Apex sits atop SWAC baseball standings, beats Middle Creek
The Apex baseball team has a two-game lead over the rest of the field in the Southwest Wake Athletic Conference standings after a Monday night win over Middle Creek.
A three-run second inning helped Apex set the tone as it cruised to an 8-1 win over Middle Creek.
Chase Klingemann opened the scoring for the Cougars in the bottom of the first inning. After being walked by Middle Creek's Ryan Morris, Klingemann stole second and third base, then made it home after a single by Adrian Gonzalez.
The Cougars extended their lead in the second inning though.
Lucas Witt and Jay Hale each got on base, then with two outs in the inning, Cullen Klingemann hit a two RBI single to push the Apex lead to 3-0.
Cullen Klingemann scored later in the inning, reaching home from second base after a single by Chase Klingemann.
Apex added three more runs in the fourth inning and one run in the fifth inning to extend its lead to 8-0.
Chase Klingemann was 3-for-3 with two runs scored and one RBI. Witt also scored two runs, while Cullen Klingemann had two RBI. Will Newton and Dane Purdy also recorded runs for Apex.
Middle Creek's lone run came in the seventh inning when Will Tobin scored off a hit from Jett Parsley.
Cranz Smelcer pitched five innings for Apex, throwing four strikeouts while allowing two hits and one run.
Apex is now 11-3 overall and 8-1 in the Southwest Wake Athletic Conference. The Cougars hold a two-game lead over Green Hope and Holly Springs in the conference standings. With the loss to the Cougars, Middle Creek is now 9-6 overall and 4-5 in the conference.
On Wednesday, the two teams will meet again for the final time in the regular season. The game is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at Middle Creek.
