Cougar Teams pick up big road wins in baseball and softball
Brzykcy, Hammer combine to no-hit Mooresville’s Devils
Senior Zach Brzykcy pitched six and two-thirds innings for no-hit baseball vs. Mooresville before leaving due to pitch rule.
By D.N. PENNELL, Jr.
The Alexander Central Baseball and Softball Teams journeyed to Mooresville for important North Piedmont Conference clashes on Thursday, April 13, and both varsity squads came home winners.
In baseball, ACHS pitchers Zach Brzykcy and Zach Hammer combined to toss a no-hitter as Alexander knocked off the Blue Devils 1-0 for a crucial league victory.
At the same time, the Lady Cougar Softball Team was rebounding from its first loss of the season in a 4-3 win over the Mooresville Lady Blue Devils at Mooresville Middle School. The win allowed the Lady Cougars (20-1, 10-1) to enter the Easter break with a one-game leader over the Lady Devils in the NPC standings.
Brzykcy turned in a sparkling performance on the mound for the Cougar Baseball Team in the visitors’ 1-0 win over the Blue Devils. In an unadulterated pitchers’ duel the Cougar right-hander locked up against Mooresville’s Justin Jarvis in a tight mound-dominated showdown.
In the end, the game was determined by one run coming off the bat of Alexander’s Rhyne Johnson who plated the only tally of the contest.
Brzykcy pitched six and two-third innings of hitless baseball and was one out shy of a no-hitter when the Cougar hurler reached the state mandated limit for pitches thrown. The Cougars turned to junior Zach Hammer to finish the deal and he recorded the only batter he faced to complete the no-no effort and earn the save.
Brzykcy struck out 13 batters on the night and issued two walks. For Jarvis, the Mooresville hurler tossed a complete game, allowing just three Cougar hits, while striking out 11.
Offensively, Daniel Dessecker collected a double for Alexander, while Johnson (one RBI) and Derek Dyson added one hit apiece.
The ACHS Team will be competing in the Annual Catawba Valley Easter Classic at the Hickory American Legion Fairgrounds over the Spring Break holiday. The team returns to regular season play on Tuesday, April 25, when they host Statesville at Bob Gryder Stadium for Senior Night at 7 pm.
Just up the road at Mooresville Middle School, the Alexander Varsity Softball Team rallied for a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the Lady Blue Devils in an equally important league matchup.
Senior ace Kendra Mayes ran her pitching record to 13-0 on the season with a complete-game, five-hitter for the Lady Cougars. Mayes allowed three runs and struck out a trio of Mooresville batters as she outdueled Devils’ pitcher Joelle Davis for the win. Davis limited ACHS to six hits in a losing effort.
Alexander trailed 2-0 after one frame but rallied to tie the contest with single tallies in the second and third innings. However, a Mooresville run in the fourth allowed the home team to take a 3-2 advantage into the late stages of the contest.
Determined not to drop a second straight league game, ACHS rallied for single runs in the fifth and sixth stanzas and held off Mooresville in its first two at-bats to secure the win.
The team’s offensive leader all season, junior Brittney Krider, continued to show the way for the team at the plate. Krider finished with two hits, including a double and two RBI.
Alexis Walter and Kelsea DeJarnette added one hit and one RBI each, while Julie Gast and Mayes contributed one hit apiece.
The Lady Cougars are off during the Easter/Spring break and are slated to return to action with a home double header (varsity only) on Tuesday, April 25, against Statesville at Central Park.
I have followed Alexander Centrals sports programs for quite sometime now, and Mr. Matthew Wilkinson has impressed me as a true team player who exhibits a maturity far beyond his years in each of the sports that I have observed him participating in. He truly carries the spirit of a team player that willingly puts himself aside, if it puts the team in a better position to win. This to me is the hallmark of a true winner and an exemplary leader for any team.
After following most of these players since they played t/ball, all of these kids are great kids. However , Matt Wilkinson shows so much heart and sportsmanship and true love of the game. I hope he is selected for 2017 Athlete Of The Year. As he heads to Western Carolina University, I know we will be hearing great things about this 6’5 -240 lb. kid from Taylorsville, NC. Like his sister Chelsea Wilkinson, who was selected Athlete of the Year her Senior year, she did Alexander Central, And Taylorsville, North Carolina Proud, and known for producing Athletes to watch for!
“I love to watch this kid play ball, whether on the basketball court, on the baseball field, fishing on the lake, or golfing with his father, it turns out to be a competition!
“Go Big Matt”