Phillips double

carries WHS
From staff reports

KINSTON — Watauga made it two straight victories Monday with a 4-3 victory over South Central at the George Whitfield Memorial Tournament.

The Pioneers (7-3) needed just four hits to knock off a solid South Central team. Watauga trailed 3-2, when Matt Phillips drove in two runs with a bases-loaded double in the sixth inning. Tyler Moore picked up the save by pitching the seventh inning.

Watauga opened the tournament Saturday with a 4-3 victory over D.H. Conley. The Pioneers finished the three-game event with a game with host Kinston Tuesday morning. Results were not available by press time.

Adam Church, Trey Lowder and Cal Hardee each had singles for the Pioneers against South Central, a team out of Winterville. The Pioneers were tied with South Central 1-1 after the first inning, but took a 2-1 lead in the fourth. South Central scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 3-2 lead.

“They started a good right-hander and then came in with another good right-hander,” Pioneers coach Pete Hardee said. “They were both pretty good.”

Jon Sharpe, who pitched two innings Saturday, started Monday and went three innings on the mound. Ethan Moyer pitched the next three innings and Moore, who was the starter Saturday, finished against the Falcons.

Tanner Lovick was 2-for-2 for South Central. Talton Cherry and Tony Puglis each had a hit for the Falcons.

Watauga takes on a Kinston team that is smarting from an 11-0 loss to Greene Central Monday. Kinston freshman pitcher Blake Herring gave up eight runs on nine hits, but four of the runs were unearned.