After giving up an early run in the top of the first, the Canes scored nine unanswered runs on the way to a 9-1 win over the Charlotte Nationals in a game limited to five innings by the run rule.
Yet another outstanding pitching performance stymied the C-Nats, as Drew got 15 outs, with ten of them by strikeout. After the unearned run in the top of the first, no Nationals runner made it past first base for the rest of the afternoon.
The offense, meanwhile, was getting more two-out production. This time, it was six of the nine runs that scored with two outs, including the clinching run in the bottom of the fifth to send the Canes to the championship game of the Winter World Series.
Sunday also marked the beginning of the Canes Lifetime Fan Recognition Program. The first recipient was Coach Eric, who was presented with an official Eric Chaplin bus featuring his initials on the side. He will be offering rides to Charlotte next weekend:
Semifinal Canes scoring plays
First inning
Gavin hit a one-out single. Drew beat out a fielder's choice. Chace's double scored Gavin and a wild pitch scored Drew. Bennett's sacrifice fly plated Chace.
Score after one inning: Canes 3, Nationals 1
Second inning
Elias singled and stole second. Colin singled. Andrew's fielder's choice scored Elias. Jake's grounder scored Bryce. Gavin cranked an RBI double. Drew's double scored Gavin, and Chace's single scored Drew.
Score after two innings: Canes 8, Nationals 1
Fifth inning
Jake walked and stole second. A wild pitch put him on third, and Chace's two-out RBI single ended the game.
Score after five innings: Canes 9, Nationals 1
Gavin hit a one-out single. Drew beat out a fielder's choice. Chace's double scored Gavin and a wild pitch scored Drew. Bennett's sacrifice fly plated Chace.
Score after one inning: Canes 3, Nationals 1
Second inning
Elias singled and stole second. Colin singled. Andrew's fielder's choice scored Elias. Jake's grounder scored Bryce. Gavin cranked an RBI double. Drew's double scored Gavin, and Chace's single scored Drew.
Score after two innings: Canes 8, Nationals 1
Fifth inning
Jake walked and stole second. A wild pitch put him on third, and Chace's two-out RBI single ended the game.
Score after five innings: Canes 9, Nationals 1
Pitching Performances
Drew went all five innings, striking out ten, allowing just one hit, and allowing only one runner past first base.
Dugout wisdom
My favorite dugout moment actually occurred in the other dugout. Nixon was chasing foul balls all over Nash Central High. One went near the Nationals dugout, and a coach/loud fan snagged it before he could get to it. The coach gave the ball back to the umpire even though Nixon was clearly asking for it. After he'd thrown the ball back to the ump, the coach turned to give Nixon a high five...only to discover that he had already turned his back and walked away. Asked about it later, Nixon said, "I wasn't giving him a high five when he didn't give me the ball!" Can't argue with that.
Dugout wisdom
My favorite dugout moment actually occurred in the other dugout. Nixon was chasing foul balls all over Nash Central High. One went near the Nationals dugout, and a coach/loud fan snagged it before he could get to it. The coach gave the ball back to the umpire even though Nixon was clearly asking for it. After he'd thrown the ball back to the ump, the coach turned to give Nixon a high five...only to discover that he had already turned his back and walked away. Asked about it later, Nixon said, "I wasn't giving him a high five when he didn't give me the ball!" Can't argue with that.
Semifinal Web Gems
- Macon made a laser throw and Gavin applied a slick tag to cut down a runner trying to steal second in the second.
- Great PFP work in the fifth, as Chace fielded a grounder and flipped to Drew covering the bag at first for the out.
Semifinal line score
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
4
|
5
|
6
|
R
|
H
|
Nationals
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
X
|
1
|
1
|
Canes
|
3
|
5
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
X
|
9
|
8
|
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