West Bladen senior Kaden Revels with a big swing at the plate.
Alex Brooks | Bladen Journal
BLADENBORO — The Fairmont Golden Tornadoes defeated the West Bladen Knights for a 6-1 victory on Wednesday in a SAC 7 conference match-up. The Golden Tornadoes’ senior right-hander Noah Parker threw a complete game and allowed three hits the entire night to seal his team’s second victory over the Knights in less than 24 hours.
Seniors Josiah Williams and Stanley Scott both batted in runners to give the Golden Tornadoes an early 2-0 lead at the top of the first inning. The Knights struggled to find an answer to Parker’s arm and he made quick work of their lineup. Fairmont was the most consistent at the plate and was able to extend their lead by a run with a huge RBI double off the bat of Williams. West Bladen sophomore right-hander Brady Durden was able to get out of the third inning with a strike and the help of his defense behind him.
Senior first-basemen Hunter Smith led off for the Knights in the bottom of the third and he crushed a triple to right field before crossing home plate on a fielder’s choice. Sophomore slugger Cade Allen dropped a single in the gap between first base and right field but the Knights weren’t able to capitalize after the next batter grounded out to end the inning.
Durden started the top of the fourth inning with two straight outs but the away team didn’t flinch. Big sophomore catcher Roderick Deese crushed a triple to center field to get the Golden Tornadoes in scoring position. Durden’s last pitch of the night was an RBI triple off the bat of Nate Jones to bring in Deese to make the game 4-1. Senior Garrison Carr replaced Durden on the mound in hopes of getting the Knights out of the inning.
Carr did just that but not before the Golden Tornadoes could add one more run to the board before the end of the inning. West Bladen entered their half of the fourth inning with hopes to claw their way back but three straight outs prevented the response they were looking for. Fairmont scored their sixth and final run in the fifth inning despite two early outs in their lineup.
The Golden Tornadoes now sit in second place in the SAC 7 standings after sweeping their opponents. The Knights fall to fourth place but they will have time to make up ground with 6 games remaining on the schedule. Their next game will be at home against the last-place Red Springs Red Devils on April 18th.