MOUNT OLIVE — Ronnie Battle could get used to this.
Garrett Blackburn and Matt Hinson threw a pair of gems, and Kinston Post 43 did what first-place teams do best — it capitalized on its opponent’s mistakes and grinded out the rest as it swept Wayne County Post 11 5-4 and 3-2 in an Area I East Division doubleheader at Mount Olive College on Tuesday.
The pair of wins puts Kinston (8-3, 5-1) in first ahead of Wayne County (12-4, 6-3) by two games in the loss column, and there was nothing flashy or easy about the way it happened.
And that’s the way Battle prefers it.
“It was a yeoman’s effort tonight, and that’s what I like to see,” the Post 43 manager said with a grin. “The pitching was out-, out-, outstanding. Everybody worked together and grinded it out, and we took advantage of what the other team gave us.”
Blackburn, back on the bump where he plays his college ball at Scarborough Field, wasn’t the sharpest tool Battle had on Tuesday but he held his own when he had to.
Save for a rough fifth inning in Game 1, the hard-throwing right-hander had seven strikeouts and limited his damage.
Blackburn stranded a runner at second or third three times, and got back-to-back strikeouts with the tying run at third in the bottom of the seventh to secure the win.
“Blackburn is my horse,” Battle said. “He’s going to work for us and do exactly what we want, and that’s win ballgames.”
While Blackburn was busy pulling the cart with 119 pitches, Post 11 was busy filling it up for the visitors.
Four errors — three in one inning on back-to-back pitches by shortstop Ryan Faucette — helped Kinston’s cause.
North Carolina signee Adam Pate also pitched a gem, holding Post 43 to five hits, but of his five runs allowed only two were earned — the two that decided the outcome.
Trailing 4-3 in the seventh, Grant Tyndall ripped a one-out double to the corner in left that scored Hinson, who pinch-hit singled, and Will Deters, who walked.
Tyndall was thrown out at third trying to stretch it into a triple, but his lone hit of Game 1 proved to be the biggest.
“Everyone had a part in tonight, from those who were in the field to the ones in the dugout and even the fans cheering our players on,” Battle said. “It was just a total-team effort.”
Game 2 featured more of the same.
Hinson, dubbed the “Professor” by Battle, gave a lecture on how to get it done in the extra-inning affair.
Like Blackburn, Hinson went the distance, then added one more frame in the nine-inning game — the teams played two seven-inning contests. He struck out nine, walked three, and scattered three hits across eight frames.
Deters pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the save and the sweep.
“Hinson took everyone to school,” Battle joked. “He taught a clinic on how to pitch. And Will did exactly what we asked him to do — save it for us.”
Sammy West went 2-for-4 in Game 2 — Kinston’s only player with more than one hit in either game — and Deters drove in a run on a two-out single in the sixth to tie it at 2-all.
The score stood until VeQuain Joyner scored on a wild pitch in the ninth.
Deters then closed the door, and gave Post 43 its fourth straight win to match a season high heading into tonight’s division tilt at Wilson Post 13.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with my guys than I am right now,” Battle said. “Let’s just hope this continues on.”
Notes: Game 1 of Rocky Mount Post 58’s doubleheader with Albemarle-Elizabeth City Post 84 on Tuesday was suspended due to rain in the seventh in a 4-4 tie, and Game 2 was postponed to an undecided date. Rocky Mount (3-5, 3-1) and Kinston are tied for first in the loss column. … Game 1 between Kinston and Wayne County was delayed for about 30 minutes due to rain. … Post 43 scored three runs with the benefit of a single and three errors, all with two outs, in the third inning of Game 1. Pate was perfect until Wesley Melvin come-backer up the middle with two outs. … The entire doubleheader lasted exactly five hours. … Post 43’s sweep denied Post 11 its 800th win in program history, according to the Goldsboro News-Argus.
Ryan Herman can be reached at 252-559-1073 or Ryan.Herman@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter: @KFPSports.
Game 1
Post 43 003 000 2—5 5 1
Post 11 100 030 0—4 8 4
Blackburn and Hamilton; Pate and Barbour. W—Blackburn. L—Pate.
Game 2
Post 43 000 011 001—3 7 3
Post 11 001 010 000—2 3 2
Hinson, Deters (9) and Davis; Johnson, Dixon (6), Stafford (7), Faucette (9) and Barbour. W—Hinson. L—Faucette. Sv—Deters.