Post 45 faces Union County in Round 3 of Legion playoffs; Post 81 ousted

ASHEBORO — Both Randolph County Post 45 and Liberty Post 81 produced incredible come-from-behind 10-inning wins during the second round of the Area III playoffs this past week.

For Randolph County, that comeback victory came in the third and deciding game of the best two-out-of-three series and earned a trip to the Area III semifinals.

For Liberty Post 81, it came in Game 2 and prolonged their season one more night, but Liberty fell in Game 3 to be eliminated.

Post 45’s playoff run continues

After Randolph County swept Chatham County in the first round, it battled Mooresville and fell behind 1-0 after losing 9-6 in Game 1. Post 45 had protested that game in the sixth inning because of the use of an ineligible pitcher due to not receiving the required time off. Post 45 won the protest, meaning the game, which was finished and ended with a 9-5 loss, would be replayed from the bottom of the sixth inning prior to Game 2. Post 45 did score a run in the seventh and had the bases loaded, but couldn’t fully capitalize and lost 9-6.

Post 45 rolled to a 12-4 win in Game 2 to force a third-and-deciding game, but fell behind on Saturday at McCrary Park 6-2 in the fifth inning. A two-run homer from Carter Brown helped Post 45 get within 6-5 before they tied the game in the seventh. Both teams battled to the 10th inning where Mooresville plated a run in the top half, but the home team rallied with two of their own in the bottom half, both coming home on bases-loaded walks with two outs.

Post 45 took a 22-5 record into the Area III semis against Union County with a berth to the state tournament on the line. That series began Sunday at home with Game 2 on Monday also at home. Games 3 and 4, if necessary, were scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday at Wingate College with a fifth game, if needed, to be determined.

In Game 1, Post 45’s Ben Luck hit a leadoff inside-the-park home run to tie the game in the seventh inning, but Union County’s Grayson Slusher hit a two-run homer in the eighth for a 5-3 win. Zack Scruggs had an RBI single in the second inning for a 1-0 lead. With UC up 3-1 in the fifth, Post 45 loaded the bases with no one out but scored just once to make it 3-2.

Post 81’s playoff run ends

Liberty Post 81 dropped an 11-2 decision to Rowan County in Game 1 as Mark King held the high-powered Rowan team to just one run heading into the fifth inning. But five runs in the fifth and five in the sixth propelled Rowan County to the victory.

Game 2 saw another incredible comeback by Liberty. Post 81 scored twice in the first for a 2-0 lead, but Rowan County scored five times in the fifth inning, a common theme in the three-game series. Trailing 5-2 in the seventh, Liberty rallied with a two-out RBI single from Noah Lester and a two-run double from Eli Holland that tied the game at 5-5.

Bryson Marley kept Rowan County at bay by hurling 5 1/3 scoreless innings of relief before Liberty loaded the bases with nobody out in the 10th on a leadoff double by Holland, a single by Noah Madren and an intentional walk. Will Stalker’s high chopper off the plate provided the winning run when Holland dove headfirst across the plate ahead of the backhanded throw from the pitcher.

However, in Game 3, Rowan County recorded its fourth five-run inning of the series with five in the third and Liberty could never rebound, falling 7-1. Liberty, which started the season 0-8, finished 10-14.