Salamanders resume schedule by facing
Gastonia at home on Friday night
By CHRIS HOBBS
HobbsDailyReport.com
MAIDEN – Maiden Post 240, home on Friday night to begin a stretch of six games to end the regular season, has forfeited five games and is 0-12 heading into an American Legion baseball game against Gastonia at Maiden High (at 7 p.m.).
In a ruling by Legion’s national headquarters in Indianapolis, Maiden forfeited all of its wins prior to June 5 – over Burke, Huntersville, Gaston Braves (twice) and Cleveland County – because team officials had not filed a required form.
Under Legion rules, a team can’t practice or play a player whose eligibility to play for that team has not been checked, Area IV Commissioner Jerry Hudson said.
That check is to assure the player or players live (their homes are) closest to the school a team designates as its “home” school. For example, Maiden Post 240’s home school is Maiden High. If the plaver(s) live(d) closer to another post’s home school, an annual release by that other post’s athletic officials must be on file.
Hudson said he was asked to check for the roster forms for Maiden Post 240 and Lincoln County Post 455 so that Post 455 could determine if some of Maiden’s players’ eligibility should have at Lincoln County Post 455.
When Hudson took the situation under review, he found Maiden Post 240 officials had never filed the require form and that as many as eight players on the opening day Maiden roster were not eligible at Maiden. They all played high school baseball at Bandys.
To have been eligible for the first day to play for Maiden, the Salamanders would have needed to request Lincoln County Post 455 release those players.
Maiden Post 240 athletic director David Williams Sr., was not available for comment on Friday.
The Salamanders released a revised roster on Friday. and Hudson confirmed all current players on the roster were now OKed by Lincoln County Posy 455 coach Bruce Bolick and are eligible to play for Maiden.
Had that been done prior to the season, Maiden would not have been subject to forfeitures. But because that didn’t happen, Hudson said the rule had to be enforced.
Hudson said his check included asking last year’s Area IV Commissioner, David Coffey, to review Maiden’s paperwork. Coffey found no requests for release of players were made when the official roster was sent in, Hudson said, and Maiden has some players on its 2018 rosters that should have played for other Legion teams.
Hudson said Maiden would not face any penalties for 2018.
MAIDEN POST 240 SALAMANDERS SCHEDULE
(0-12 overall, 0-9 Area IV East)
May
17—Burke County at Bandys HS, Won 6-5 (FORFEIT)
19—Legion Kickoff at Mount Pleasant High, Lost 1-3, Lost 3-8
25—Huntersville at Bandys High, Won 2-0 (FORFEIT)
26—at Gaston Braves (E. Gaston High), Won 7-3 (FORFEIT)
28—Gaston Braves at Maiden High, Won 10-4 (FORFEIT)
29—Union County at Maiden High, ppd., June 9
31—at Gastonia (Sims Park), Lost 6-11
June
1—Mint Hill at Maiden High, Lost 2-11
2—at Shelby (Shelby High), Won 7-0 (FOR FORFEIT)
5—at Lincoln County (E. Lincoln High), Lost 3-6
7—at Union County (Wingate), ppd., June 9 as part of DH at Maiden
8—Hickory at Maiden High, ppd., no date
9–Union County at Maiden High, DH, ppd., June 23
10—at Hickory (Legion Fairgrounds), cancelled
11—Pineville at Bandys High, Lost 2-7
12—at Huntersville (N. Mecklenburg High), ppd, Thursday, 7 P.M.
13–at Huntersville (N. Mecklenburg High), Lost 1-6
21—Gastonia at Maiden High, 7 p.m.
22—at Mint Hill (Independence High), 7 p.m.
23–at Hickory (Legion Fairgrounds), cancelled; Union County at Maiden High, 2 p.m.
25—Cleveland County at Maiden High, 7 p.m.
26—Lincoln County at Maiden High, 7 p.m.
28—at Pineville (Ardrey Kell High), 7 p.m.
Playoffs
First round, June 30-July 4
Second round, July 5-10
Third round, July 11-16
Head coach: Justin Hawkins; associate head coach: Dustin Hull; athletic director: David Williams Sr.
Team sponsor: Carolina Glove and Safety Company
2019 SALAMANDERS ROSTER (updated)
No. Player Grade Pos. School
1 Spencer Floyd 10 INF-RHP Maiden
3 Jacob Cauble 10 INF-RHP Maiden
4 Jay Sipe (Fr.) College INF Western Carolina
5 Mark Lyda 10 C Bandys
6 Austin Hoyle 10 C-P Maiden
7 Ryan Lyda 12 OF-LHP Bandys
9 Cy Spencer 12 INF-OF-RHP Bandys
10 Dalton James 10 LHP-OF-INF Maiden
11 Landon Leonard 11 LHP-OF Bandys
12 Bain Sipe 11 OF-C-RHP Maiden
20 Spencer Ledford 11 INF-RHP Bandys
21 Ivan Huffman 12 OF Bandys
23 Josh Frye Fr. (College) OF-RHP Piedmont CC
24 Jacob Ellis 12 C Bandys
26 Elijah Carr Fr. (College) RHP CVCC
31 Mac Beam Fr. (College) OF-INF-RHP CVCC
32 Salvatore Ferraro 11 1B-OF Bandys
34 Peyton Laney 11 1B-RHP Bandys
40 T.J. Rasar Fr. (College) 1B-RHP Bruwnswick Community
