East Lincoln managed only three hits off Enka's pitcher Friday evening, but the Mustangs didn't need much with Leah Correll doing her usual. Correll struck out 10 of the 26 batters she faced and she, too, gave up only three hits--none of them for extra bases--while walking two, as East advanced to the West Regional championship series against Rockingham County, a 2-1 winner over Carson. The first game in that best of three series will be played Tuesday (May 23rd) at 6 PM at East Lincoln. The second game will be at Rockingham County at 6 PM Thursday (25th).
Enka had been seeded #1 in the west region for the NCHSAA 3A playoffs. Like the Mustangs, they had lost only one game--a 10-inning one to A.C. Reynolds by a 1-0 score, while scoring and average of of six-and-a-half runs over 24 games. East had been seeded #5.
In the 3A West Regionals, they'll take on the #7 seed, Rockingham County. The winner of that series gets to play for the state championship. Regional championships and state championships are a best-of-three series. The first game in the West Regional Championship series will be Tuesday at 6 PM zt Ezxt Lincoln.
The pitcher's duel Friday saw both teams struggling on offense until Taniyah Thomas's single in the top of the seventh inning scored Lacey Graham and Emery Pethel. Betsy Eatmon and Aubrey Gust had the other two East Lincoln hits, the double by Eatmon the only extra base hit by either team. Gust also walked twice and she and Lauren Borchardt each stole a base.
In the baseball playoffs, Burns beat West Stokes by the same 4-3 score as they had won their third round game against Lincoln Charter in the 2A playoffs. The Bulldogs fell behind 2-0 early in the game and had to catch up, but they did, and will now host Eden Morehead in a three-game series for the West Region 2A championship.
The East Lincoln girls soccer team (seeded #10 in the west) will visit #2 seed West Henderson on Monday evening (May 22nd, 6:30 PM). The winner of that game will play the winner of a Monday game that has St. Stephens playing at Hickory.
