Great pitching, clutch hitting and errorless defense is going to please a baseball coach in any game of the season, but it's especially nice come playoff time.

The Golden Demons got all three of the above in their 3-0 defeat of Erwin Triton in the second round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A playoffs Tuesday night.

Fike, the No. 1 seed from the NEW 6 Conference, improved to 20-4 as it reached the third round of the playoffs for the second straight season.

"I'm very proud of the way we kept our composure, battled and got the job done," said veteran Fike head coach Will Flowers. "I'm very proud of the effort, as I have been the last couple of years. This is back-to-back 20-win seasons for us and it ain't over yet. This is an amazing group of young men."

Fike's third-round opponent at home Friday night will be South Granville. Triton, the No. 3 seed from the Cape Fear Valley Conference, exits 16-8.

The Demons managed just one hit in the first three innings but erupted for all three runs in the fourth inning.

The three-run cushion proved ample for sophomore starting right-hander William Prince (8-2) and senior right-handed reliever Bentley Massey in an unaccustomed support role.

Prince threw five scoreless innings and scattered six hits, including five in the first three innings when he wasn't yet in a groove.

But Prince found a rhythm and set down seven straight Hawks until the sixth.

Leadoff batter Ethan Strickland reached on the game's only walk; then Nate Whitman scratched out an infield single against Prince.

Flowers didn't hesitate to summon Massey, his Friday night starter, from the bullpen where he had been getting in some work.

Massey retired all six batters he faced -- five by strikeout -- in earning his first save of the season.

"It was a blur," Massey said. "My adrenaline was pumping. I don't even remember what happened."

While the sixth inning may have been Triton's best chance to score, it wasn't the only opportunity the Hawks had. Triton had runners in scoring position in each of the first three innings but couldn't get the big hit.

"We kind of hit it hard but right at 'em a couple of times, but that was the difference," said Triton head coach Chip Mangum, a 1992 Hunt High School graduate.

With one out in the fourth, sophomore second Michael McLawhorn poked a single to right field then stole second before scoring the first run on center fielder David Gibbons' single.

Gibbons, a junior, took second on the throw, then raced home on senior Jacob Davis' scorching single to left. Not content with a 2-0 lead, Flowers called for a hit-and-run which senior catcher Zac Crumpler executed to perfection.

Crumpler lashed a grounder in the spot vacated by Hawks shortstop Alex Lopez as he moved to cover second on Davis' steal attempt.

The ball rolled through for a single and moving to third was Davis, who would score on Mitchell Wheeler's sacrifice fly to right.

"They hit the ball almost as good as we did, but we just got them at the right time," said Davis, who went 3 for 3. "That's what we told ourselves all year long -- when you get in scoring position, you've got to execute and I think we did that tonight."

paul@wilsontimes.com | 265-7808

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