Friday, October 2, 2026
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Cherryville, NC (WNN) - Only three teams remain; two games are left to determine the 2025 North Carolina American Legion Baseball 17U State Champions. Each of the final three teams has had amazing seasons and has played well throughout the tournament. There is a feeling of nervous excitement among the players as they warm up for one of the most memorable days of their young careers. Once the first pitch is thrown, those dancing butterflies will leave their stomachs as they lock in on the task at hand. These guys have been practicing and playing since late January or early February. They went straight from the high school season into the legion season. Now, just 14 innings remain until one of these teams will experience the magical moment of being the last one standing, earning the Champions title. Two great games are on tap for this afternoon and evening, so without further delay, PLAY BALL!
The final round begins with the Area IV championship rematch between South Caldwell Post 29 and Cherryville Post 100. The previous game was won by Cherryville 2-1; South Caldwell would enjoy nothing more than to avenge that loss today in the state tournament. Cherryville would love to move on to and win the championship game on their home field. The season is on the line; a team must survive this game to earn a shot at Matthews in the championship game, so expect the coaches to use every strategy possible to pull out this victory.
Starting pitcher for Cherryville, Blake Mitchell, used only 11 pitches to retire the first three batters he faced. Cherryville also goes down in order, 1,2,3, to end the first inning scoreless. South Caldwell had one base runner reach on a wall but was left stranded. Davin Digh gets the game's first hit with a line drive up the middle. Blake Mincey sacrifices to place Digh on second. Canon Whitesides grounds to third, Digh is tagged out, and the throw to first is in time for a double play. It is very evident why these teams have lost only 2 games this season. Through 2 ½ innings we have a true pitcher's duel.
Blake Mitchell has struck out three batters, and South Caldwell has only thrown 20 pitches going into the bottom of the third. Karter Willis grounds out to begin Post 100's turn at bat—Bryson Withers lines to the right center, where a balk is called, and Withers advances. Coleman Schafer then lays down a sacrifice bunt to send Withers to third base. Chandler Wooten is called out on strikes, still scoreless after three complete innings. It is definitely a defensive battle; the game is beginning to take on the feeling that the first team to score might win. Koda Beard opens the fourth inning with South Caldwell's first base hit. Nathan Hall launches a high fly ball to the right field, lost in the sun; however, it is picked up, and the forceout is made at second. Jacob Perkins strikes out, followed by Cooper Dotson flying out to centerfield. Cherryville goes 3 up, 3 down. Score remains 0-0. In the fifth inning, both sides retire in order. South Caldwell threatens in the sixth. Abram Lefler pops out to shortstop, Chase Cardwell beats out a bunt for an infield single, Koda Beard bunts to sacrifice him to second base, Coach Stan Haynes elects to walk the next batter intentionally, Nathan Hall.
Blake Mitchell retires Jacob Perkins on 3 strikes. Nathan Hall strikes out three straight Cherryville batters to head to the final inning still tied 0-0. These pitchers are getting stronger as the game progresses. If you enjoy a nailbiter of a pitcher's duel, this is the game for you. After two outs in the top of the seventh, Brayden Auton hits a single to left centerfield, but Post 29 fails to score as Dawson Hamby flies out to rightfield. Cherryville begins their final turn at bat with Kenan Fowler popping out to short stop. Blake Mitchell uses his speed to be out a throw for an infield single. He represents the potential winning run on first. Davin Digh has a full count when he hits it up to the middle, the second baseman steps on the base, and throws to first to complete the double play. It looks as if we have free baseball now and extra innings. At the top of the eighth, Abram Lefler was hit by a pitch. He is the potential go-ahead run at first base. Chase Cardwell sacrifices a bunt to advance Lefler. Koda Beard strikes out, and Nathan Hall is once again intentionally walked. Jacob Perkins lines to Karter Willis at second base, who makes the leaping catch to leave two South Caldwell runners stranded.
Blake Mincey singles to right field for the potential winning run on first base. Mincey is caught stealing second on a close tag—Canon Whitesides grounds out to the shortstop. Nathan Hall gives up his first walk of the game to Karter Willis, and again, the potential winning run is on base. Bryson Withers grounds out to first. Moving on to the ninth inning, these pitchers are tough to score against. Cooper Dotson becomes the ninth strikeout victim of Blake Mitchell. Michael Craig gets a clean base hit over the shortstop's head; Post 29 again has the go-ahead runner standing on first base. As Mitchell throws his 105th pitch, Brayden Auton rips a base hit to the outfield, advancing Craig to third. A pitching change is made due to the pitching limit being reached. Kenan Stewart is Post 100's new pitcher. Auton steals second. Dawson Hamby hits a sacrifice to the outfield that scores Craig. Auton is caught stealing third. South Caldwell leads 1-0 as Cherryville comes to bat in the bottom of the ninth. Coleman Schafer reaches base on an error by the shortstop, and the potential tying run is on first. Nathan Hall has thrown 110 pitches and must exit the game. Brady Boston is the new pitcher.
Wooten hits a base hit and becomes the potential winning run with no outs. The Fowler flies out to the right, but not deep enough for runners to tag. Mitchell grounds to the pitcher, who bobbles the ball, and everyone is safe. Bases are loaded with one out and Davin Digh on the plate. He lines out to right field. Two outs and bases loaded. Post 100 leaves the bases loaded with a strikeout. They finish the season with a record of 25-3. An amazing game and season, unfortunately, they fall short in a 1-0 game. South Caldwell will face Matthews in the championship game.
South Caldwell scored 1 run on 5 hits and committed 2 errors. Brayden Auton led the way at the plate with 2 hits. Winning pitcher Nathan Hall threw 8 innings, giving up 4 hits, no runs, striking out 5, while walking only 1. Cherryville scored no runs, collected 5 hits, and made no errors. Blake Mitchell pitched 8 1/3 innings; he gave up 1 run, 5 hits, struck out 9, and walked 3. Five batters each had one hit: Blake Mitchell, Chadler Wooten, Davin Digh, Blake Mincey, and Bryson Withers. Two evenly matched teams gave us a very exciting game, the type you would expect in the final round.
The championship game featured South Caldwell Post 29 taking on Matthews Post 235. If South Caldwell was tired from their nine-inning game against Cherryville, they didn't show it as they began the first inning. Koda Beard walks with one out. Nathan Hall reaches on an error; however, Beard is thrown out running to second. Jacob Perkins hit a single, and a passed ball scored Hall, and South Caldwell led 1-0. Cooper Dotson walks, then steals second base. Michael Craig hits back to the pitcher to end the inning. Matthews looked to answer quickly as Sam Yin led off with an infield bunt single, Drew Knowles worked a walk, and Aaron Dekeukelaere grounded back to the pitcher for a double play. South Caldwell is still looking sharp on defense. Yin is at third base with two outs. Post 29 pitcher Brady Boston strikes out Ryan Semm to get out of the inning with no damage.
South Caldwell has good pitching with sound defense, while Matthews can score runs in bunches, so this game should be interesting. Brayden Auton gets hit by the inning's first pitch; he advances to second on a sacrifice bunt by Dawson Hamby. Brady Boston pops out for our two, Chase Cardwell singles to right, giving South Caldwell a 2-0 lead. Koda Beard rips a line single to centerfield, scoring Cardwell for a 3-0 lead. Nathan Hall flies out to left field. Sound defense and dominant pitching have kept the score at 3-0 through five complete innings. Brady Boston has continued to hold Matthews scoreless. He has only allowed 1 hit, no walks, and has struck out 7. Post 235 is still trying to figure out how to hit off his pitches. The top of the sixth began with Brayden Auton getting a walk, then he went to second as Dawson Hamby sacrificed. Brady Boston gets called out of strikes, Chase Cardwell is up next, and drills a double to right field, which scores Auton to extend the lead 4-0. Koda Beard grounds out to end the scoring. South Caldwell attempts to add to their lead in the seventh after getting a runner to second base, but fails to knock him in. As Matthews are down to their last three outs of the season, Brady Boston strikes out the first batter of the inning, Ryan Semm. Boston reaches his pitch max pitch count after 6 1/3 innings. What a night he had; he allowed only 1 hit, walked 3, and struck out 10. Jack Martin flies out. Ben Baldauf keeps the game alive, lining into centerfield. Patrick O'Shaughnessy flies out to right field to end the game. Congratulations to South Caldwell Post 29 on winning the 2025 North Carolina American Legion Baseball State Championship. The State Champion South Caldwell Post 29 scored 4 runs, on 5 hits, and made no errors.
Leading the way at the plate was Chase Cardwell with 2 hits, 1 run scored, and 2 RBIs. Jacob Perkins added 2 hits. The runners-up, Matthews Post 235, scored no runs, had 2 hits, and made 4 errors. Sam Yin and Ben Baldauf each had one hit. That's a wrap for the Junior tournament. Thank you to all the teams and fans that made the trip, only two days before the home run derby that precedes the Senior State Tournament that begins on Saturday at Fraley Field. There is still plenty of baseball to be played in Cherryville. See you at "The Buck".
Stay tuned for the WNN video article of the Championship Game coming up next!
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