By Ken Bradley
MaxPreps.com
Ask Hal Bagwell how his second-year baseball team has started 16-3 this season, including 10-1 in the Southwestern 4A, and he’s quick to rattle off some telling numbers.
• Ardrey Kell’s team ERA is 1.52.
• Opponents are hitting just .217.
• In 124 innings pitched, Knights’ pitchers have surrendered just 41 walks.
“We’re really pitching well and letting our defense play behind us,” Bagwell said.
Yes, his team is pitching well – really well. Bagwell has five arms he can go to and each of them has been on the money this season.
Jordan Darnell is 6-1 with a 1.65 ERA. Alex Woods is 3-0with a 1.87 ERA. Ryan Butler is 3-0 with a 1.38 ERA. Blake Parsley is 2-0 with a miniscule 0.40 ERA and Andrew Miller is 1-1 and 0.95.
“Those are guys who’ve been carrying us,” Bagwell said. “It’s been good. We just hope it can continue.”
The Knights are ranked No. 4 in the recent Charlotte Observer Sweet 16 poll.
“We have a little depth and a pretty simple philosophy,” Bagwell added. “We’re going to make them hit the baseball and we’ll play defense behind our guys. One of the main things we won’t do is walk people. So far, we’ve been successful.”
Of course, all that pitching would go to waste if the offense doesn’t produce. With one of the area’s top hitters in the lineup, that hasn’t been a problem.
The team’s centerfielder, Ryan Stetson, is batting .458 with an ob-base percentage of .603. He also has six home runs, 23 RBI and nine stolen bases. Bagwell can’t say enough about the slugging right-hander.
“Ryan Stetson is a great player, an explosive player, one of the top junior players in the state of North Carolina,” Bagwell said. “He’s a tough out, a tough out.
“He’s been consistent since Day 1. I’ve coached a lot of good ones, he’s probably one of the five most talented I’ve coached. He has tremendous upside.”
Much like the team, that upside can potentially take the Knights to bigger places.
Another key to Ardrey Kell’s success is knowing its opponents.
“We’re prepared going in and executing a lot of detail on scouting our opponents,” Bagwell said. “We try to find weaknesses and we believe it makes a big difference. We really do a good job of knowing our opponents and that gives us an advantage.”
Baseball: Olympic Swinging to Success
The Olympic baseball team quietly has put together an impressive season.
Last week, the Trojans were ranked No. 13 in the Charlotte Observer Sweet 16 poll of area baseball teams. One quick look at the team’s statistics and it’s easy to see why the team is off to a 14-3 start.
They can hit – really hit.
Olympic coach Bob Rhodes had these quick-hit comments on someof his top hitters:
• Robert Krause (batting .550): “Really seeing the ball well.”
• Corey Roberts (.472): “Getting the tough pitching assignments each week.”
• Frankie Torres (.439, out several weeks after knee surgery)
• Brett Patrick (.421): “Timely hitting.”
• Will Simpson (.409): “Good speed, big hits. Home runs have been unexpected plus.”
That’s half of the Trojans lineup batting .400 or better. Still, Rhodes said they’ve gotten some help.
“The bottom teams in our league have helped some with that,” he said.
In order to keep winning and make a run at the playoffs, Rhodes said the formula is simple.
“Our pitchers and defense need to play at their highest level,” he said. “We keep hitting the baseball.”
Softball: Butler Shutting Down Opponents
It’s easy to see why the Butler softball team is undefeated.
No one can score on the Bulldogs.
Last week, Butler wiped out Myers Park 16-0 and entering this week, the Bulldogs are 15-0 and 11-0 in the Southwestern 4A.
“Pitching is the key to our success,” Butler coach Brian Cottom said.
That’s an understatement.
Take a look at the evidence:
• Constance Orr (University of North Carolina commitment) is 10-0 (8-0 in SW4A) with a 0.00 ERA.
• Kelsey Spurrier is 5-0 (3-0 in SW4A) with a 0.00 ERA.
• Orr and Spurrier have tossed no-hitters.
That doesn’t leave much room for error for Butler opponents.
The Bulldogs have three conference games remaining against South Meck, Weddington and Independence. They also have a non-conference game against Richmond Senior this week.
For Cottom, it’s important to keep his defending state champions from becoming overconfident.
“We just stress what is important to us,” Cottom explained. “We can only control ourselves. We put a lot of time in on what we can do. We work everyday on hitting and fielding. Really, just keep it simple.”
So far, the method has the Bulldogs eyeing back-to-back championships.
Basketball: United Faith Standouts Sign
United Faith, which lost to nationally-ranked Word of God Christian of Raleigh 85-71 in the NCISAA championship game, saw two of its senior standouts sign with college programs last week.
Previously, Kenny Gabriel committed to Auburn.
Recently, Kenny’s brother, Keith, signed with Virginia Military. Gabriel is a 6-foot-3 guard who averaged 15 points and three rebounds. Also, Brandon Long, also a 6-3 guard who averaged nine points and six rebounds, signed with Limestone.
United Faith coach Shaun Wiseman said two more of his players, Adam Raye and Jovan Varagic, could be making commitments soon.
Ken Bradley, a former sports editor and writer in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, covers the Charlotte, N.C., area for MaxPreps.com. He can be reached at kbradley14@yahoo.com
