Live To Play Another Day

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The Rocky Mount 9/10 year old American League Allstars beat Greenville North State in Greenville tonight to win the district Tournament and advance to the 9/10 year old  State Tournament in Morganton.  The final was 7-1 which oddly enough is the same score that the 11/12 years old Beat Greenville to advance to the 11/12 year old state tournament in Greenville last night in Elizabeth City.

Coleman Pitt Post 58 gave it all they had tonight and Raleigh Post one found out just how long a nine inning game is when it concerns pitching but nine innings would not be enough to win this one as P 58 survives to play Thursday beating  Raleigh Post one 9-8 in 11 innings.

Blake Helms who pitched the last four innings for P 58 and twice survived Raleigh tying it in the eighth and almost winning it in the ninth stroked a base hit in the top of the 11th that drove home the winning run and then in the 11th set Raleigh down to force a game four in Rocky Mount Thursday night.

David Williams got the ball rolling for P 58 with a bases load double in the first that staked Rocky Mount to a three nothing lead. Corey Smith pitched into the sixth inning and had a 4-1 lead when he turned the game over to Will Edwards and Post 58 grew the lead to 7-1. The seventh Raleigh scored four times and Carson Arthur helped  hold post one to just four.  Blake Helms entered in the bottom of the eighth and saw the lead evaporate but Post 58 scored once in the top of the ninth to take 8-7 lead and almost saw Raleigh win it in the bottom of ninth.
Raleigh Post one Manager Aaron Rich in the ninth brought in reliever Jack Conley and Hank Jones had complained earlier in the season of a balk that Conley had a habit of doing and while warming up Jones made sure the umpire crew was alert and aware and before Conley first pitch to the plate John Haggerty called a balk which at that time gave Rocky Mount 8/7 lead.  This brought Rich out of the dugout only to be tossed by first base umpire Haggerty.

Game four is Thursday night at American Legion Field in Rocky Mount at 7 pm.  CP Post 58 over the last two games has drained their pitching again but Raleigh has found out over the last two nights what nine innings does to your pitching as they now have gone deep into their bench.  There was probably the largest crowd of the year at the ball field tonight and after a 3-2 9-8 scores I would suspect and even larger crowd Thursday. BOY the last two nights have been barn burners and well worth watching.