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By Brian Pitts

Davie Enterprise Record

The Davie varsity baseball team’s sweep of Reynolds had everything to do with pitchers Bayden Hazlip and Jaydon Holder.

Both lefties hurled complete games, combining for 18 strikeouts and zero walks, as Davie defeated the Demons 4-3 and 13-3.

“Bayden works fastball/changeup,” coach Joey Anderson said. “Jaydon has a hook and he also comes in on your hands more. Bayden gets a lot more groundballs. When Jaydon is on and he’s got the tempo that he needs, he can beat pretty much anybody. They’re both going to compete and they’re both going to give you everything they’ve got.”

Davie 4, Reynolds 3

In the first matchup in Winston-Salem on March 10, the War Eagles prevailed by the skin of their teeth, scoring the tiebreaking run in the sixth inning.

“We’ll take it however we can get it,” Anderson said after the Central Piedmont Conference opener. “But we need to be better defensively and they know that. They know if we don’t kick it around a little bit, that game is 4-1 or 4-0.”

With Coy James and Parker Aderhold aboard, cleanup man Jackson Sink singled in two to give Davie a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the first. Davie got an unearned run in the second to make it 3-0.

With Hazlip dealing on the mound, it looked as if Davie was going to cruise home. That wasn’t the case. It committed three errors and all three came in the third. When the dust cleared, it was 3-3.

“Plays that should have been made weren’t made,” Anderson said.

But Davie scratched out what proved to be the winning run in the sixth. Daniel Lawson singled and Wesley Mason followed with a two-strike infield hit. Craig McBride replaced Lawson as a pinch-runner, and he sped home when the catcher threw to first on a strikeout in the dirt.

The first Reynolds batter in the seventh reached with a single. Davie, though, spoiled the Demons’ upset chances by turning a 6-4-3 double play against their leadoff batter. James and Sink handled the DP as Davie beat Reynolds for the sixth straight time and the 11th time in 12 meetings.

“We’re growing,” Anderson said. “Little by little, we’re figuring it out. We’re going to keep plugging.”

Hazlip had a sterling night on the hill, throwing 69 of 92 pitches for strikes, walking none and fanning 10 in a five-hitter. This moved the senior to 2-0 with a 1.27 ERA.

“Bayden was unreal,” Anderson said. “He was able to use both sides of the plate, and he used his changeup at the right time. He pitched a marvelous game. Even when they got on base, he pitched like a senior.”

Getting a 2-for-3 effort from Parker Simmons, Davie outhit Reynolds 7-5. Getting one hit were James (1-4, two steals), Aderhold (1-3), Sink (1-3, two RBIs), Lawson (1-3) and Mason (1-3).

Notes: Anderson said Davin Whitaker “made some good plays at third.” … The hard-luck Demons endured their third one-run loss in as many games. … Conner Frail pitched well in defeat. He went the distance for Reynolds, striking out seven with no walks. “He got in a rhythm in the third inning, and luckily we had put some runs on the board at that point,” Anderson said. … Through four games, Mason (.454) and James (.428) were far and away Davie’s top hitters, with everyone else hitting .285 or less.

Davie 13, Reynolds 3

When Davie hosted the Demons on March 12, Holder was just as good as Davie’s game one pitcher. The junior went all six innings and struck out eight in a three-hitter.

“Jaydon pitched great,” Anderson said. “He kept them offbalance. He shouldn’t have given up a run.”

Davie had a 4-0 lead after the third, but again, the win was hardly flawless. All three of its errors came in the fourth, when Reynolds scored three unearned runs to get back in the game.

“In all five games, we’ve had one tough inning,” Anderson said. “We’re letting people back in the game. I told them I don’t need the spectacular plays; I just need the routine plays. If we make the routine plays, we could very easily be 5-0 right now.”

There was less drama in this one, though, thanks to Davie’s seven-run fifth. Reynolds’ out-of-gas pitching helped immensely as Davie did the damage with six walks and only one hit, a double by Cooper Bliss.

“Their coach said he didn’t really have that second starter, but (Ethan Chandler) threw well (for four innings),” Anderson said.

For the second time in two games, Simmons paced the offense, going 3-3 with four RBIs.

“Simmons has been doing great,” Anderson said after the junior’s 5-for-6 showing in two games. “I moved him down because I need some production at the bottom of the lineup. So I put Simmons in the nine hole and moved Ty Miller up to the seven hole, and it seemed to work. Simmons is getting more fastballs and he’s able to get comfortable. He did a great job for two games. He had a big game on his mom’s birthday (March 11). I’m happy for him.”

Lawson (2-2, walk) was the other War Eagle with multiple hits. Sink (1-4, two runs), Mason (1-4, two runs) and Miller (1-3, two runs) contributed as Davie outhit Reynolds 9-3.

The War Eagles (3-2 overall) are 2-0 in the CPC, but the road is about to get considerably tougher. East Forsyth and Reagan are the next two league opponents.

“I’m happy for the guys, but I’m definitely not satisfied at all,” Anderson said. “It’s a good start to the season, but we still have a long way to go. We’re going to play defense and we’re going to get better.”