Save The Last For The Best

They have won but one game in the last three years of Softball at Rocky Mount High School.  Tonight was the last game to ever be played on the "Mutt" Wilson field where Lady Gryphon softball has played since the inception of slow pitch softball in the early 80's.  Tonight the last conference game of the year the Lady Gryphons win their first game of the year and can for ever say they won the last game there.

The Lady Gryphons beat Fike for the second year in a row 9-8.  They took a 1-0 lead in the first only to see Fike score five in the top of the fourth.  Rocky Mount responded with five  in the bottom of the fourth to take a 6-5 lead.  They added a run the fifth to lead 7-5.  Fike responded with three in the top of the sixth  to lead 8-7 but Rocky Mount got two in the bottom of the sixth to lead 9-8. The Lady Gryphons got the first two outs in the seventh but a hit and error found Fike with runners and second and third but a ground out ended the drought for the Lady Gryphons win 9-8.

With all the good news for softball the opposite occurred for baseball.  Up at one point 4-0 the Gryphons lose at Fike 7-6.  Northern Nash beat Nash Central  2-1 and Hunt beat Southern Nash in six innings 12-2.  By winning Hunt can either win the regular season championship outright  with a win over Nash Central Thursday or both will be tied.  Hunt is now 7-2 while Nash Central is 6-3.  Rocky Mount and Northern Nash are tied at 4-5 and Southern Nash and Fike are 3-6.  The Rocky Mount loss guarantees Nash Central no worse than the #2 seed in next week's tournament.

Tonight Hunt High School named their baseball Field after the late Sid Boyette who was a county commissioner as well as a supporter for all types of sports at Hunt as well as all over Wilson County.  You can see that naming ceremony Sunday night during the All New Sports Show on WHIG-TV

Decision Week

You would think that if you can beat the two teams tied for first in one week you should be able to handle the bottom team an another tied for fourth in the final week of the regular season.  Rocky Mount winners of four straight conference games find themselves alone in third but both Southern Nash and Northern Nash trail by one game. Should at weeks end they find themselves tied with Northern they will get a higher seed in the tournament  since they swept the Knights this season.  If they tied Southern it most likely would be that Southern beats them Thursday then Southern would get the higher seed since they would have swept the series this year.

First place is on the line and the two square off this week as Hunt will play Nash Central for the top seed and the Bulldogs will play without head coach Jeff Mizzelle who is out for the remainder of the year after being suspended.  Assistant coach Buck Edmonson guided the Bulldogs last Thursday in the 10-0 whitewash of the Golden Demons.

The Gryphons have started to come together in the last three weeks as those five sophomores in the starting lineup look more comfortable at the plate.  They still are  not knocking the cover off the ball but have found a way to get the big hit when it is needed.  Those early season defensive lapses have been replaced by solid defense.  They have even been able to display game saving plays in the field as they seemed to come up with in both the Bulldog upset and Hunt shutout.

All of a sudden the Gryphon starting pitching has been solid all year but when you play the likes of people like Greenville Rose who has lost only one game all year it is hard to tell when you are getting pounded.  The pitching for the most part has been reliable all year it you just can't tell how good it is when you don't score runs which lately the offense is doing.

I would think for the Gryphons the most important game all season is Tuesday at Fike.  It will show with a victory that yes this team has turned the corner but a loss like coach Kent Cox said " will have wasted beating the top two teams last week".


Senior night is Thursday and what could possible be the last home game for Rocky Mount High School at Gryphon Stadium.  Should they get third or fourth spot for the tournament they will get a home game next Monday.which in all likely hood would be the last  high school game ever at Gryphon Stadium.

Gryphon History

I have no knowledge to challenge my own statement here but I suspect that yesterday was probably the first time in history that a college doubleheader was played in Division 1 baseball and two former Gryphons were the starting pitchers for one team in that doubleheader.

Benton Moss pitch the first game of the North Carolina-Georgia Tech Double header in which Benton pitched into the sixth inning giving up four runs but only two were earned to win his fourth college baseball game with only two losses.  Once again sloppy Carolina defense helped more runs cross the plate than what should have other wise Benton pitch as well as expected.

 Carolina played a double header yesterday just about like all teams in North Carolina did that had a game scheduled for Sunday when the forecast called for weather like we are having outside today which was a good call to play two Saturday.

Carolina sent Hobbs Johnson to the mound in game two and certainly the way Hobbs has pitched this entire season he is getting more and more opportunity to be given the ball when something important is on the line not just mopped up duty.   Hobbs carried a shutout into the seventh inning before he surrendered a home run and found himself in a 2-2 game.

My question at the pitching rotation Mike Fox used this weekend has Benton jumped up to be the Saturday Starter and has Hobbs  pitched so well this spring he has jumped all the way from a lightly used pitcher to the #3 starter.  Next weekend we will find out.

In My Opinion

A few weeks back I told you here that I had never asked any of the top brass at Rocky Mount High School how the search was coming for a new football coach.  Like you I heard every rumor you did.  Wednesday when the Rocky Mount Telegram ran a story about  about the leading candidates I read with interest the comment s in the paper.  It was about 50/50 for B W Holt to come back and elevate Jason Battle to the head job.

If you recall there was a fire storm three years ago when Dickie Schock got the job about 50% for Schock back then and 50% didn't want him. If the believe the paper the final two candidates were the coach that has the best winning percentage in Rocky Mount history B W Holt and Assistant Jason Battle.

I need to wake everyone up in the world of reality.  There are a lot of you folks who thought that every coach worth his salt would apply for this job.  I am willing to bet you that didn't happen.  Why  would any coach who is already a headman some where else and is already successful want to come to Rocky Mount when every time you turn around Rocky Mount is in the news cause somebody shot somebody or that the unemployment in this area is near the worse in the state.  Guess what folks a pretty new football stadium ain't enough to get quality proven winners.

Yes everyone thinks B W Holt could have come back and brought back the glory days.  He just might have but for how long.  The biggest mistake made in the past three years was letting Holt get away the first time.  There is no doubt the man loves to teach football and I bet before he dies he will be coaching somewhere because he can't get it out of his blood.  But his time has past at RMHS.

The search committee made the right choice whether it turns out in the future to be a good choice or not.  You have to remember Schock came to Rocky Mount highly recommended by Holt. That 50% that is against the Jason Battle hiring needs to remember that Duke back in 1980 hired Coach K who had a losing record at Army.  Three years into his tenure they were ready to let him ride out of town and yet he is today the all time winningest coach in college basketball history.

All Gryphon fans need to stand up together and move forward with life.  Jason Battle may just surprise you and be the next B W Holt.  If he doesn't get everyone's support it will be just like tying one of his hands behind his back before he ever gets started.  I am sure that Jason will call his own plays with what ever offense he decides to run.  If I were him I would find A B Whitley's number and ask him to be in charge of my defense.  If that was to happen then Jason will have started off making good decisions and good decisions lead to wins.  Something we haven't had enough of lately.

Head Coach: JASON BATTLE

Rocky Mount High School made it official today as they have named last year's offensive coordinator and a graduate of Rocky Mount High School  Jason Battle as their next head football coach replacing Dickie Schock who resigned after three season in February.

If there was a complaint about Dickie Schock during his three year tenure at Rocky Mount was that he never committed to the community by never moving here.  The search committee solve that by going with Battle who not only graduated from RMSHS but has lived here the  past dozen years or so and is entrenched in the community as well as Rocky Mount High.

Schock who never really sought support from the fan base  or  any support from the community solved that by Hiring Battle who was probably the most popular  coach with the returning football players.He is also highly popular with the fan base.

It is obvious that Battle has never had head coaching experience but there is one thing that Jason will bring to the job is enthusiasm and if your have ever been around him you know if he translates that attitude to his players they could have a fun year.

I have some sad news to report that one of the famous Capps Brothers  Gray has been diagnosed with Lukemia.  The Capps brothers have been a fixture in every Gryphon football games for seems like a 100 years as they both film every Gryphon football game for the Gryphons.  I ask all of you to pray with me for a recovery for Gray.  Football season is only four months away.

Gryphons Slide Into Third

Just two short weeks ago those skinny legged sophomore baseball players for Rocky Mount couldn't hit a lick, made errors at the wrong time and most of the time had good pitching but that was hard to tell when you don't score runs.

Now the Gryphons still don't hit that well but they have finally figured out how to get a timely hit when it counts and tonight the Gryphons take out the team that use to be a top of the conference by themselves but not any more as sophomore Will Edwards pitches the game of his life as the Gryphons shutout Hunt 2-0.

This is four victories in a row for the Gryphons in conference play and by virtue of Southern Nash's 6-2 win over Northern Nash Rocky Mount takes sole possession of third place in the Big East and now stand at 4-4.  This lost drops Hunt to 6-2 tied with Nash Central who tonight beat Fike 10-0.

The Gryphons scratched a run home in the second when Micah Varnell walked with one out.  He reached second when a ball rolled away from the catcher and Varnell just did make it to second.  Two outs the number eight hitter in the lineup Damien Smith hit a line drive over the third baseman's head and Varnell scored.

The Gryphons added an insurance run in the fourth  when Varnell walked again.  This time Jerrell Hunter the Gryphon first baseman sacrificed him to second.  Hunter started tonight at first for the first time as he was a member of the Gryphon basketball team and is now getting his baseball legs under him. Two outs and the ninth hitter in the Gryphon lineup Ben Yates  hit a liner over the second baseman's head and Varnell scored again.

Will Edwards allowed two hits walked two and hit one batter while striking out two. He allowed only one batter to reach second base.  There were some almost hits but the Gryphon defense did their job including a spectacular catch by Damien Smith  in left in the top of the six with the lead off runner on from a walk.You know when it is 2-0 in the sixth and you are playing the top team in the league you are weary that a big hit brings them back in the game and the Warriors almost got it.  Zach Williams laced a fly ball that was heading over the head of Damien Smith in left and on a dead  run Smith stuck his glove over his head.  Smith's momentum carrier him toward the wall and nobody behind home plate knew he had caught the ball until he turned to run to the dugout as that was out number three.

Gryphons winners of four straight conference games head to Fike Tuesday and they only need one victory next week to clinch a home first round Big East Tournament game.  One win and the only team that could catch them for third is Northern Nash and the Gryphons swept the season series with the Knights.