Hot hitting early, hot pitching late help Porter Ridge stop Ardrey Kell in NCHSAA playoff

Porter Ridge used an early offensive explosion to get a big lead against Ardrey Kell in its N.C. 4A high school baseball first-round playoff game Tuesday night at home.

The Pirates scored five runs.

Then, Ardrey Kell did the same thing.

But Porter Ridge had another big offensive push and that was enough for a 9-5 win.

After a scoreless first inning, Porter Ridge Infielder Trace Snead got an RBI double after an error in the Ardrey Kell outfield.

Later in the inning, with three on base for the Pirates, outfielder Caleb Gant hit a deep shot to right center, clearing the bases and bringing in three more runs.

Down 5-0, Ardrey Kell, the SoMECK 7 conference runner-up, scored five runs in the top of the third. After a sacrifice fly and fielding error brought in two runs for the Knights, left-fielder Damon Ottavianelli hit a three-run home run over left-center field.

But Porter Ridge had that second offensive surge — and the Pirates scored four more runs in the bottom of the third. After that, Porter Ridge pitcher Blake Efird allowed only two more Knights to get on base.

“Efird is our guy,” Pirates head coach Shane Brown said. “When he is on the mound, we have a great chance to beat anybody. We fought through some things because we knew they would fight back. I am proud of him for getting to the next pitch and pumping out the next strikeout.”

Efird said he made a key change in his motion that helped him slow down the Ardrey Kell batters.

“I saw the pitches were spinning high,” he said, “so I tried to keep it on the outer half of the plate as much as I could. I mixed in some off-speed stuff to kind of keep them off balance.”

Knights head coach Justin Rummage applauded Porter Ridge for its solid play.

“They had a great pitcher on the mound and was able to settle in,” Rummage said. “Hats off to Porter Ridge because they played a great game.”

▪ With the win, the Pirates will advance to the second round of the N.C. 4A playoffs and play the Olympic-McDowell winner.

THREE WHO MATTERED

Blake Efird, Porter Ridge: The pitcher had seven strikeouts with only two walks. He pitched a shutout from the fourth inning on and only allowed five hits total.

Caleb Gant, Porter Ridge: Gant’s 3-RBI hit in the bottom of the second got the Pirates going.

Damon Ottavianelli, Ardrey Kell: tied the game at 5 in the top of the third with a three-run homer.

JUST NOTING

▪ Although the two teams never faced off during the regular season, they did have one common opponent: Myers Park. Ardrey Kell dropped its only game to the Mustangs while Porter Ridge played Myers Park twice, splitting the two matchups.

▪ The Pirates’ Blake Efird did not allow Clemson commit Issac Pena to get a hit in this game. Pena is a freshman who announced in late 2020 his commitment to Clemson.