By Brad Greer

After scratching out two hits in their season-opening 8-0 loss to Kirk, the North Delta bats came alive as the Green Wave pounded out 10 hits in route to a 10-5 win over visiting Lee Academy Thursday afternoon.

But perhaps just as effective as its offense, was the North Delta pitching that was the deciding factor. With the score tied 5-5 in the top of the fourth, Ethan Taylor came on in relief of starting pitcher Jim Tom Copeland and shut out the Lee bats over the next 3.2 innings to earn the win on the mound. Taylor did not give up a run while striking out  two and walking three batters. Copeland meanwhile surrendered five runs and five hits while walking five and fanning five in 3.1 innings.

“Both pitchers did a very good job tonight I thought,” said North Delta head coach Stoney Stone. “Ethan came in and threw strikes while Jim Tom was around the plate most on the night. He made a couple of mistakes to that one hitter that cost him, otherwise he threw well. I feel like another key factor in the game was cutting down on our mental mistakes. We made fewer tonight than we did against Kirk.”

Stone picked up his first career coaching victory.

North Delta (1-1), pushed across two runs in the bottom of the first for a 2-0 lead. Michael Magee started things off with a double then later scored as Taylor reached on a two-out error. After Taylor  advanced to second on a wild pitch, Austin Gant beat out an infield single then chased home Taylor for the second run.

   Lee later tied the game at two in the top of the third on a solo home run by Tony Antici. The Green Wave then retook the lead in the bottom half of the frame when leadoff hitter John Cody Dalrymple smashed a triple to left then later scored on a wild pitch.

Lee answered back in the top of the fourth as Antici struck again with a three-run blast to left field off of Copeland to give the Colts a 5-3 lead. That would be the last runs the visitors scored as Taylor wiggled out of a first and second out jam by getting Blake Edwards to fly out to end the inning.

The Wave knotted the game up again as Gant led off in the bottom of the fourth with a single. Bateman Greenlee then took a 1-0 fastball from Blake Hester the opposite way for a two-run home run. North Delta took the lead for good one inning later as Taylor reached on a two-out walk then proceeded to swipe second and third bases and then raced home on a wild pitch.

North Delta put the game away  by sending nine batters to the plate in a four-run sixth inning. Hunter West started the outburst with a one-out single followed by a Bailey Guckert walk. Singles by Dalrymple and Magee produced a pair of runs, making the score 8-5. The big blow of the inning came on the next at bat as Carson Bailey drilled a pinch-hit two-RBI  double to finish out the scoring.

Gant, Magee and Dalrymple led the offense with two hits each while West and Guckert recorded singles.

North Delta returns to action today by traveling to Magnolia Heights with the varsity starting at 4 p.m followed by the JV at 6. The Green Wave will stay on the road tomorrow by taking on Lee in Clarksdale with varsity beginning at 4 p.m.