Baseball outlasted the weather – at least at Laurens District High School and Presbyterian College — on Friday as the skies cleared and home-plate umpires yelled, “Play ball!”

The Raiders, more notably, did.

A band of Revolutionaries, once known as the Colonials, descended upon the Blue Hose’ Elton Pollock Field.

Revolutionaries rival the Broome Centurions in unwieldy mascots.

Laurens worked on the field, and then it worked on Eastside, 10-1.

The way Region 2-4A sets up its baseball schedule, an unfortunate team can find itself in the cellar in a hurry, and that’s how the Raiders left the Eagles reeling home from Ed Prescott Field.

It was Tori Patterson, staff and players who readied the diamond for play at the end of a rainy Friday, and it was worth every push of a rake.

They sure faked me out.

First baseman Owen Pridgen singled and homered and converted a 2/3 night into four runs batted in. Designated hitter Asher Goss and left fielder Avey Madden also laced doubles.

Eastside (1-6, 0-3 region) led briefly, as in before Laurens (8-2, 2-0) batted.

Shortstop Peyton Schrader singled in a run in the top of the first inning, but the Raiders evened matters after center fielder Zay Pulley and catcher Bennett Edwards singled with one out. Losing pitcher Johnny Rosario beaned Ben Willis, and Goss walked with the bases loaded to tie the score.

After a scoreless third, Laurens produced three runs in the third. Edwards reached on interference by the other catcher, Willis singled and Edwards scored after tagging on Goss’s pop to Schrader at short and catching him unawares. Then, with two out, Madden’s double drove in Coleman Coker after Willis scored on a Rosario balk.

In the fifth, Willis walked, Pridgen doubled and Pridgen launched a three-run bomb to left field. With two out, second baseman Hunter Nabors singled in Coker, who had walked. Edwards’ double made it 9-1 after five frames.

The final run scored in the sixth when Goss scored on an error after Pridgen’s single.

Ryland Paxton was the estimable winning pitcher, limiting Eastside to five hits and the first-inning run. He walked one and struck out six with 98 pitches in a complete game.

Eli Kerrigan and Pete Mershon lined doubles for the Eagles.

The Washington, D.C.-based Revolutionaries overcame a one-run deficit with five runs in the top of the fifth inning to defeat Presbyterian, 6-3, in the first of three weekend games.

Second baseman Tuffy McGuire went 3/4 for George Washington (9-8). In the box, he was lifted as McGuire Tuffy.

Surely not.

Center fielder Ellis Schwartz and catcher Tim Nicholson each were 2/4 at the plate. GWU outhit the Blue Hose, 10-2. The significant PC hit was Elio Lazio’s home run.

Michael Foltz (2-1) kept the Blue Hose preoccupied with 11 strikeouts in seven innings.

Taking the loss for Presbyterian (9-9) was the second of five hurlers, Tristan McGregor (3-1), who retired none of the six batters he faced. Starter Daniel Eagan allowed an unearned run in four innings before yielding to McGregor, Jeremiah Hampton, Christ Charalambous and Caden Barnett.

Below the top two spots in the batting order, the Blue went 0/20 with two walks and eight strikeouts.

Presbyterian took the lead in the the bottom of the second when Jay Wetherington reached on an error and scored on Lazio’s two-out, two-run homer.

The Blue Hose boosted their lead to 3-1 on Aaron Robson’s grounder in the fourth, scoring Jackson Hugus, who had been hit by a pitch.

Then along came the Revolutionaries’ five-run, fifth-inning onslaught. Sam Gates greeted McGregor with a single to right-center field and advanced to second base on an error. Schwartz singled and swiped second. Steve Ditomaso walked. Robbie Lavey reached on another error. Charlie Rogan and Robby Wacker lashed back-to-back doubles.

Take a look at the box here.

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