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Chatham Central ends run for Bobcats in state 1-A semifinals
Blue Ridge’s magical run through the state 1-A baseball playoffs came to an end Friday at Bear Creek when Chatham Central took a 9-0 win to sweep the best two-of-three semifinal series.
It was the second straight shutout for the Bears, and Keith Josey nearly had a no-hitter. He was just one out away from the gem when Cody Goodwin broke it up with a single off of the pitchers’ glove.
Blue Ridge, a school with less than 100 students, shocked the experts with their playoff run and finished the year 21-7.
Blue Ridge’s Cody Goodwin was a tough-luck loser in the first game of last Thursday’s first game of the best-two-of-three state 1-A semifinal baseball series as Chatham Central took a 2-0 victory at Blue Ridge. Goodwin had his team’s only hit in Friday’s season-ending 9-0 loss at Chatham. – Herald photo by Carey Phillips
Chatham took control with four runs in the first off of starter Dylan Brooks (2-1). Coach Jim Nichols said he started the lefty because the Bears had trouble with Goodwin, also a left-hander, in last Thursday’s series opener.
“They also seemed to be fast ball hitters, and Dylan throws a lot of off-speed stuff and keeps it low,” Nichols said. “His pitches in the first inning were well placed, but the Chatham hitters went down and got the ball and just raked it.”
Aubrey Johnson had a run-scoring single for the lone run the Bears would need. Jonathan Sessoms had an RBI single, and Spencer Andrews contributed a run-scoring double. Another run scored on a wild pitch.
Reliever Brandon Magruder, who had been nursing a finger injury, kept Chatham under control until the fourth when four runs made it 8-0.
Seth Kivett doubled in a pair while Johnson and Sessoms had RBI singles.
The Bears concluded the scoring in the sixth on D.J. Dean’s RBI double off Nick Miles, the third Bobcat hurler.
Chatham wins opener
Kivett pitched a five-hit shutout as Chatham opened the series last Thursday with a 2-0 win at Blue Ridge.
Kivett and Goodwin hooked up in a pitchers’ duel, but the Bobcats were hurt by three errors in the third inning when the Bears scored the game’s first run.
“If there was anything this season that was a weakness, it was our defense,” Nichols said. “In every other area , including pitching and hitting, we were very strong.”
Kivett walked one and struck out six.
Goodwin yielded six hits and a walk while fanning four.
“It was a shame to not be able to capitalize on Goodwin’s great game,” the coach said.
Chatham went up 1-0 in the third without a hit. Consecutive fielding errors put runners on first and second with one out. Johnson hit into a fielder’s choice with the runner out at second. However, a throwing error on the relay to first allowed Spencer Moody to cross the plate.
That’s how things stayed until the sixth when the Bears scored again but ran themselves out of a potential big inning. Sessoms walked, and Andrews singled to start the frame. Dean followed with a base hit, but pinch runner Josey was nailed at the plate on a throw from left fielder Gustavo Moreno. Matthew Brown drove in a run with an infield out, but Dean apparently lost track of the outs and was caught off second base.
Chatham also had a runner thrown out at the plate in the fifth. Moody advanced to third on a ground ball and tried to score on an overthrow at first. However, first baseman Cody Williams retrieved the ball and threw Moody out at home.
Blue Ridge’s best chance to score came in the fourth when Eric Farmer and Brooks opened the frame with consecutive singles. Kivett sat down the next three batters.
The Bobcats had two runners in the sixth as Brooks walked and Miles singled with one out, but they failed to score.
Blue Ridge immediately had the tying run at the plate in the seventh as Williams singled with one out, but Kivett got the next three batters in order.
Moody and Andrews had two hits apiece, and were the only players on either team with more than one hit.
Bobcats advance
The Bobcats erupted for six runs in the sixth to rally for a 10-7 win at Hayesville in the quarterfinals on May 23.
Michael Bradley was four of four to pace the Blue Ridge offense. Farmer and Brooks were both three of four while Goodwin went two of four.
Miles (4-0) pitched 3.2 strong innings of relief for the win.
The win was the third straight for the Bobcats over an opponent from the Big Smoky Mountain Conference and clearly established them as the top 1-A team from Western North Carolina.
“I’m extremely proud of our players,” Nichols said. “They have shown extreme resilience. They’ve been down and have never given up and shown great confidence in times of duress.”
Blue Ridge trailed 6-4 with two on and two out in the sixth when the winning rally began. Moreno and Bradley both had RBI singles producing a 6-6 tie. Farmer followed with a two-run double putting his team on top 8-6. Brooks and Goodwin also singled in runs extending the margin to 10-6.
Brent Woody had an RBI single for the Yellow Jackets in the bottom of the seventh, but the game ended with the tying run at the plate.
Hayesville scored in the first on Aaron Patton’s RBI single.
Bradley and Farmer singled in the Bobcats seventh, and Brooks ripped a two-run double for a 2-1 edge.
The Jackets drew even in the third on C.J. Crowder’s home run.
They took a 5-2 lead in the fourth with Patton driving in all three runs on a bases-loaded double.
Farmer had an RBI single and Brooks delivered a run-scoring triple cutting the gap to 5-4 in the fifth.
An RBI single by Chase Phillips made it 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth.
Vaughn was the losing pitcher.
Patton and Seth McLamb both had two hits for Hayesville.
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