SEVEN AND COUNTING: Ayden Smith's fifth home run highlights South Laurel's seventh straight win
Apr. 17—LONDON — Once South Laurel got started on Friday night, they couldn't be stopped, as the Cardinals cruised to a 14-3 win over McCreary Central, claiming their seventh straight win this season.
"We kind of had a slow start but once we got a few hits, it kind of got us going, gave us some energy," said South Laurel Coach Trey Smith. "Tonight (Friday) was a night where we could kind of get some young guys in the game and that was good for us because it gives us more experience, especially in a year like this with COVID or injuries or anything else could get you at any point, so you've got to have the next guy up mentality."
The Cardinals got going in the second inning with a double by Ashton Garland that got two runs in and a home run by Ayden Smith that put two more runs on the board.
South Laurel pulled away with five more runs in the third and four runs in the fourth inning.
Dylan Dixon pitched the Cardinals to victory on Friday night. He threw for four innings where he only allowed three hits and two runs while striking out six players. Maison Lewis threw for one inning where he allowed two hits, one run, and had one strikeout to finish out the game in five innings.
"We threw a lot of strikes tonight which is something we've been doing all year long, just forced people to put the ball in play," Smith said. "As the year has gone on, we've gotten better and better on the defensive side of the ball, making the routine play and making people earn runs. That was something we struggled with early in the year but now we're doing a much better job."
