The Mustangs' starting third baseman batted 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI’s and Boyd even picked up a save in Middle Creek’s 6-3 victory over Fuquay-Varina last Friday.

The Mustangs (14-6 overall) improved to 8-2 in the competitive Tri-Eight Conference, keeping them on pace with conference leader Green Hope for the regular-season title.

Senior Max Drisko pitched five full innings and earned the win for Middle Creek, who has qualified for the upcoming state playoffs. Boyd fired five strikeouts in just two innings of work.

“Max did a phenomenal job for us,” said Middle Creek head coach Jeremy Thompson. “He’s a battler, a winner. He reminds me a lot of Orel Hershiser, he just won’t lose, it doesn’t matter if it’s a baseball game or pick-up-sticks.”

Thompson praised Boyd as well, and said people who see him have a hard time believing he is just in his first year. In Friday’s game the lefty made a key adjustment at the plate after striking out in his first at bat.

In his second attempt he singled to left field, and his last at bat featured a 350-foot blast to left-center.

“This kid can handle the pressure situations,” said Thompson, whose Mustangs captured the earlier meeting between the teams 5-4. “Overall, our boys swung the bats well, which has been one of our strengths all year.”

The Bengals (10-10, 7-4 Tri-Eight) let a three-run lead slip away, but still held Middle Creek under their normal run total. Fuquay is still in third place in the Tri-Eight.

“When we play one of the best hitting teams in the league there was no way we could only give our pitchers three runs and expect that to hold up,” said F-V head coach Milton Senter, who won his 500th game as a manager earlier in the week against Lee County.

“Our defense was adequate, but the same problem we’ve had all year long came up, when we get people in the right position we just couldn’t get the hits.”

Fuquay-Varina scored all three runs in the second inning, keyed by a rare Mustang error. A double play should have ended the inning early, but after the error Austin Risch advanced Kyle Canfield and Phillip Cotten with a perfectly place sacrifice bunt.

Ryan Weaver then belted a two-RBI double, scoring Canfield and Cotton, and then scored himself on Zach Orrison’s double to give the Bengals a 3-0 advantage.

Middle Creek immediately answered in the third to trim the Bengal lead to 3-2. The Mustangs notched three base hits in the inning, including Dylan Drayton’s RBI double and Boyd’s single, which scored Drayton. Seth Watkins singled and scored the first Middle Creek run.

The score remained 3-2 until the fifth. Mustang Al Reams led the inning off with a single, and then advanced to third base as Drayton layed down a beautiful bunt which resulted in the Bengals’ lone error, allowing Drayton to get to second.

Fuquay-Varina pitcher Travis Long, a sophomore, pitched well and notched five strikeouts, but Middle Creek finally overcame the Bengals defense. Boyd was intentionally walked, and then with the bases loaded Ben Clark drew a hard-earned walk, driving in Reams for the tying run.

The Mustangs took the lead for good when Trevor McKearney smacked a hard single, scoring Drayton to make the score 4-3.

Bengal first baseman Aaron Olive made a saving play on a sharp ground ball off the bat of Matt Laxton with the bases loaded to keep the game within reach, but F-V was unable to overcome Boyd in his relief duties the final two innings.

Long, who received high praise from Thompson, took the loss.

Both Boyd and then McKearney (3-for-4) homered in the top of the seventh to conclude the scoring. McKearney’s shot cleared the “Bengal monster” in left field.

“We’re really happy with how the boys progressed this season,” said Thompson, whose Mustangs face Panther Creek, Athens Drive, and Lee County twice to conclude the conference schedule. “ Tonight we know we’re in the playoffs, now we can go out and have some fun the rest of the way.”