CARY - If Cary Christian's baseball team thought it had avoided facing Cary Academy pitcher Keenan Szulik. But the Knights soon learned otherwise, falling 13-3 Cary Academy win Tuesday in a cross-town private school rivalry game.

Cary Christian scored two runs in the top of the first inning and one more in the second, but Szulik came on in relief as the Cary Academy needed just six innings to clinch the non-conference contest at the Chargers' field.

"Keenan was hitting his spots,” Cary Academy coach Ray Pope said. “He was staying inside and then he was going outside with his slider. He was keeping them off-balance. He hit his spots well.”

Cary Academy improved to 5-2 overall as senior right fielder Davis Bryson was 3-for-4 with an RBI and four runs scored.

Cary Christian dropped to 3-2 overall as senior catcher Matt Daum, who is committed to play for Johns Hopkins, was 1-for-2 on a double with an RBI and a run scored.

The Knights took the field for warm-ups thinking Szulik was the starter they'd face, but they soon learned the 6-5, 200-pound junior right-hander was scratched for Zack Layne, a sophomore. Layne started and threw two and 1/3 innings before Szulik entered the game.

But the move wasn't any strategic move on the part of Pope, the Chargers' veteran coach. Pope's left arm is in a sling these days from shoulder surgery the previous Thursday, and he said he didn't realize his student assistant had filled out the lineup card with Szulik as the starter.

Pope said "We planned all along to start Zack and have him go three innings and bring in Keenan,” but just the opposite happened.

“Zack did a good job, but then he got a little tired.”

Layne was the victim of three errors behind before he left the game with two runners aboard. Szulik allowed an RBI single to the second batter he faced, shortstop Brett Andrews, but he didn't allow a hit the rest of the way. Szulik struck out seven in three and 2/3 innings, walking two.

"They put No. 8 [Szulik] on the mound and he's a stud that can play ball in college if he wants to,” Cary Christian coach Troy Strange said. “We did well in the beginning, but then our pitching got shaky. This was a good learning lesson for us. I don't think our kids were playing with confidence against a great program like Cary Academy. We had a little talk after the game about how we have to pick each other up.”

Szulik said his goal is to be recruited by an Ivy League school and study medicine or engineering. He said he'd prefer an Ivy school over any other Division I program.

"I'd love to go to an Ivy League school,” said Szulik. “Academics are important to me.”

Szulik was throwing in the mid-80s and Pope said recruiting interest will increase if he can add some velocity.

"He needs to add about 3 or 4 miles-per-hour,” Pope said. “But he's already got people looking at him.”