PIKEVILLE -- The first grand slam triggered thoughts of merciful enforcement of the 10-run lead rule.
The second slam sealed the deal.
Senior catcher Zach Wright's bases-loaded home run with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning ended host Charles B. Aycock's 16-4 rout of Oxford J.F. Webb in the opening round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A baseball playoffs.
The contest, shortened to the fifth inning because of the 10-run lead rule, featured five homers -- including a grand slam from senior first baseman Jordan Carr that powered CBA to a 12-1 margin in the third inning.
The Golden Falcons, the No. 1 seed and tournament champions from the Eastern Carolina Conference, hiked their record to 19-6 in earning a second-round test at home next Tuesday.
Webb, No. 3 from the Mid-State Conference and in the playoffs for the second straight year after a 17-year absence, departed at 13-12.
"We played well," reviewed CBA head coach Charles Davis. "You are looking wins at this stage of the season and, if you play well, it's an added bonus."
Five of CBA's nine hits went for extra bases as sophomore shortstop Connor Narron hammered his seventh homer of 2008. Junior right fielder Will Edgerton's three hits included a pair of doubles.
On the mound, senior right-hander Jesse Randolph was effective enough with his off-speed pitches to claim his ninth win against two losses.
Wright's game-ending blast also represented welcomed atonement. In CBA's seven-run third inning, Wright made the first and last out in the inning.
"I thought about that," Wright, who has signed with East Carolina University, said with a laugh. "I was mad; I was about to die. I hate it when that happens.
"But with a good approach, I knew I was going to come through. It was a curveball that hung really bad. It was a one-handed swing, but I kind of stayed with it. I was thinking (hit a) line drive. But when I saw it hit the bat, I was overjoyed because I knew it was gone."
Wright, who connected for a grand slam against Hunt a few days ago, belted his third homer of the season, while Carr connected for his second.
Narron, who scored four runs, walloped a two-run shot in the second and, when the baseball disappeared over the trees behind the right-field fence, it was headed toward Norwayne.
"Everybody came out and swung the bat," Wright noted. "Everything was up in the air because Jesse's had strep throat. I admire him."
Added Davis: "Jesse competed. He struggled with his fastball, but he got his off-speed stuff over. And when Connor, Jordan and Zach saw pitches tonight, they didn't miss them. That's what you want from your Nos. 3, 4 and 5 hitters."
The 10-run lead rule was on the verge of being enforced in the top of the fifth, but Warriors' sophomore designated hitter Trey Talley belted a two-run homer that chopped the deficit to 12-4. Webb's first run came on senior third baseman Chase Watson's solo homer in the second.
"(CBA) swung the bats well," assessed Webb head coach Jeff Tate. "We knew that coming in. We couldn't get them out; they hit everything we threw. They have some good players and are well-coached."
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