Even when the weather is clear, a spring night has dampness in it.

Parents and friends huddle in the shadows, some up against the fence in their foldable chairs, others standing back a bit, wearing caps and windbreakers, wishing they had a cup of coffee.

Many years ago I realized that baseball carries an intensity of devotion greater than other games. People love football. They worship baseball.

Football is bigger. Football is greater. Football is a game that is easy to understand the basics. Kick a touchdown!

Baseball is complicated. Once a month, a dedicated fan sees something he (or she) has never seen before. It was intensely measured long before other sports were, and now it’s absurdly measured.

This could be a consequence of growing older, and it’s true of every sport. I enjoy being there as much as the game itself.

What a rip-roaring brand of ball was being played within the environs of Laurens County and the locations where its teams went.

Laurens won its Region 2-4A series against Greer by the two-out, RBI single of Avery Madden that defeated the Yellow Jackets, 4-3, on Friday night.

On Monday, Laurens won, 4-2. On Wednesday, Greer won, 2-0. The right fielder’s game- and series-ending single was decisive through and through.

The above is insufficient to describe the entire saga of the bottom of the seventh inning, which began with the Raiders trailing, 3-1.

After Zay Pulley struck out, Hunter Nabors, Bennett Edwards and Ben Willis walked consecutively. Owen Pridgen went down swinging for the second out.

On a 1-1 count, Coleman Coker lined a single to right, scoring Nabors and Edwards to tie the score. After taking a ball, Madden also lined a single to right, scoring Willis from third.

Celebrations undoubtedly ensued.

Laurens (13-3, 5-1 region) picked up a quality relief performance from Connor Rice, who held the line in 3-2/3 innings, allowing two hits (one of which was a homer by Greer’s Cole Bellinger) and a walk and striking out four. Jordan Hudson started on the hill for the Raiders.

Laurens roughed up Greer’s Christian Crane, who bore the brunt of the rally. He faced five batters and retired only one. Bellinger pitched 6-1/3 strong innings but wasn’t around for the decision.

Greer (9-4, 4-2) only had four hits. Bellinger’s fifth-inning homer was the one by either team that went for extra bases.

The Raiders collected eight singles, three of them by Coker and two by Pulley.

The celebration went the other way in Woodruff, where the Wolverines scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth and made it stick, 2-0, over Clinton.

The former run scored on an error, the latter on a grounder to first.

Clinton missed a golden opportunity in the top of the sixth inning. With one out, Jaydon Glenn singled to center, and Brett Young singled to left. Bryce Young sacrificed the tying run into scoring position, but it left first base open so that Woodruff’s Collin McAbee could walk Zane McLendon intentionally. Harrison Moore launched an inning-ending liner to short.

Both teams had three hits. Neither scored an earned run, the difference being that the Red Devils didn’t score any at all.

Tanner Finley pitched six strong innings – two unearned runs, three walks, six strikeouts – but took the loss. McAbee got the win with two walks and seven K’s.

Woodruff’s Whit Harrison had the game’s only extra-base hit, a double. Connor Kelley and Zach Kehn had the singles.

Hitting safely for Clinton were Brett Young, Jaydon Glenn and Moore.

At the same time that tension was abounding in Laurens and Woodruff, Laurens Academy was winning a slugfest in Spartanburg.

The Crusaders (3-5) outscored Oakbrook Prep 7-1 in the final three innings, racing past the Knights, 13-11.

Oakbrook (6-5) led 10-6 … after three innings. The teams combined for 24 runs, 15 hits, 16 walks and eight errors.

Braydon Burke ripped two doubles, drove in three runs and picked up a decision on the mound with 4-2/3 of yeoman relief. Caleb Hardy drove in two and stole three bases.

Laurens (6-4, 3-1) drubbed Greer, 18-8, in softball, led spectacularly by Carly Edwards, who drove in five runs, scored three, singled, doubled and homered. Skyla Bates also homered and drove three home.

Summer Nations went the distance in the circle. She gave up 12 hits, six earned runs and two walks, striking out two.

Three pitchers took various amounts of damage for the Yellow Jackets.

Clinton (6-5, 1-4) couldn’t slow a rapid Union County softball team, falling, 14-3, to the Yellow Jackets.

Union had 12 runs already when the Red Devils scored three times in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Yellow Jackets totaled 15 hits to Clinton’s four.

Halleigh Luke, Kamryn Campbell, Me-Me Smith and Maddie Butler had the Clinton singles.

Laken Lewis went 3/4 for Union County. Four others had two hits apiece. Five had doubles. Caroline Davis homered.

Woodruff also won its junior-varsity baseball game over Clinton (7-4). The Wolverines had two runs and one hit. The Red Devils had one run and two hits.

Woodruff’s runs were in the first inning. One scored on an error, the other on a Carter Schubach single.

Angel Vargas and Talan Campbell had the Clinton hits.

Will work for food, but contributions would be better. Besides, I had a steak before Jim McLaurin’s funeral. I’d forgotten how good they are.

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