It wasn’t easy, but the Ashley baseball team picked up its first playoff victory since 2012 on Tuesday night.

Senior Ashton Evans hit a two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the third inning and got the final three outs to earn the save as the No. 13 Screaming Eagles held on for a 2-1 win over No. 20 Rolesville in the first round of the NCHSAA 4A playoffs.

“I told our guys this is what playoff baseball is like,” Ashley coach Brian Stewart said. “In the playoffs there are a lot of momentum swings and you have to be able to play through them.”

Offense was hard to come by, as each team collected only four hits. Ashley (15-9) starter Josh Kidd scattered three hits and struck out nine in six scoreless inning to improve to 7-3 on the season.

With two outs in the third inning, the Screaming Eagles’ first two hitters – Rocco Farmintino and Drew Tyndall – each worked a walk. They were on second and third when Evans blasted an 0-1 pitch to the wall in center field to put the home team on top for good.

“I was guessing fastball and that’s what he gave me,” Evans said. “That’s one of my favorite memories from high school so far.”

Kidd was fantastic on the mound. The southpaw stranded a pair of runners in the fourth inning and then worked out of a bases loaded jam in the sixth.

Rolesville’s (12-12) Jordan Overton led off with a pinch hit single and Michael Gupton followed with a walk. Both runners moved up a base on a sacrifice bunt and Ashley elected to intentionally walk Spencer Faulkner.

Kidd got a full count against each of the next two batters, but struck both out on a fastball to maintain the two-run lead.

“I just tried to throw the best pitch I could there,” Kidd said. “I had to step up and I really feel like I did.”

The Rams took advantage of a pair of Ashley errors to score in the top of the seventh inning, but Evans got Austin Buffaloe to ground out to stand runners on second and third and move the Screaming Eagles into the second round.

Next up for Ashley is a road trip to No. 4 Holly Springs on Friday evening.

 

Game Highlights
+Up 2-0, Ashley got 2 quick outs in the top of the 7th, but saw Rolesville cut the lead to 1 with single and 2 errors, before a ground out ended the contest
+Josh Kidd (AHS) - Win, 6IP, 3H, 0R, 3BB, 9K
+Ashton Evans (AHS) - Save, 1IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 0BB, 1K; 1-3, 2B, 2RBI
+Tristan Purser (RHS) - Loss, 5IP, 2H, 2R, 2ER, 4BB, 2K

 

Tim Hower is a guest contributor to PBR.  He runs the preps website www.coastalpreps.com and all of his work on teams from the Brunswick County area can be seen at the website.