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Greyhounds trusting the process

North Surry outlasted McMichael on March 8 to move to 3-0 on the season.

Competing in the Cook’s Sporting Goods Tournament for the second consecutive night, North Surry welcomed McMichael just 24 hours after North decimated Salisbury 20-0.

The Greyhounds struck first in the low-scoring affair, with the first hit of the game coming in the bottom of the third inning. The visiting Phoenix responded with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth, then small ball helped the Hounds fire back with two runs in the bottom of the fifth that ultimately clinched the 3-2 victory.

“It’s big for the seniors to step up and execute in what we call ‘crucial situations,’” said Greyhound coach Daryll Johnson. “You saw the bunts and guys making sacrifices to benefit the team, and that was great to see. Hats off to the whole team, defensively and at bat. It was a total team effort.

“McMichael’s a good baseball team. They’re young, but competitors, so we fought and were fortunate to come away with a win.”

Leading North Surry on the mound was senior Cam Taylor. Taylor, a righty who’s hard to miss at 6-feet 6-inches, finished with eight strikeouts in five innings pitched. He also walked three batters and allowed two runs on three hits.

“Cam’s performance on the mound tonight really set the tone for the team,” Johnson said. “He played big, and I think his stat line is proof that he was pretty doggone good. He showed great leadership through his efforts.”

Freshman Cade Atkins threw the final two innings, finishing with two strikeouts, no walks, and no runs on no hits.

Johnson commended Atkins for showing out in his first ‘crucial situation’ at the high school level, adding that North’s defense gave the first-year confidence to let loose.

“Cade will be the first to tell you that the defense behind him made the plays and he pitched,” Johnson said. “That’s something I feel we were weak with last year: we hit the ball really well as a team, but our defense was terrible. We talked about that at the end of the season, and we’ve gotten better defensively this year.”

The Greyhounds’ returning players from the 2022 season didn’t waste time in preparing for the 2023 campaign. Johnson said the players worked through the summer, fall and winter to perfect their craft, adding that even the players on North’s 27-win basketball team put in work when they were able.

One of the main points of emphasis for North Surry this season was playing with confidence and competing every night.

Johnson said he and the coaching staff thought a lack of confidence and inconsistent play hurt the Hounds in 2022. That team started 5-1, with the team’s only loss during that stretch coming against a West Stokes team that went on to win 19 games, but North Surry followed by dropping six of their next seven games.

A mid-season reboot for the Hounds paid off, and the boys from Toast went from 6-7 to 16-10 by the end of the season. This included a span in which North Surry won 10-of-11 games, only losing to 25-win West Forsyth, to reach the Foothills 2A Conference Tournament Championship.

“They didn’t want a repeat of coming in stale this year,” Johnson said. “We say ‘trust the process and you’ll win the prize.’ We never claim to be the best coaches around, but we have a plan and I really feel like these kids believe in our plan right now. That’s the hardest thing to get through with coaching: getting kids to buy in and trust the process.

‘They’ve put the work in and I think you saw that tonight. You saw a lot of confidence at the plate and a lot of confidence in the field.”

McMichael didn’t put the ball in play until the third inning, with Taylor striking out the first six batters for the Phoenix. McMichael had two ground outs in the top of the third, and Taylor got his seventh K in the same inning.

North had two players walked in the first two innings, with Myles Draughn even reaching third in the second inning, but the Hounds failed to put runs on the board until the third.

James McCreary got things going in the bottom of the third inning with a grounder to right field. Jake Beamer beat the throw to first after a short hit toward third, and a dropped ball at first base allowed McCreary to reach third on the play. Brodie Robertson scored McCreary with a hard ground ball just out of the second-baseman’s reach.

Beamer also looked to score on Robertson’s single, but was thrown out at the plate.

McMichael put a runner on second in the top of the fourth with two outs. A wild pitch moved the runner to third, then an RBI single to right field evened the game up at 1-1. The Phoenix’s next batter hammered an RBI triple to deep left-center field to give the visitors the edge at 2-1.

McMichael looked to extend its lead later in the inning by stealing home, but Robertson made the tag for out No. 3.

Fast-forward to the bottom of the fifth and North’s Jackson Smith stood on first with no outs after hitting a line drive to center. McCreary moved Smith to second with a bunt and reached first safely himself. Beamer followed with a bunt of his own, taking the out at first but moving both runners to scoring position.

Kolby Watson grounded out to first to score Smith, then a wild pitch thrown at Robertson allowed McCreary to score the go-ahead run. The Hounds nearly added to their total after Robertson and Draughn both got on base, but the third out left both runners on.

Atkins took the mound after one batter in the sixth inning. A McMichael player walked early in the inning by Taylor did make his way to third, but a strikeout from Atkins ended the inning.

In addition to the seven players in the field behind him, Johnson said Atkins was able to pitch confidently because of Robertson’s presence behind the plate.

“Brodie controlled the game tonight,” Johnson said. “Brodie called the game through his pitcher. We want him to know what’s coming in, and he’d catch it or block it almost every time. I think he only had like two passed balls, and one came off his glove.

“When the pitcher’s ahead in the count and buries one in the dirt and the catcher blocks it, it gives him confidence to open up.”

The first Phoenix batter in the top of the seventh flied out, the next grounded out and the final batter struck out as the Hounds secured the victory.

“We’re on track, but we’re not where we want to be just yet,” Johnson said. “We have to clean some things up, but I like where we’re at right now.”

Scoring

MM – 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0 = 2

NS – 0, 0, 1, 0, 2, 0, X = 3

Source


Source: https://www.mtairynews.com

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