Isaac Hindshaw hauls in a throw just before a Hoke County runner can reach first base during the Sandhills Athletic Conference opener Monday.
ROCKINGHAM – The Richmond Raiders found their footing at just the right time after opening the postseason with a 12-2 mercy-rule victory over Hoke County Monday night.
After wrapping up the regular season last Friday with a 10-0 victory over Union Pines, the Raiders seem on a tear after tabbing another double-digit win in their return to the diamond during Monday’s Sandhills Athletic Conference tournament opener.
“We still want to put it all together, and I feel like we’ve done that at times. It’s something we’ve talked about since the first day. We don’t want to play our best baseball early in the season. We want it now, when we have a chance in the postseason,” Richmond coach Eric Brown said.
Richmond pitcher Evan Hodges held Hoke County scoreless through five innings, throwing a complete-game while tallying seven strikeouts and allowing two runs.
“I started off slow during the season. I had a lot of walks, and it just wasn’t good. I needed to believe in my defense. Tonight, I just threw strikes, and I did that, and my defense backed me up. Shout-out to James Eason (shortstop), he had a couple of good plays, and Caden Nolan (third baseman) … We had a really good game,” Hodges said.
The Raiders did not have an issue finding the ball while going scoreless through four innings. Their issue was finding a hole in Hoke County’s tough defense. A bunt by catcher Jabari Douglas uncorked an offensive barrage including a pair of two-RBI doubles by left fielder Landon Taylor and first baseman Ian Hinshaw. Taylor tied center fielder Jeremiah Ritter, and third baseman Caden Nolan for the team lead in RBIs with the trio accounting for two each.
“We started off a little slow. Once we realized we needed to pick it up, we started getting the bat on the ball like we’re supposed to. We started making good plays on defense,” Nolan said.
Hoke County mounted a rally with two runs to open the sixth inning, but an eight-run Raider response brought the game to an end via a 12-2 mercy-rule. With the win, the Raiders improved their record to 14-8 overall and outscored their previous four opponents 37-9.
“It gives us a lot of confidence. We got into the Easter tournament, and we started off really slow. We got on a four or five-game losing streak, then we picked it back up. We knew those last two games against Scotland meant a lot,” Hodges said. “Picking that up, man, now we’re just carrying it into the postseason. It’s just one game at a time … The coaches changed practice around. We’re starting to buy in as a team and just play Raider baseball.”
Richmond will host No. 3 seed Lee County (16-9) 6 p.m. Tuesday. The Raiders split their previous two encounters with the Yellow Jackets, with the Raiders winning the first 5-4, but dropping the rematch 16-4.
“We’re a really competitive team. As long as we’re there, and we’re there to compete, I know we can win,” Nolan said. “We’re doing everything we’re supposed to do, everything the coaches (ask) us to do and executing what we need to do.”