Welcome to Independent Tribune Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

independenttribune.com - Independent Tribune

HomeNewsEntertainmentSportsLifestylesOpinionCommunityWeather Online Tools Jobs | Real Estate | Shopping | Classified

Hickory Ridge advances to final

Photo by James Nix

Hickory Ridge's Colten Love (17) high fives designated runner Scott Kilian (4) after hitting a double against Central Cabarrus Wednesday afternoon during a semifinal game of the Intimidators Classic at Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium.

By Paul Hershey | Independent Tribune

Published: April 16, 2009

Updated: 04/16/2009 09:18 am

The Hickory Ridge bats started out hot and never cooled off against rival Central Cabarrus on Wednesday.

The Ragin' Bulls exploded for 23 hits, scored six runs in the first two innings and then capped it off with a six-run seventh in a dominating 15-2 rout of the rival Vikings in a semifinal game of the Intimidators Classic.

Six Ragin' Bulls had three hits each and Hickory Ridge totaled nine extra-base hits, including eight doubles, to cruise into tonight's championship game against either Northwest Cabarrus or Piedmont.

"Baseball's a funny game," Hickory Ridge head coach Dick Steed said. "Hitting can be contagious and obviously today it was for us.

"Central's a real good team and we played a week or so ago and they beat us 8-1. So it's just baseball. We hit it pretty good today."

Colten Love was the beneficiary of all the support, although he didn't need a whole lot. He scattered eight hits in notching the complete-game victory.

Just as it did in its tourney-opening win over Concord on Monday, Hickory Ridge (8-8) jumped out to an early lead and never looked back.

This time, Central starter Jamey Lee was the victim of the Ragin' Bulls early onslaught as they used five hits to take a 3-0 lead in the first. Singles by Cole Burnside and Zach Andrews got it started and
Mike Zinkann hit the first of his three doubles to make it 1-0. Love then helped himself with a two-run single to left.

The Bulls followed with three more runs on four more hits in the second. J.V. Pender led off with a single, stole second and scored on Burnside's RBI single.

That ended Lee's day on the mound, with Davarren Hamilton relieving. Hamilton got one out on a flyball, but Andrews singled to score another run and Zinkann ripped an RBI double to the left-field corner to make it 6-0.

"We scored three in the first and three in the second," Steed said. "Once you do that you kind of relax a little bit. We played as well as we played all year, obviously.

"We work hard like everybody else, but it just happens sometimes in this game. Today was our day."
Hickory Ridge made it 7-0 in the third inning on an RBI double by Pender.
Love struck out seven, walked three and did a good job of pitching out of trouble while the game was still relatively close.

The only Central runs came on an RBI single by Cody Rominger in the fourth and an RBI double by Dalton Shuford in the sixth.

Love also got some defensive help behind him in the fifth when Andrews made a diving stop on a groundball to third and threw to second for an inning-ending forceout. Andrews also made another diving play for a putout in the sixth.

"There's good teams in this tournament, but if you make plays on offense and defense and you pitch a little bit, you've got a chance against anybody," Steed said. "That's what we did today."

Leading 7-1, the Ragin' Bulls added two more runs in the sixth when Zinkann led off with a double and later scored on a wild pitch. Love then singled and came home on a RBI triple by Jarrod Brown.