Not only is Cedar Ridge baseball firmly in the race for one of the three Big 8 state playoff spots, but the Red Wolves pitching is finding its groove at the right time.
Sophomore Phillip Berger threw a one-hit shutout, striking out ten as Cedar Ridge defeated J.F. Webb 4-0 on Thursday in Oxford. The Red Wolves (12-5, 5-4 in the Big 8) have won six in a row and head into the final two weeks of the regular season in fourth place in the Big 8, one game in the loss column behind Orange and Chapel Hill for 2nd.
Sophomore Dante DiFranco and senior Brandon Andrews each doubled and scored, finishing 1-for-2. Junior Chris Cox had an RBI, as did Erik Zehnder.
Following the first complete game of his career, Berger improved to 5-2 with a 1.84 ERA. His previous best for longest outing came last week in the Hilltop Invitational, when he gave up six hits in six innings in a 9-3 victory over Western Harnett.
In three games this week, the Red Wolves outscored opposition 33-0. In Wednesday’s 20-0 rout of Southern Durham, Evan Hall and Zehnder combined on a five inning no-hitter. Andrews hit his third homer of the season, while Zehnder added two doubles.
Cedar Ridge hosts Oxford Preparatory on Monday, then welcomes Southern Durham for a home game Wednesday.