Sweet Water grounds Flying Squadron to move to second round
Shamar Lewis swipes second base in game one against Highland Home Friday.
Sweet Water (21-9) is one step closer to its goal of repeating as Class 1A state champions after it swept Highland Home 10-0 and 5-3 in the first round of the playoffs Friday night.
Jonah Smith was dazzling for the Bulldogs in game one, striking out seven batters over five innings while allowing just one hit and walking one.
The Bulldogs wasted little time backing up Smith’s mound presence at the plate as they hung five runs on the board in the bottom of the first inning. Sasha Smith singled, stole second, stole third and scored on John Thomas Etheridge’s base hit to left for the 1-0 lead. After Chance Broussard singled, Etheridge scored on an error to make it 2-0. Braiden Broussard then drove in his older brother on a single to left. The younger Broussard later scored on a passed ball before Shamar Lewis stole home for the 5-0 lead.
Sweet Water added to the lead in the home half of the fourth as Lewis scored on a passed ball. Jonah Smith then doubled in Deshawn Blanks before Etheridge tripled home courtesy runner Xavier Lucy. Etheridge then scored on an error to set the lead at 9-0. Sweet Water ended the game in the fifth when Sasha Smith singled in Michael Allen Cole to trigger the run rule.
Sasha Smith throws to first during game two of Friday’s first round playoff series against Highland Home.
Sweet Water had to fight out of an unexpected hole in game two of the series. The Bulldogs took a 1-0 lead in the second when Reid Joiner singled to left to plate Cole. Sweet Water doubled its lead in the third as Chance Broussard scored on an error for the 2-0 advantage.
Highland Home got on the board in the bottom of the fourth before two hits and an error allowed the Flying Squadron to score two runs and take a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth.
Sweet Water took the lead right back in the top of the sixth as Luke Davis scored on a Sasha Smith grounder to tie the game. Lewis then scored on a Jonah Smith grounder to put the Bulldogs back on top. Etheridge then doubled in Jonah Smith to cap the scoring.
After he used only 64 pitches to get through game one, Jonah Smith found himself on the hill again to end game two. He struck out three batters and scattered three hits while recording six outs to wrap up the series.
Sweet Water (21-9) will face Kinston in the second round of the Class 1A state playoffs next week.