Legion Finish Six days In A Row

Sunday night, Coleman-Pitt Post 58 ran out to a 10-2 lead by the middle of the sixth inning. In the ninth inning, Edenton got a two-run homer to edge Post 58 11-10.

Ahoskie was in town at Northern Nash tonight and Post 58's first hitting slump of the season pushed into the fourth inning before the bats got going.

Including the last three innings last night and the first three tonight, Post 58 had gone six innings without scoring. For a team that had scored at least 10 runs in its last six games, six innings was a long slump.

Nick Hahula got the start for Post 58 and right away, Ahoskie pushed three runs across the plate in the first.

In the fourth inning Mike Williams reached on an error, A Grant Johnson hit, a hit batter in Mike Smith and with the bases loaded, Alex Pearce coaxed a walk to plate Coleman-Pitt's first run. The walk led to an RBI-single by T.J. Taylor and a throwing error plated two more runs. Ben Fish got an RBI-single and before the fourth was over and six runs had crossed the plate.

Hahula would not survive the fifth inning as he was relieved by Gabe Brown, who gave up a three- run homer and he failed to last the inning as Ahoskie took the lead 9-6.

Post 58 scratched one back in the fifth to cut the lead to 9-7. Bill Clark came on in relief and managed to hold Ahoskie at nine runs.

The highlight of the a four-run sixth inning was a Williams two-run homer that landed on the softball field and gave Post 58 an 11-9 advantage.

Williams also came on in relief in the seventh, but in the eighth, Ahoskie pushed across two runs after an error got the ball rolling for Post 102. In the ninth, Williams got Ahoskie out with no runs and that set up the bottom of the ninth's heroics.

Williams stepped to the plate as the lead-off batter and he sent his second straight ball over the fence as Coleman-Pitt Post 58 survived another donnybrook - beating Ahoskie 12-11.

You could really tell that playing six straight days had pushed Post 58's pitching to the limit. With the win, Post 58 is now 7-2 and 6-1 in division play. It can win the regular season eastern division first place with a victory over Tarboro Thursday night at Northern Nash.

Williams was not only the hitting hero getting the walk-off home run, but he was also the winning pitcher.

Williams was 2-for-5 with two homers and three RBI. Tyler Clark, Ben Fish and Grant Johnson all had two hits. Taylor and Collins Cuthrell contributed hits.

Ahoskie outhit Post 58 14-10, but walks and errors did not help their cause.

Through all seven division games, Post 58 has scored 15 on Edenton, 28 on Tarboro, 12 on Wilson, 11 on Ahoskie, 14 on Wilson in its second meeting, 10 last night in the loss to Edenton and 12 again tonight. Post 58 has plated 102 runs in seven games for a 14.5 per game average!

This team is certainly entertaining. It can clinch home-field advantage with a victory over Tarboro Thursday. Area 1 first-round playoffs start July 1.

Gryphon Population Grows

This has been a pretty good week for Kent and Emily Cox.

Early in the week, the announcement came that Kent had been named the new head baseball coach at Rocky Mount. Friday, the news got even better in the Cox household as Caleb Patrick Cox was born - their first son. I heard this morning in church that Kent had Caleb in the batting cage yesterday.

Congratulations to Emily and Kent!

There have been so many rumors about Rocky Mount football before B.W. Holt resigned. One of those rumors was that Chad Smith would would be an assistant on the staff again next year. Holt's resignation kind of blew the doors off that rumor and I see through the Gryphon Grapevine that Smith is returning to near his home in Pickens, S.C.

Chad maybe was not ready to be a head coach of a program that was as down as Northern Nash's was at the time he took over, but Chad is a football coach and he will get another chance at some point.

Right now, Post 58's players are coming off an outstanding five-game stretch. All five have been conference games and in all five, they have scored at least 11 runs and as many as 28.

Since Thursday, Post 58 has hit more than 10 home runs - including a shot Saturday night by Tyler Clark that cleared the score board at Fleming Stadium. Anyone who has ever seen a game at Fleming knows that is a poke.

Tonight they are in Edenton playing Post 40. If they can win tonight ,they have a conference game at home Monday against Ahoskie and another Thursday against Tarboro.

A victory would clinch first place in the regular season for Post 58 if they win in Edenton Sunday. Two victories would give them first place when the playoffs start.

They are now 7-1 on the season and 5-0 in conference.

If there was one good thing about all the rain at the U.S. Open Golf Championship, I got to watch golf until dark both Saturday and Sunday. There should be a new champion of American golf around 2 p.m. Monday.

I really like that the U.S. Open Men's and Women's Championships will be at Pinehurst No. 2 in 2014 in back-to-back weeks. But, if I am a woman player, I would not like the idea because several players come early the week before to practice and if the men are there, they will not get practice at he course.

Legion Baseball

I have been involved with Coleman-Pitt Post 58 baseball now for four years. I have volunteered as the PA man during that time.


From about 1961 through 1965, I was bat boy for the Ahoskie American Legion team and our trips to Rocky Mount to play at the old Municipal stadium was like going to a major league game for me as a 10-year-old.

Legion baseball has been in existence in Rocky Mount for 60 years. In those 60years, Legion baseball has been among the best in the state.

Legion is now not the only game in town during the summer. Travel leagues, select leagues, Impact Baseball leagues and Babe Ruth are all sucking the All-Star talent from what use to be Legion players.

The past several years Post 58 has not had a home base to play home games. It would really help attendance if everyone knew where the games were going to be. You always have to check the schedule to see where to go for a home game, but also to see where the game is going to be play. Even the Rocky Mount Sports Complex is not a good fit for Legion.

But, today I am not moaning about what could be if the Brian Goodwins and Hobbs Johnsons of the county were on this team. This story today is going a little deeper than what you might know of.

Our Legionnaires are dying out. Post 58 is made up mostly of World War II veterans. In August, that war will have been over 64 years. Post 58 is getting smaller in numbers which means less people in the Post to support baseball.

Today, the players are pretty much financing themselves to play Legion ball.

Joe Bell, who is not even a Legionnaire, has taken it upon himself last year and this to try to keep Legion Ball alive. Joe has sold ads for a small program that you can get at the games.

Thursday night there were about 40 people - just about all mamas and papas there to see the game. The gate receipts just could pay for the umpires. The lights and grounds crew were paid. We will just say they were paid out of someone’s pocket.

Legion baseball in Rocky Mount has been too good over the years to see it die the slow death that it is doing now.

This year’s team is really good. They may have a chance to go far in the state playoffs. If they make it to the state championships this year, they will played at ECU's Clark-LeClair Stadium.

They only have two regular season home games left this year Monday and Thursday night at Northern Nash. Then maybe several home playoff games.

Come see this team play. Legion ball may die in Nash County unless a person or organization takes an interest in keeping it alive. It will take more than Bell and and a couple of Legionnaires to keep Legion Ball alive in Rocky Mount.

Long Night

Last night I arrived at Northern Nash's baseball field to do the PA for Post 58 American Legion team and a 13 year of Babe Ruth game is in progress. My first thought is 'am I at the right field?'. The score board was saying the first inning.

It turns out it was where I was suppose to be, the score board was on for the Legion game. The Babe Ruth game got over a little after seven and by the time each team took infield and raked the infield it was 7.45.

Wilson Post 13 was undefeated in conference play as well as Post 58 and Post 58 starting pitcher Brandon Denton gives up a single and a home run to the first two batters and I am saying to myself 'brother this will be a long night'. Denton recovered pitched eight innings allowing just seven hits striking out seven and did not allow another run in leading Coleman Pitt Post 58 to a 12-2 victory over Wilson Post 13.

Even though they started late Post 58 is in sole possession of first place with a 3-0 conference mark and now 5-1 overall.

Ben Fish led the hitting attack going three for four driving home three runs and had a homer. Collins Cuthrell had three RBI's and two hits and also sent one over the fence. Tyler Clark had two hits and two RBI's. Also getting two hits was Alex Pearce who's double in the eighth inning sent the score to the ten run rule.

Mike Williams, Grant Johnson and Gabe Brown all reach base getting hits as Post 58 has put up forty runs in the last two nights and in their last three games all conference games have pushed 55 runs across the plate.

So by ending the game in the eighth inning the long night winds up finishing about when the nine inning game would have finished.

Post 58 can't sit on their laurels long as starting tonight they have four straight nights of conference games traveling to Ahoskie, Wilson and Edenton on the road and then a Monday night home game with Ahoskie.

The team with the best pitching in the college world series got two inning of terrible pitching giving up four runs in the sixth and eight in the seventh in losing to Arizona State 12-5.

Carolina is eliminated from the College World Series.

Heard last night at the Legion game talking to Northern's baseball coach Eddie Loesner that Tyler Joyner will not sign and play pro baseball. He is already in Summer school at ECU.

I had heard the rumor but now I know that Mike Williams will play at Pitt Community this fall.

Now There Are Five

Virginia did everything you could ask a team except win the game Wednesday as they are eliminated from the College World Series 4-3 in twelve innings.

The Cavaliers leading 3-1 had two outs and nobody on base and two strikes in the ninth inning failed to close the deal on Arkansas. Virginia proceeded to get two men on base with less than two outs in the ninth, tenth and eleventh inning and failed to score what could have been the winning run.

Tonight North Carolina goes into their second elimination game and it is against the team that beat them Sunday in Arizona State. Game time is 7.00pm.

Because of the aluminum bat in college baseball, college baseball is not dominated by pitching. In this college world series North Carolina had a pitched game by Alex White of allowing only one run through nine innings and Virginia gave up one run through eight and two thirds innings but lost. That is very unusual for College baseball. Most of the time if you give up only one you win easily.

The rumors abound about Phil Jackson retiring as the L A Lakers coach and the name of Coach K is popping up as his replacement. In 2004 coach K turned down the job to stay at Duke and during that five years since nothing much has changed for Coach K to want to be in LA, however there is a new reason in LA to have coach K and that's Kobe Bryant. Remember last summer Kobe was a member of the Olympic team coached by K and Kobe has said he likes K's style a lot.

We will see.

Tonight Coleman Pitt Post 58 will try to play another home game, this time at Northern Nash. Wilson will be here to provide the action. Rain is in the forecast. I haven't heard yet the results of last night's game in Tarboro. My guess is it got rained out which would be the third time that Tarboro and Coleman Pitt have been washed out.

Just receive word from Joe bell that Post 58 indeed did play last night at whipped up on Tarboro 28-3. That's right 28-3 in seven innings.

There use to be a time that if you were the top baseball player in the area legion ball was what you did in the summer. Today with select leagues, Babe Ruth and others the legion team is watered down from what it could be.

This years legion team is good but just imagine if every good player from our area was on the team we might have a Legion State championship team.

I'll be there tonight doing PA weather permitting.

Cox Named New Baseball Coach

Kent Cox JV Baseball coach at Rocky Mount for the past ten years has been named as the new baseball coach at Rocky Mount High School.

Cox a graduate of Tarboro High school lead the Babe Ruth team in 2004 that finished 3rd in the World Series that was played in Wilson at Fleming stadium. Kent has also been for the past six years the JV football defensive coordinator during the Baby Gryphons run where they lost less than ten games in that stretch.

Cox will take over for Pat Smith who retired at the end of the school year who has taken the Gryphons to the state title in 2008.

Kent’s family consist of wife Emily, daughter and a new little Gryphon expected to arrive this Friday.

North Carolina survived the first elimination game in the college world series by beating Southern Mississippi 11-4. Dustin Ackley needed three hits to become the all time hit leader in world series history got five in leading the Heels to another day of baseball Thursday night. They will play Arizona State who blew a 6-0 lead and lost to Texas 10-6.

Southern Mississippi getting knocked out leaves six fighting for the National Championship.

Sammy Sosa's name has now come out as being a steroid users in 2003. I think we all knew that he used. It's time to release all the names of the 2004 testing done by major league baseball that failed. The test in 2004 showed that 10% of the players were using drugs and brought on the MLB drug testing policy that they use today.

I think we need to know just so the player who didn't have a fair shake at the Hall of Fame with lesser numbers over those who did.

Elimination Day

The University of North Carolina Tar Heel baseball team faces elimination for the first time this year in the NCAA playoffs. Carolina swept through their Regional and then took out ECU in two straight in the super regional.

This afternoon they meet Southern Mississippi a team that had Texas on the ropes in their first college world series game but walked in three runs in the eighth and ninth inning to lose by one run.

Virginia survived their first elimination game beating Cal State Fullerton 7-5. Now there are seven left in Omaha. They play Arkansas Wednesday.

Hertford County has named their new football coach. He is Scott Privott. Scott played on the last Ahoskie High school team before it became Hertford County. Scott was on the team while I was there doing radio and after graduation from college came back home and has been in the program either with the JV's or the Varsity line ever since.

He replaces Diego Hasty who lost his PE job as part of the cut back in teachers but was asked to stay on as football coach but didn't.

Plaxico Buress has had his discharging a fire arms charge in New York City moved to September. Seems to me he would have wanted to settle up as soon as possible in case he gets jail time. Delaying it not only will effect this season but now maybe even next year also depending on whether he gets jail time

I hear that Walker Gurley the Eastern Wayne shortstop who was drafted last week in the major league draft is planning to sign and play pro ball. He may sign sometime this week. His teammate John Wooten is heading to Greenville and ECU along with Tyler Joyner of Northern. Those players drafted last week are still in contact with the teams that drafted them. Those teams have until mid August to try to Entice those players drafted to sign pro over going to college baseball.

In most cases those that sign to play pro ball will do so over the next couple of weeks in order to play in the rookie leagues or in the A level this summer.