Nick Johnson collects 11 RBI in 3A North baseball triumph

May 29, 2011 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


There were plenty of crooked numbers illuminating the scoreboard Saturday night at the 3A Arizona Baseball Coaches Association all-star game at Surprise Stadium.

One number that was not crooked, but hideous was the 11 posted by Blue Ridge shortstop and game most valuable player Nick Johnson. Johnson drove in that eye-popping number of runs to lead the 3A North to a 26-11 slugfest victory over the South.

Johnson paced a 20-hit North attack going 5-for-5 -- a home run, two doubles and two singles. The multi-sport Johnson, who also played quarterback for the 3A runners-up in football, was the lone North player to play the entire game. Johnson finished with seven plate appearances. He walked and delivered a sacrifice fly in the other two and also scored three runs Two weeks earlier at the same venue, Johnson slugged a game-winning two-run homer in the ninth to give the Yellow Jackets an 8-6 win in the 3A state title game against Estrella Foothills.

Johnson opened his offensive showcase with a two-run single in the first that helped the North to a quick 3-0 lead. The South bounced back with three runs of its own in the bottom of the inning and added four more in the second for a 7-3 lead.

Not deterred, the North and Johnson rebounded again. Johnson's highlight hit of the night helped pull the North even at 7 in the fifth when he launched a three-run homer to left-centerfield that traveled close to 400 feet. River Valley's Robert Cooper put the South back in front 8-7 for the final time with an RBI double in bottom of the fifth -- the only half-inning of the game when a single run was scored.

Johnson's next at-bat in the sixth served to put the North ahead to stay as he laced a two-run single to jump-start a five-run rally. Window Rock's Lacey Hickson followed with a two-run single and Payson's Jake Sleeper topped off the outburst with an RBI double. Hickson finished with three RBI as did Sleeper. Johnson had an RBI double in the seventh on a ball lost in the lights in righ field and concluded his onslaught with a two-run double off the base of the wall in right in the ninth.

The North went on to score six runs in the seventh, five in the eightth and three in the ninth. Its nine-inning line for the game read 300 045 653 for 26 runs.

Show Low lanky right=hander Troy Carpenter picked up the win for the North allowing one run and two hits in three innings of work (fourth, fifth and sixth). Chino Valley's Logan Morris worked the first three innings for the North and Window Rock's Forrest Benally tossed the final three innings.

Other players enjoying the offensive night for the North were Chino Valley's Jerry Garcia four hits (all singles and four runs scored); Holbrook's Austin Lozano (two hits, five runs scored), and Monument Valley's Alan Todachine (three runs scored).

The South aided the North's cause the final six innings by issuing 10 walks. South starter Michael Shanks of  Florence gave up the three first-inning runs (all unearned). He allowed two hits, no walks and fanned six. He left with a 7-3 lead.

The South didn't have a bad night offensively, collectin 16 hits. Globe's Justin Castaneda was 4-for-4 with two RBI  and Fountain Hills Mike DeGroote added two RBI.