No Playoffs For The Bishops

Charlie Long's Battling Bishops of North Carolina Wesleyan  have had a tough baseball season to say the least.  A sub five hundred season has left their only hope for the playoffs to win their conference tournament.  They opened  the tournament with a lost but in the losers bracket managed one victory before that dreaded second loss ended their playoff hopes.

They have three more home games this week before they end the season next weekend.  Next weekend will also be the last college games for two Northern Nash products who I got to know as PA man during their  American Legion days.  Daniel Moore who after a slow start has gotten his average up to 276.  Since I have been in Rocky Mount now going on 16 plus years my favorite Northern player has been Andrew Webb.  Webbie started as an infielder but has been a pitcher the last two season.  He has a 3-5 record this season but has pitched better than his record.

Northern's Tyler Clark is trying to get his number like father Greg has on the  left field wall at Bauer field.  Tyler has hit 351 so far this year and has two more seasons to add to his great sophomore season.  Southern Nash's Brian Allen has played better of late for Charlie Long.  He is up to 295 batting average.  Little brother Brett  has two hits on the season.  Faith's Eric Mull has played sparingly and Gryphon pitcher Chad Womble is 0-3 in his senior season for the Bishops.

Do you think that summer basketball can get you name known around the state.  J'Kyra Brown  Rocky Mount's sophomore basketball guard who even in the eighth guard was making a name for herself on the summer basketball circuit.  A severe knee injury before her Gryphon freshman year sidelined her for the entire year and even as a second year player was strapped into one of those knee contraptions to hold her knee in place.

J'Kyra was named All State in basketball this week as a sophomore.  You know I think with the knee brace on she was only able to be  80-85 percent healthy.  How good can see be if she is strong enough next year to play without that brace.

Ben Fish was a three year started at catcher for Rocky Mount.  His first season at Campbell he backed up Northern Nash's Brian Braswell who is now on the coaching staff at Northern.  Ben is playing like he did  at Rocky Mount.  He is hitting 333.  Ben has started 24 of the Camels 31 games  and has driven in 17 runs.

Brian Goodwin continues the kind of pace at Miami Dade College which will probably get him drafted in the first round of the upcoming MLB draft in June.  Brian is hitting 362 has scored 37 times in 39 games. 

Hobbs Johnson has pitched four times this season for the Tarheels who by the way have lost two in a row to the Wolfpack this weekend.  Hobbs has faced 9 batters on the season, struck out five of those and only two have got a hit off of him.  The most important stat of all he has not given up any runs in his 2.1 innings pitch.

Xavier Macklin even with the more safer aluminum bat being used this year in college baseball has hit 9 dingers so far this spring.  X is hitting 301 for the season with 38 rbi.

Alex Pearce is batting 154  for the Braves of UNC Pembroke.  Alex is catching about half of the games so far. Pembroke is 33-7 on the season which at the 40 game mark is the best in school history.