Woolard shuts down Pender in second-round win

BURGAW — Zach Woolard dazzled on the bump in Friday’s 6-1 second-round win at Pender. He pitched a complete-game no-hitter to help lead Northside to the third round of the 1-A state playoffs.

The hosts tagged him for an unearned run on a batter that reached via walk. Woolard, who struck out 10 batters and only needed 83 pitches to get through seven frames, gave them nothing else.

That Pender run came after the Panthers struck in the top of the first. It leveled the game early on. Things stayed even until the Panthers got two across in the fifth, then put the game away with three runs in the sixth.

Reg Bishop led the offense for the visiting Panthers. He was 2-for-4 with a double, two runs and an RBI. Parker Boyd was 3-for-4 at the dish.

Northside moves on to face nearby Goldsboro ball club Rosewood. That game will likely be played on Tuesday.

 

Lady Pack hammers West Bladen

BLADENBORO — Abbigail Tucker scattered five hits and a walk over seven innings, three Washington batters had multiple hits, and the Lady Pack downed West Bladen, 8-3, on Friday. The win marks its ninth in its last 10 games, and seals its spot in the third round of the 2-A state playoffs.

Washington and West Bladen were scoreless through three innings before the Lady Pack broke through with two runs in the top of the fourth. The Lady Knights drew even with two of their own in the bottom of the frame, but Washington scored in the fifth to take a lead it wouldn’t surrender.

Leading 3-2, the Lady Pack peppered on five more runs in the final two stanzas to run away with the second-round contest. West Bladen scored its third in the bottom of the seventh, but it was too late.

Sarah Lynch, Hailey Harris and Tucker — all of whom collected a pair of hits — led Washington’s offense. Harris and Jordan Pierce each had home runs. Each scored once and batted in two more.

Mary B. Dixon scored a team-best three times.

Washington will be on the road again playing the winner of Saturday’s Eastern Randolph-Edenton game.

 

Northside knocked off by defending champs

PRINCETON — Defending 1-A state champion Princeton scored twice in the third, and that was all it needed to eliminate Northside in the second round of the playoffs. Pitcher Beth Braswell kept the Lady Panther batters off balance in a two-hit, complete-game shutout.

The loss marks the end of what was an incredible season for a retooling Northside team. The Lady Panthers won 15 games and finished second in the 1-A Coastal Plains Conference, which is impressive by any standard.

 

Lady Seahawks grounded at East Columbus

LAKE WACCAMAW — East Columbus collected 15 hits en route to a 12-2, five-inning win over Southside in the second round of the 1-A state playoffs. The hosts were also aided by seven Lady Seahawk errors.

Hannah Paramore had two hits and four others had a knock, too, but it was only enough to produce a pair of runs. Southside got those two runs right away in the top of the first, but East Columbus took a stranglehold of the contest with a eight runs in the third. Four more runs in the fifth forced an early conclusion.