Rocky Mount Coleman-Pitt Post 58 Legion Baseball Tryouts scheduled

The Rocky Mount Coleman-Pitt Post 58 Senior American Legion baseball team will be holding its tryouts at N.C. Wesleyan College's Bauer Field on Saturday, May 14 and Sunday, May 15 at 3:00 p.m.

It will be a Pro-Day style tryout - timed 60, fielding and throws from infield and outfield. Pitchers will throw and all will hit. Players need to bring their own gloves and bats and catchers' gear for catchers.

Players will not have aged out of participation as long they have turned 19 on or after Jan. 1, 2011.

Hank Jones enters his second season as head coach as Post 58 attempts to reach the state tournament for the third straight year.

Look for Post 58's playing schedule right here as soon as it's finalized.

Damper on Wilson Fike vs. Rocky Mount, again!

Rocky Mount's home baseball game with Wilson Fike, set back twice due to rain, was put off yet again by the wet stuff Wednesday afternoon.

The Gryphons will finally get to entertain the Golden Demons on Monday, May 9 - after RMHS' scheduled season-ending contest at Wilson Hunt.

With that cancellation, Rocky Mount will go two weeks between games. The Gryphons last hit the field on Tuesday, April 19 versus Cleveland High in the final day of the Johnston County Easter Invitational.

Rocky Mount will end the reguar season with four games in seven days. It will travel to Southern Nash Tuesday evening, entertain Northern Nash on Thursday night and play at Hunt (3 p.m.) Saturday - along with the Fike makeup!

We're now not sure if the Northern Nash or Fike contest will serve as Senior Night for graduating spring sports athletes. We will let you know.

Rocky Mount-Wilson Fike baseball game rained out - again!

For the second time, Rocky Mount's baseball team had its home contest with Big East Conference rival Wilson Fike rained out Tuesday evening. And with it, Fike players with have to wait one more day before they can start their spring break. 

The game has been moved to 5 p.m. Wednesday at Gryphon Stadium. But the two teams still aren't guaranteed they will get clear skies for the rescheduled contest. The JV contest between the two has been canceled.

Rain had struck twice earlier in the day Tuesday, but the Gryphon coaches had worked hard to get the field into playing shape only to have a line of showers pass through the area around 6:30 p.m. that was too heavy to cope with.

The original game was scheduled to be played on Friday, April 1.

RMHS senior pitcher Benton Moss (6-1 in 2011, 29-3 career) is slated to take the hill for the Gryphons. He will be going for his 30th career victory and it will tie him with former Northern Nash standout Tyler Joyner (30-7) for the most wins ever by a Twin Counties high school hurler.

Northern Nash's home game with Nash Central was also rained out and that game has been moved to Wednesday at 7.

The Moss File

Rocky Mount senior Benton Moss

Benton Moss has the top two career pitching marks in the Rocky Mount record book - career wins and strikeouts. There is one more pitching record that he's in reach of - total innings pitched.

He might reach Jim Leggett's mark, but that will depend on how the Gryphons do the rest of the season, and postseason.



Most career pitching victories:

29, (29-3), Benton Moss (2008-present);

28, (28-7) Jim Leggett (2005-08);

26, (26-6), John Kennedy (1978-80);

25, (25-6) Donnie Bobbitt (1984-86);

24, (24-7) Carter Harrell (1999-2001);

23, (23-3) Bill Wilkes (1979-81);

22, (22-7), Chad Womble (2004-07);

20, (20-9), Jeremy Ward (1993-96)

Most career strikeouts:

314, Benton Moss (2008-present);

215, Jeremy Ward (1993-96);

210, Hobbs Johnson (2009-10);

189, Doug Henley (1973-75);

174, Scott Gibson (1994-95)



Most career innings pitched:

237.2, Jim Leggett (2005-08);

209.0, Benton Moss (2008-present)

155.2, Kenny Wilson (1993-96);

145.1, Jeremy Ward (1993-96);

141.2, Doug Henley (1973-75)

Johnston County Easter Invitational All-Tournament Team; Matthew Berry makes squad

Rocky Mount senior Matthew Berry

Andy Pleasant Most Hits Award
Thomas Hill (West Johnston)

Will Raynor (South Johnston)

Pat Smith Outstanding Defensive Player Award

Jack Sherill (West Johnston)

John Stott Memorial MVP

Brad Ragan (West Johnston)

All-Tournament Team

Tre Joyner (Cleveland)
Matthew Berry (Rocky Mount)
Heinrich Zinkhan (Harnett Central)
Brian Taylor (Harnett Central)
Cam Austin (Hoke County)
Nate Driver (Smithfield-Selma)
Josh Harper (Smithfield-Selma)
Austin Lee (South Johnston)
Trey Thompson (South Johnston)
Logan Jernigan (South Johnston)
Taylor Davis (Clayton)
Jason Creasy (Clayton)
Matt Bunn (Clayton)
Aaron McGee (West Johnston)
Justin Carroll (West Johnston)
Matthew Parrish (West Johnston)
Kodi Whitley (West Johnston)

TOURNAMENT SCORES

Quarterfinals
Smithfield-Selma 14, Cleveland 4
Clayton 11, Hoke County 0
West Johnston 16, Rocky Mount 4
South Johnston 8, Harnett Central 7

Consolation, First Round
Hoke County 11, Cleveland 0
Harnett Central 10, Rocky Mount 6

Semifinals
West Johnston 7, South Johnston 1
Clayton 5, Smithfield-Selma 0

Consolation, Second Round
Rocky Mount 10, Cleveland 0
Harnett Central 11, Hoke County 8
South Johnston 8, Smithfield-Selma 2

Championship
West Johnston 3, Clayton 2 (8)


SEVENTH PLACE BOX
Rocky Mount 10, Cleveland 0
CLE 000 00 — 0 0 3
RMT 630 1x — 10 6 0
W—B.Moss; L—P.Banks.
HR: RMT—B.Moss.
Leading hitter: RMT—J.Johnson 2-3.

FIFTH PLACE BOX

Harnett Central 11, Hoke County 8

HCO 002 300 3 — 8 8 6

HCL 010 023 x — 11 10 5

W—B.Taylor; L—C.Carter.

HRs: HCO—C.Austin, K.Black; HCL—B.Taylor, J.Costa.

Leading hitters: HCO—C.Austin 3-4, C.Carter 2-4; HCL—H.Zinkhan 2-3, B.Taylor 2-4, Z.Hall 3-4.

THIRD PLACE BOX

South Johnston 8, Smithfield-Selma 2

SJO 101 310 2 — 8 9 4

SSS 000 200 0 — 2 2 0

W—T.Thompson; L—B.Youngblood.
HR: SJO—C.Lee.
Leading hitters: SJO—T.Thompson 3-4, W.Raynor 2-4.

CHAMPIONSHIP BOX
West Johnston 3, Clayton 2
CLY 010 000 10 — 2 3 3
WJO 001 010 01 — 3 8 2
W—A.Pittman; L—L.Howard.
HR: CLY—M.Bunn.
Leading hitters: WJO—A.Morrison 3-4, J.Sherill 2-4.

Gryphons to play in seventh place game of the JCEI

FOUR OAKS - For the first time since 2001, Rocky Mount will be playing in a seventh place game of an Easter baseball tournament.

The Gryphons, playing two games on the same day for only the sixth time in school history, didn't have things go their way in their first contests at Bruce Coats Field in the annual Johnston County Easter Invitiational. They lost their opener 16-4 to West Johnston Monday morning and 10-6 to Harnett Central in their loser's bracket game that afternoon.

Storms in the area Saturday forced tournament officials to add two of its unplayed games to Monday's schedule.

Rocky Mount hopes to salvage one win Tuesday at 12 noon when it will send senior Benton Moss to the mound against winless Cleveland High, a new high school located just south of Wendell in Johnston County. Cleveland fell 12-0 to Harnett Central Monday to drop to the seventh place game.

Moss (5-1 in 2011, 28-3 in his career) will be going for the school record of 29 pitching wins - a mark he currently shares with former Gryphon hurler Jim Leggett. He has won his last five starts and struck out 51 batters in his last three outings.


2011 JOHNSTON COUNTY EASTER INVITATIONAL
Bruce Coats Field, South Johnston High School, Four Oaks, NC

DAY 2 - MONDAY

GAME 3 - West Johnston 16, Rocky Mount 4

GAME 4 - Hoke County 12, Cleveland 0

GAME 5 - South Johnston 8, Harnett Central 7

GAME 6 - Harnett Central 10, Rocky Mount 6

GAME 7 - West Johnston 7, South Johnston 1

GAME 8 - Clayton 5, Smithfield-Selma 0

DAY 3 - TUESDAY

Seventh Place - Rocky Mount (12-7) vs. Cleveland (0-16), 12 noon

Fifth Place - Harnett Central (10-5) vs. Hoke County (7-12), 2:30 p.m.

Third Place - South Johnston (9-11) vs. Smithfield-Selma (7-10), 5 p.m.

Championship - Clayton (14-3) vs. West Johnston (10-7), 7:30 p.m.

2011 Johnston County Easter Invitational results/revisions

FOUR OAKS - Rocky Mount's baseball team made the trip to South Johnston High School's Bruce Coats Field Saturday for its opening game in the Johnston County Easter Invitational.

But the Gryphons never took the field as a rash of thunderstorms and tornadoes made their way across the state and knocked out the final two games of the day - including the Gryphons' meeting with West Johnston.

Now the Gryphons will play two games Monday. Tournament officials have tried to accomodate Rocky Mount with a change in the schedule since it makes the longest trip of any of the event's participants.

The schedule for Monday's play is below:

DAY 1 - SATURDAY

GAME 1 - Smithfield-Selma 15, Cleveland 5 

GAME 2 - Clayton 11, Hoke County 0

GAME 3 - Rocky Mount (12-5) vs.West Johnston (8-7), ppd., rain, storms

GAME 4 - Harnett Central (8-4) vs. South Johnston (8-10), ppd., rain, storms

DAY 2 - MONDAY - revised

10 a.m - GAME 3 - Rocky Mount (12-5) vs. West Johnston (8-7) 
12 noon - GAME 4 - Cleveland (0-15) vs. Hoke County (6-10)
2:30 p.m. - GAME 5 -  Harnett Central (8-4) vs. South Johnston (8-10)
4:30 p.m. - GAME 6 - Game 3 loser vs. Game 5 loser
6:30 p.m. - GAME 7 - Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner
8:30 p.m. - GAME 8 - Clayton (13-3) vs. Smithfield-Selma (9-7) 

DAY 3 - TUESDAY - revised

12 noon - Seventh Place - Game 4 loser vs. Game 6 loser

2:30 p.m. - Fifth Place - Game 4 winner vs. Game 6 winner

5 p.m. - Third Place - Game 7 loser vs. Game 8 loser

7:30 p.m. - Championship - Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner

RMHS' Brown named to 2010-11 NCPreps.com 3-A All-State Girls Hoops Team

Rocky Mount sophomore J'Kyra Brown drives to the basket against Northern Nash in the Big East Conference Tournament championship game. She was named MVP of the event.

(Photo/David Hahula)

HAMPTONVILLE - Rocky Mount sophomore J'Kyra Brown rebounded from missing her entire freshman season with a knee injury to making an All-State girls basketball team in her first campaign as a varsity player.

Earlier this week, Brown was named to the NCPreps.com 3-A All-State Girls Basketball Team. Brown led the Lady Gryphons to a school-record 25 wins (25-4), a share of the Big East Conference regular season title, the conference's tournament championship and an Eastern sectional final berth with eventual state champion South Central.

Brown scored 14.8 points a game, pulled down 5.3 rebounds an outing and dished out 3.1 assists a contest. She also popped in a team-leading 44 3-pointers.

NCPREPS.COM 3A GIRLS ALL-STATE TEAM

Ayana Avery, West Rowan
Ariel Bursey, Western Harnett
Danielle Butts, South Central
J'Kyra Brown, Rocky Mount
Jamie Cherry, West Craven
Amber Clark, South Central
Samantha Coffer, Northern Guilford
Janesha Ebron, South Central
Taylor Gibson, Tuscola
Shannon Hines, RS Central
Miranda Jenkins, Eastern Guilford
Jada Payne, Hickory
Hillary Sigmon, Hickory
Lindsay Simpson, Franklin
Mandessa Singletary, North Iredell
Jasmine Trawick, Westover

Danielle Butts, South Central - 3A Player of the Year
Mary Bryan Carlyle, South Central - 3A Coach of the Year

Gryphons' opener at Johnston County Easter Invitational moved up

FOUR OAKS - Rocky Mount's baseball team was scheduled to face West Johnston in its opening game of the Johnston County Easter Invitational Saturday at 5:30 p.m at South Johnston High School.

But with the inclement weather expected in the state sometime Saturday, the Gryphons' game time has been moved up to 4 p.m

If the entire schedule has been moved up 90 minutes, then here is the schedule for Day 1. The remaining games will be played Monday and Tuesday starting at 12 noon.

2011 Johnston County Baseball Invitational

DAY 1 - SATURDAY

10:30 a.m. - GAME 1 - Cleveland (0-14) vs. Smithfield-Selma (6-9)

12:30 p.m. - GAME 2 - Hoke County (6-11) vs. Clayton (12-3)

2:30 p.m. - Home Run Derby

4 p.m. - GAME 3 - Rocky Mount  (12-5) vs.West Johnston (8-7)

5:30 p.m. - GAME 4 - Harnett Central (8-4) vs. South Johnston (8-10)

DAY 2 - MONDAY

12:00 p.m. - GAME 5 - Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser

2:30 p.m. - GAME 6 - Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser

5 p.m. - GAME 7 - Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner

7 p.m. - GAME 8 - Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner

DAY 3 - TUESDAY

12 p.m. - Seventh Place - Game 5 loser vs. Game 6 loser

2:30 p.m. - Fifth Place - Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner

5 p.m. - Third Place - Game 7 loser vs. Game 8 loser

7:30 p.m. - Championship - Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner

2011 Big East Baseball Standings - April 8

2011 BIG EAST BASEBALL STANDINGS

Wilson Hunt        5-0, 12-2

Rocky Mount      3-1, 11-4

Nash Central      2-2, 12-3

Northern Nash    2-2, 9-4

Wilson Fike        1-3, 7-7

Southern Nash   0-5, 4-7

Last week's scores

WEDNESDAY

Rocky Mount 8, Wilson Fike 0

Nash Central 7, Northern Nash 4, 8 inn.

Wilson Hunt 11, Southern Nash 1, 5 inn.

THURSDAY

Rocky Mount 12, Southern Nash 0, 5 inn.

Northern Nash 10, Wilson Fike 4 (Fike gets 15 hits, but losses by 6)
Wilson Hunt 12, Nash Central 4

FRIDAY

Wilson Hunt 13, Southern Nash 2, 5 inn. (Hunt hits five HRs, scored 10 runs in the first inning.)

This week's games

TUESDAY
 Rocky Mount @ Northern Nash
Nash Central @ Southern Nash
Wilson Hunt @ Wilson Fike

THURSDAY

Rocky Mount @ Nash Central
Wilson Fike @ Southern Nash
Northern Nash @ Wilson Hunt

FRIDAY

Farmville Central @ Wilson Hunt
East Wake @ Northern Nash

SATURDAY

Rocky Mount vs. West Johnston @ South Johnston Baseball Invitational

Moss sets strikeout record while hurling one-hitter at Wilson Fike



RMHS senior Benton Moss

WILSON - Rocky Mount senior pitcher Benton Moss has, for the most part, been dominating all season.
He really showed that domination Tuesday evening as he struck out a school-record 20 batters en route to an 8-0 win over Wilson Fike.

Moss gave up just one hit - a single to Tyler Poythress in the fifth, and he hit one batter.

But that was it as he passed the RMHS record for Ks previously set at 19 by Carter Harrell ( vs. Hillsborough Orange, 2001) and Donnie Bobbitt (vs. Southern Nash, 1986)        

Over his last two outings in 14 innings of work, he has struck out an astounding 37 batters.

And it's always nice when you get some offensive support, too. And fellow senior Thomas Berry chipped in there. His grand slam to right center in the first inning gave him plenty of wiggle room, as if he would need it.

Ironically, Berry also hit first-inning granny last year in the Gryphons' late season win against another Wilson County team in Hunt.

RMHS BASEBALL RECORD BOOK

Most strikeouts in a game:
:
20, Benton Moss (vs. Wilson Fike, 2011);
19, Carter Harrell (vs. Hillsborough Orange, 2001);
19, Donnie Bobbitt (vs. Southern Nash, 1986);
17, Benton Moss (vs. Nash Central, 2011);
16, Benton Moss (vs. Southern Nash, 2010);
16, Scott Gibson (vs. Durham Jordan, 1995;
16, Scott Gibson (vs. Northern Nash, 1994);
16, Greg Proctor (vs. Wilson Fike, 1975);
15, Hobbs Johnson (vs. Tarboro, 2009);
15, Carter Harrell (vs. JH Rose, 2000);
15, Scott Lewis (vs. Kinston, 1988);
15, Larry Daughtridge (vs. Broughton, 1971);
14, Hobbs Johnson (vs. Southern Wayne, 2009);
14, Barrett Bodiford (vs. Garner, 1998);
14, Marcus Battle (vs. Kinston, 1994);
14, Danny Talbott (vs. Durham, 1963);
13, Hobbs Johnson (vs. Wilson Fike, 2010);
13, Carter Harrell (vs. Northeastern, 1999);
13, Scott Gibson (vs. Beddingfield, 1994);
13, Greg Proctor (vs. Northeastern, 1974);
13, Doug Henley (vs. Northern Nash, 1974);
13, Gary Ange (vs. Enloe, 1972);
13, Buddy Edgerton (vs. Durham, 1968);
13, Alton Oakley (vs. Goldsboro, 1958)
12, Benton Moss (vs. J.H. Rose, 2011);
12, Scott Lewis (vs. Wilson Hunt, 1988);
12, Buddy Edgerton (vs. Greensboro Smith, 1969);
12, Digit Laughtridge (vs. South Edgecombe, 1963)

RMHS-Hunt baseball games rained out

Rocky Mount's Big East baseball clash with Wilson Hunt, set for Gryphon Stadium Thursday evening, was rained out.

The game has been moved to Saturday at 7 p.m. The JV contest will be played at 4 p.m.

Rocky Mount (9-3, 1-0) opened with a 10-1 win over Nash Central, while Hunt (8-2, 1-0) beat Northern Nash 4-3.