Charles Henderson keeps rolling, routs Florence 14-4
Published 10:31 pm Monday, March 24, 2014
Charles Henderson downed 6A Florence 14-4 Monday afternoon at the Gulf Coast Classic in Gulf Shores to notch its 10th win in its last 11 games.
The Trojans turned 6 hits in to 14 runs, and head coach Derek Irons said the big day all goes back to the basic hitting approach he teaches to his players.
“Our basic offensive philosophy is to put pressure on the defense,” said Irons. “That all starts with taking control of the plate and getting right up on it. We have to have strike zone awareness. I think we were hit eight times today. We stayed in the box, and when out hits came, we usually had guys on base to score some runs.”
Charles Henderson scored four runs in the first inning, two coming on a Cole Wilson single to right field.
The Trojans exploded for six runs in the fourth inning. Charles Henderson only had one hit in the inning, a single by Chase Harley, but took advantage of four Florence errors to break the game open.
John Johnson doubled in a pair of runs in the fifth inning to add on some insurance runs.
“We took advantage of some of their mistakes and made the most of those six hits,” said Irons.
Austin Ingram picked up the win on the mound, and did it in dominating fashion.
Ingram went the distance, scattering eight hits and throwing only 57 pitches in five innings.
“Austin did a great job today,” said Irons. “They (Florence) like to be aggressive at the plate, so we wanted to be aggressive on the mound. He pounded the strike zone all day, and when Florence did get some runners on he did a great job of getting out of it.”
Charles Henderson will play Pulaski Academy Tuesday at 9 a.m.
Pulaski won the 2013 Arkansas 5A state title, and Irons sees the game as a chance to take some bragging rights.
“It sure will be fun,” said Irons. “It is champion versus champion. We told the guys they will never get another crack at them. I’m sure it will be a great game against two pretty good ball clubs.”