The Catawba Ridge Copperheads held off a Fort Mill Yellow Jackets rally to get a 3-2 win Friday night in a battle of two undefeated baseball teams.
The win put Catawba Ridge at 5-0 on the season and dropped Fort Mill to 3-1 in the game held in the Swamp at Catawba Ridge.
“We haven’t played close to our best baseball, but we have always figured out how to win ballgames,” said Catawba Ridge head coach Stas Swerdzewski. “The best thing is the amount of fight we have. It is early and we have played some great competition.”
After a good start defensively by the Copperheads with Caden Glauber on the mound in the top of the first, Owen Noonan led the bottom of the first out with a solo homer.
Glauber cruised through the second inning, and then Catawba Ridge threatened with three hits in the bottom half and scored on a delayed steal of home by Ethan Solnick.
Through three innings, Glauber faced the minimum and striking out seven.
Fort Mill started putting the ball in play more in the fourth inning, but the Copperheads defense was able to gobble things up for outs.
Glauber struck out the first two batters in the fifth inning before JB Walters hit a double off the left field wall to break up a no-hitter. However, Walters was left stranded on second as Glauber recorded his 11th strikeout in the game to get out of the inning.
In the bottom of the fifth, Noonan continued to push the pace for Catawba Ridge as he drove in Peyton Dhein, who reached after being hit by a pitch and then stole second.
In the top of the sixth, Fort Mill got a one out double by Thomas Ealey as the Jackets threatened for the second time in two innings. Michael Rogers would walk and then an error by the Copperheads allowed the Jackets’ first run. Carter Blankinship would double in Rogers to cut the Catawba Ridge lead to just one run.
Glauber would exit the game going five and a third innings allowing three hits, two runs, a walk and 12 strikeouts.
Blankinship would get to third on a passed ball, but was left there as reliever Bryce Meil got the final two
outs to get the Copperheads out of the inning.
Catawba Ridge couldn’t plate a run in the bottom of the sixth and then sent Dhein to the mound to finish out the game.
Josh Patterson got a leadoff walk in the top of the seventh for Fort Mill and ended up at third after a sacrifice bunt by Walters with one out.
Dhein would regroup to strike out the next two batters to get out of the game and get the save for the Copperheads.
Fort Mill head coach Travis Collier said the game came down to one pitch.
“It was a great high school baseball game,” he said. “I am proud of our guy’s effort.”
Fort Mill heads to Blythewood on Monday to start their Region 3-5A schedule, while the Copperheads start a three-game Region 3-4A series at home against South Pointe.
March 8 Roundup
The Nation Ford softball team held on to beat Dorman 7-6 to improve to 4-1 on the season. Jackie Knol hit a grand slam to lead the Lady Falcons to the win.
The Nation Ford girls’ soccer team lost to Blythewood 4-1 to drop to 4-4 on the season and 0-1 in Region 3-5A.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
