South Lenoir Handles St. Pauls in First-Round Win, Advances to Face Southeast Alamance
South Lenoir Handles St. Pauls in First-Round Win, Advances to Face Southeast Alamance
DEEP RUN, N.C. — The sixth-seeded South Lenoir Blue Devils opened the 2A state playoffs with a sharp all-around performance Tuesday night, defeating No. 27 seed St. Pauls, 7-3, behind multi-hit efforts from Carley Boone and Rylan Wade and a complete-game outing from Callie Tyndall.
South Lenoir (13-6) jumped out early, plating two runs in the first inning off Boone’s RBI single, then added two more in the second after Tyndall’s base hit and a delayed steal that saw Cloey Cole swipe home. The Blue Devils never trailed, collecting 12 hits and executing timely offense to stay in control throughout.
Boone went 3-for-3 with a double, RBI, and hit-by-pitch, while Wade continued her hot streak at the plate with a 3-for-4 showing, including a double and two RBIs. Tyndall and Kylee Weston each added two hits, and Cole stole two bases.
Tyndall (6-2) earned the win in the circle, tossing seven innings of three-hit ball while allowing three runs and striking out seven. She also worked around eight walks, keeping the Bulldogs from capitalizing on free passes.
Facing one of the state’s top hitters in Angel Purcell, South Lenoir opted not to take chances. Purcell walked in all four plate appearances, as pitcher Madison Harvey and the Blue Devils coaching staff refused to let the power-hitting junior change the game with one swing.
Ke’Mya Baldwin drove in all three runs for St. Pauls (10-12), going 2-for-4 with a double, while Purcell, despite being held hitless, scored once and kept pressure on South Lenoir with disciplined at-bats.
South Lenoir will now host No. 22 Southeast Alamance in the second round of the NCHSAA 2A playoffs on Friday.
Post game interview:
