How Cherryville baseball overcame early jitters to win opener of 1A West final
CHERRYVILLE — Scott Heavner stressed the importance of a fast start before Game 1 of the 1A West baseball championship series .
“We talked about the importance of playing at home, and coming out the gate as fast as we can,” the longtime Cherryville coach said. “There are going to be jitters and you can tell the kids not to be nervous, but the magnitude of where they are at really sets in.”
If Heavner wondered whether the Ironmen were listening, it didn't take long to find out Tuesday night.
After allowing a first-inning run to Union Academy, Cherryville swiftly answered with four of its own and never looked back in a 9-1 rout.
“They score a run in the first and us putting a four-spot up was huge,” Heavner said. “We put up four more in the second and then hit a lull. Maybe that’s something we can work on, continuing to add runs and not settle. But we played great tonight; the guys were ready, strung together good at bats, the pitching was good and our defense was good.”
The series shifts to Monroe on Thursday, with Cherryville looking to claim its first trip to the 1A state final since 2016. First pitch is at 7 p.m.
Utilized in relief much of Cherryville’s postseason run, sophomore Brayden Reynolds made his first playoff start. The Cardinals scratched out the game’s first run on a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded, but Reynolds averted further damage.
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In the bottom half of the inning, Landon Hahn earned a leadoff walk, and Collin Robinson and Will Heavner bunted their way on to load the bases. Hahn eventually scored on a fielder’s choice, with three others coming home on a Chase Miller home run.
“We play our game (from behind), we have all season,” Miller said. “I was waiting on it, he threw it right down the middle as I was looking for and I drove it.”
Cherryville added four more runs in the second, with Heavner, Miller and Kanon Willis earning RBI hits. Willis hit a solo home run in the sixth for good measure.
It was more than enough for Reynolds, who allowed two runners in his last four innings of work.
“After a rough first inning I had to execute everything, lock in a little bit and pretty much think that’s the only run they were going to score on me,” Reynolds said. “Then we come out and score four, our confidence shoots up and after that we were on a roll.”
In addition to going 3-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs, Miller also earned six outs in relief for Cherryville. Robinson (two runs), Heavner (two RBIs) and Willis (home run, three RBIs, two runs) had two hits apiece.
You can reach Joe Hughes at 704-914-8138, email jhughes@gastongazette.com and follow on Twitter @JoeLHughesII.
This article originally appeared on The Gaston Gazette: NCHSAA baseball: Cherryville wins 1A West opener vs Union Academy
