Prep baseball - Randolph Record

03 May

Prep baseball: UCA ends up second in PAC after sweeping Southwestern Randolph

Randolph RecordSportsAndrew Thomas, Brett Smith, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Providence Grove Patriots, Randleman Tigers, Tate Andrews, Trinity Bulldogs, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles

Uwharrie Charter Academy won twice in the final week of the regular season to secure third place in the Piedmont Athletic Conference baseball standings. The Eagles held off last-place Southwestern Randolph 8-1 and 3-2 in eight innings. Jose Ramirez had three hits and three runs batted in the first matchup, with Logun Wilkins notching the pitching victory. UCA’s Brett Smith went the distance in the second game, outdueling Jonah Campbell, who also worked a complete game. ** Third-place Trinity defeated fourth-place Eastern Randolph twice by scores of 14-3 and 5-1. Trinity’s Walker Parrish drove in five runs in the two…

29 Apr

Opinions vary on league baseball tourneys as PAC opts out this year

Bob SuttonSportsEastern Randolph Wildcats, Jake Smith, Nate Cockman, piedmont athletic conference, Piedmont Athletic Conference Tournament, Prep baseball, Providence Grove Patriots, Randleman Tigers, Rob Shore, Ryan Spencer, Southwestern Randolph Cougars, Trinity Bulldogs, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles, Wheatmore Warriors

The Providence Grove baseball team will be completing its regular season this week. (Randolph Record) There’s no Piedmont Athletic Conference Tournament in baseball this year, something that would have taken place this week. Instead, teams are wrapping up their regular seasons. Opinions vary on the topic of whether to hold a tournament. The decision to nix the tournament was made prior to the school year. “It’s fun to have,” Trinity coach Ryan Spencer said. “We always got to have a couple extra games.” Teams can play up to 24 regular-season games, so a tournament provided opportunities, in some cases, for…

28 Apr

Prep baseball roundup: Blue Comets find late-season boost

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Eastern Randolph Wildcats, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Southwestern Randolph Cougars, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles

Asheboro’s baseball team went into this week’s Mid-Piedmont Conference Tournament on a four-game winning streak. The Blue Comets toppled Jordan-Matthews twice in non-league play last week. A 10-2 home result came with Adam Curry and Gavin Allen leading the offense. Nolan Shaw and Mason Kotlowski combined for a shutout in the 11-0 road domination, with Cohen Caviness driving in four runs and notching three hits and Jacob Tevebaugh scoring three runs. ** Uwharrie Charter Academy and Wheatmore split Piedmont Athletic Conference games. UCA topped visiting Wheatmore 3-0 on Logun Wilkins’ four-hitter with 10 strikeouts. Jaxon Mabe scored two runs. The…

25 Apr

Randleman slams Trinity, secures another PAC baseball title

Bob SuttonSportsBraxton Walker, Jake Smith, John Kirkpatrick, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Randleman Tigers, Ryan Spencer, Tate Andrews, Trinity Bulldogs

Randleman’s Braxton Walker unloads for a tiebreaking grand slam against Trinity in the Tigers’ PAC-clinching victory. (PJ Ward-Brown / Randolph Record) RANDLEMAN — Randleman’s baseball team ended up in a familiar spot by the time the Piedmont Athletic Conference portion of its season was complete. The Tigers are in first place again. “I had no doubt,” pitcher / first baseman Braxton Walker said. “The guys come to practice and we and the team morale is as high as it ever has been.” The clinching victory came with an 8-1 decision against visiting Trinity on Friday night as John Kirkpatrick threw…

18 Apr

Prep baseball: Area teams collect mixed results during spring break

Randolph RecordSportsAndrew Thomas, Asheboro Blue Comets, Braxton Walker, Eastern Randolph Wildcats, Jake Riddle, Prep baseball, Providence Grove Patriots, Randleman Tigers, Trinity Bulldogs, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles, Wheatmore Warriors

Trinity’s Nick Beane dives toward the plate to score a run against Wilmington Christian. (PJ Ward-Brown / Randolph Record) There were many winners among Randolph County baseball teams during spring break. Asheboro and Randleman both won twice, while other teams largely struggled. Here’s a look at some of the results: ** In the ZooKeepers Classic at McCrary Park in Asheboro, Wheatmore, Southwestern Randolph and Eastern Randolph all finished with losing marks. Southwestern Randolph went 1-2, winning with an 11-1 whipping of Southern Lee behind three runs batted in apiece from Brady Armfield and Jake Gainey combined with Lane Poole’s pitching…

16 Apr

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Jose Ramirez

Randolph RecordSportsathlete of the week, Jose Ramirez, Prep baseball, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles

Uwharrie Charter Academy, baseball Ramirez, a senior outfielder, has been one of the leading batters for the Eagles, who are contenders in the Piedmont Athletic Conference. Ramirez had four runs batted in last week when UCA pummeled Eastern Randolph. The Eagles entered this week with victories in three of their last four games, with the lone loss during that stretch in extra innings.

13 Apr

Matchups set for spring break baseball games at McCrary Park

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Eastern Randolph Wildcats, Faith Christian, McCrary Park, Prep baseball, Southwestern Randolph Cougars, Wheatmore Warriors, Zookeepers

ASHEBORO — High school baseball teams from six counties will appear during the ZooKeepers Classic this week. Most of the scheduled 14 games include at least one team from Randolph County. Ten teams will play at least one game. There were slight schedule changes from original versions. Beginning Monday, there will be five days of competition, all with predetermined matchups at McCrary Park. The event is no longer a true tournament format, but it allows for more schools to participate and for coaches to better plan the week when some players might not be available. “Coaches said they want to…

11 Apr

Prep baseball: Randleman, UCA make progress in PAC race

Randolph RecordSportsJohn Kirkpatrick, Prep baseball, Randleman Tigers, Trinity Bulldogs, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles

There was little movement in the Piedmont Athletic Conference baseball standings this week with a slate of games rained out or suspended. But Randleman inched closer to another conference championship. The Tigers have won or shared regular-season league titles every year since a second-place spot in 2009. Randleman rode six innings of pitching from John Kirkpatrick to an 8-2 home victory against Providence Grove. Kirkpatrick also had two hits and scored two runs. Tate Andrews scored two runs. The rematch was suspended in the fourth inning Thursday at Providence Grove. It will resume April 23. So with no conference games…

05 Apr

Prep baseball roundup: UCA and Randleman split matchups atop PAC

Randolph RecordSportsJake Riddle, Jaxon Mabe, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Randleman Tigers, Sam Gore, Uwharrie Charter Academy Eagles

RANDLEMAN — Randleman and Uwharrie Charter Academy are the top baseball teams in the Piedmont Athletic Conference and they had eventful games during the past week. The latter of those came with Randleman avenging a loss by winning 6-5 in 10 innings Friday night at home. The outcome came with Kai Strickland’s two-out single to drive in Kyle Dillow, who had tripled off Jake Hunter. Jake Riddle, who had four hits, was the winning pitcher. Alex Carver homered for UCA. Earlier in the week, Logun Wilkins threw a seven-hitter with nine strikeouts and a walk when UCA won 7-0 at…

02 Apr

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Jonah Campbell

Randolph RecordSportsathlete of the week, Jonah Campbell, Prep baseball, Southwestern Randolph Cougars

Southwestern Randolph, baseball Campbell was the winning pitcher when Southwestern Randolph defeated Randleman last week to end a long losing streak in the series. Campbell, also a senior infielder, has been a contributor at the plate as well. Campbell, who was an All-Piedmont Athletic Conference selection last year, has committed to play collegiately for Brevard. The Cougars had five victories through March, putting them in position to potentially reach at least a 10-win season for the first time since the abbreviated 2021 season.