RWA’s Mitchell Gibbons (15) pleads his case after the bang-bang play at the plate, but Fairfield Central’s Markelle Whittaker (2) and Chris Boyd (4) agree with the Man in Blue. (Photo/Martha Ladd)
WINNSBORO – After evening up the season series over spring break at one game apiece with a come from behind 5-2 win over Fairfield Central, the Richard Winn Academy Eagles baseball squad fell in the hole two games to one Monday night. The Griffins used just seven hits, capitalizing on a full dozen walks and a pair of hit batsmen to paste the Eagles 14-1 Monday at RWA.
“The last few games, we’re starting to put it together a little bit,” Griffins head coach Scotty Dean said after Tuesday’s identical 14-1 road win over region foes Columbia High School. “We’re starting to get those timely hits we’ve talked about.”
Antonio Jackson got the complete-game win for Fairfield Monday. The right-hander held the Eagles to just a pair of hits, striking out six, walking five and hitting one batter through five innings.
The Eagles sent four warm bodies to the hill Monday, though none was able to tame the Griffin bats.
Blake Pauley got the start for Richard Winn, but got the short hook after walking the first four batters he faced. All four eventually crossed the plate and were charged to Pauley in the Griffins’ 6-run first.
Bryant Carvalho came on in short relief, pitching 1 and a third innings. Carvalho gave up five runs on three hits, striking out a pair while walking three and hitting one batter. Mitchell Gibbons came on with one out in the second, surrendering four runs on two hits and four walks, striking out two through 1 and two-thirds.
Elijah Tucker finished out the final two frames for the Eagles, giving up one run on two hits, a walk and a hit batsman, striking out two along the way.
Markelle Whittaker was the offensive catalyst for the Griffins, delivering 4 RBIs on a 3-for-4 night at the plate. Brandon Adams drove in a pair of runs, going 1-for-3 with a walk, a stolen bag and a run scored.
Travius Williams also hammered home a pair of runs with a hefty two-bagger. Williams was 1-for-2 on the night, enduring one hit-by-pitch. Stanley McManus and Byron Sampson each went 1-for-1, officially, with McManus roping a double, drawing two walks and getting hit by a pitch.
For the Eagles, hits were at a premium, with all their noise coming in the bottom of the fifth inning. Cameron Cooper reached on a single and came around to score on Tucker’s RBI double before the lights went out on Richard Winn.
The two teams meet for a final time Friday at Fairfield Central at 6 p.m. The Griffins have out-scored Richard Winn 30-6 in the series, winning game one 14-0 on March 30 and dropping game two 5-2 on March 31. The Eagles, meanwhile, will be looking for a season split with their crosstown rivals.
FC: 6-5-2 0-1-x x – 14-7-1
RW: 0-0-0 0-1-x x – 1-2-2
Pitching: FC—A. Jackson (W), 5IP, 1R, 2H, 6K, 5BB, 1HB. RW—B. Pauley (L), 0IP, 4R, 4BB. Carvalho, 1.1IP, 5R, 3H, 2K, 3BB, 1HB. M. Gibbons, 1.2IP, 4R, 2H, 2K, 4BB. E. Tucker, 2IP, 1R, 2H, 2K, 1BB, 1HB.
Hitting: 2B—S. McManus, T. Williams (FC); E. Tucker (RW). LOB: FC-8, RW-8.
