Ramsey, Gryphons edge Bulldogs in Big East Conference baseball

Rocky Mount High’s David Harrison pitches against Nash Central on Thursday at Nash Central High School.
©TELEGRAM PHOTO / SARAH LOUYA

Nash Central’s Hunter Robinson, left, misses the ball while attempting to tag Rocky Mount High’s Jamar Ellis, right, out at second on Thursday at Nash Central High School.
©TELEGRAM PHOTO / SARAH LOUYA

Spencer Ramsey coming through at the right time for the Rocky Mount High baseball team is becoming a trend. The senior did it again on Thursday against Nash Central, propelling the Gryphons to a 4-3 win.

The victory put RMH (10-3, 5-1) one game behind undefeated Wilson Hunt in the 3-A Big East Conference race. Those teams meet on Tuesday.

It was Ramsey who made it happen. He had to remind himself to keep his weight back during a crucial at-bat in the fifth inning, the Gryphons trailing by two runs. Ramsey wanted to hit the ball to the right side of the infield with two runners in scoring position. And two outs, he got a curveball and hit a smash that glanced off a diving Hunter Robinson’s glove between second and first.

The ball caromed into right field, allowing both runs to score. Ramsey then stole second on the next pitch, and scored the go-ahead run on Jamar Ellis’ double to push the lead to 4-3.

“My first thought was that I hoped the runs would score,” Ramsey said. “Then, when I was on first, I looked over at (coach Pat) Smith, and he had me steal. So I was in scoring position, and when Jamar hit that ball, I knew I was coming around to score.”

The Bulldogs (8-7, 2-4) never recovered from that two-out rally, which was the lone blemish on a strong outing from starter Zach Patterson. The hard-throwing right-hander struck out eight and walked four in 6 ⅓ innings.

Patterson found a way to make pitches and get outs, despite falling behind in counts often. He was effectively wild, and threw 47 balls out of his 106 pitches.

“(Patterson) made it so you had to make sure you took advantage of when he threw you something you could hit,” Ramsey said.

Nash Central’s Colby Carter reached base in all four plate appearances, including drawing a walk and a single, and added an RBI in the second inning. Carter, a left-handed batter, said his approach against a tough left-hander like Gryphons’ starter David Harrison is to see as many pitches as he can.

During the Bulldogs’ 10-inning loss to RMH earlier in the season, Carter reached six times, including five walks. Harrison started for the Gryphons in that game as well.

“You want to be smart against a guy like that,” Carter said. “You have to be comfortable taking pitches, and be aggressive when you get your pitch. If I can make him throw a bunch of pitches, that’s a good thing, especially with the new pitch-count rules this year.”

Carter saw 14 pitches in his four plate appearances, raising Harrison’s pitch total. The Gryphons’ starter wasn’t as sharp as he was in Tuesday’s win over Northern Nash, a game where Harrison needed just 42 pitches to get through four innings.

Harrison walked six, struck out six, and allowed five hits over 5 ⅔ innings. Nash Central scored twice in the third, taking advantage of a pair of walks and an error in the outfield, then added one more in the fourth before Harrison got back on track.

RMH freshman pitcher Ben Sieracki was told to warm up in the sixth inning. He was on deck when the inning began, and grabbed his batting gloves and went behind the dugout to throw a few warmup tosses with a teammate.

“I tried to get loose pretty fast,” Sieracki said.

He was needed with two outs in the bottom of the sixth when Harrison reached 104 pitches, one shy of the NCHSAA’s limit. Sieracki was tasked with closing down a four-out save against the heart of the Bulldogs’ lineup.

Carter singled on the third pitch he saw, before Sieracki got Tyler Sherrod to fly out to right. In the seventh, Nash Central had no chance against the right-hander. Sieracki had trouble locating his curveball during his warmups pitches, but made some adjustments and used it as an effective out pitch.

Sieracki struck out the side, including two looking, to seal the win.

“I knew I had to come in and throw strikes right away,” Sieracki said. “I couldn’t give up any runs, either. And when I gave up that first single, I attacked the zone and pitched to my defense.”