Two weeks ago, Asheville High’s Zach Hall asked baseball coach Bill Hillier Jr. to organize his pitching rotation so that the senior right-hander could take the mound against his former school. Hillier obliged, and it was worth it.
Hall threw a perfect game Tuesday, leading the Cougars to a 1-0 win over host Enka in the Mountain Athletic Conference.
“It was great to be able to stick it to my former team like that,” said Hall, who has lived in the Asheville district all his life but attended Enka schools prior to this semester. “I knew that I was on today. I was getting ahead of just about every hitter. I knew I was pitching well. But I didn’t expect a perfect game by any means. I guess when you’re on it happens.”
Hall (3-1), who threw a no-hitter in Asheville’s season opener, had eight strikeouts against Enka (4-3, 1-2) while retiring 21 consecutive batters Tuesday. The win helps Asheville (5-3, 3-0) remain undefeated in the MAC.
The Cougars only had two hits against Enka sophomore right-hander Dale Innes. But they scored the winning run in the top of the first inning when senior Nate Hutchins, who reached on an error, scored on a wild pitch.
Hall handled the rest.
“He pitched a good game,” Enka coach Mike Anderson said. “He had a good breaking ball working and kept the ball low.”