REIDSVILLE — Second- ranked Pierce County welcomed fellow Region 3 member Tattnall County to the Class AA Top 10 with a 12-2 victory in five innings here Tuesday night.
The Bears (10-3 overall, 1-0 region) have dominated the series against Tattnall County with the March 10 victory, their eighth in a row dating back to 2023. PCHS has won 15 of the last 16 matchups since 2021.
The Warriors (7-5, 0-1), ranked eighth, last made an appearance in the poll early in the 2024 season after a 6-0 start before dropping 21 of their last 23 games.
Pierce County only scored once in the first inning, after loading the bases with nobody out against Warriors’ starter Aiden Brock (2.2 IP, 6 H, 8 R, 6 ER, 2K, 3 BB, 3 HBP).
Chance Williams (1-for-1), one of eight PCHS batters hit, was drilled by the fourth offering from Brock. He stole second ahead of Beck Hodges (1for-1), drawing a walk. Jack McClellan’s (2-for-3) legged out a sacrifice bunt loading the bases. Jonathan Stone’s fielder’s choice groundout to short scored Williams. Brock retired the next two batters on on strikes.
Tattnall County tied the score with an unearned run in the bottom half of the inning against Brantley Willis (3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 K, 0 BB). A one-out error, sacrifice bunt and two-out, run-single evened the score at 1- apiece.
The Bears took the lead for good in the second scoring twice for a 3-1 lead. Bryson Smith reached on a one-out error and was lifted for pinch-runner Garrett Stevenson. Grayson Arington (1-for-3) blooped a soft single to left. Williams was hit for the second time in as many at bats loading the bases.
Hodges was nicked two pitches later, forcing home Stevenson with the goahead run. McClellan followed, lifting a sacrifice fly to left, plating Arington for the two-run advantage.
PCHS broke the game open in the third inning, scoring eight runs to open up an 11-1 lead. Eight consecutive batters reached after two outs with seven scoring.
Christian Osbourne (1for-3) and Willis (1-for-2) opened the inning with singles. After Stevenson executed a sacrifice bunt, Arington’s ensuing groundout plated Osbourne’s courtesy runner, James Alonso, pushing the margin to 4-1.
A Williams’ RBI single was followed by a walk to Hodges and a two-run double off the bat of McClellan extending the advantage to 7-1. Stone and Dylan Johnson (1for-3) were hit on consecutive pitches, loading the bases.
Osbourne became the third consecutive batter hit, forcing home a run. A five-pitch walk to Willis pushed home another run as the lead grew to 9-1. Two passed balls allowed the final two runs to trot home swelling the advantage to The Bears’ final run came in the fourth. Williams was hit for the third time, leading off the inning. Hodges singled on the next offering. Johnson’s twoout, RBI single scored Hodges for an 11-run lead.
The Warriors came up one run short of staying alive in the bottom of the fifth. Consecutive two-out errors extending the inning. A run-scoring single off Kolton Brogdon (2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 K, 0 BB) to get to within 12-2 was followed by a game-ending popout.
