4 victory.
The fans' attention turned away from the game for a few moments, when the Japan National Collegiate Team made an appearance in McNair Field in the seventh inning. The young Japanese players were treated like rock stars by the Owls faithful, which gave them a standing ovation as they entered and crowded around the visitors in order to take pictures. The Japanese team is in town for an exhibition game tomorrow night against the Owls.
Asheboro's Holmes, one of the CPL's top sluggers, went 3-for-5 with a run scored. Jacob Wilson (Memphis), who replaced Simis in the eighth inning, went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Johnson and Basil were the only Owls to record more than one hit.
The Owls welcome the Japan National Collegiate Team to McNair Field tomorrow night. The organization expects the largest crowd in McNair Field history for Friday night's exhibition game. First pitch is scheduled for 7:30 PM.
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