Stephens, Peebles edge North Adams 2-1 in pitching duel

Peebles got the kind of victory that can shape a Southern Hills Athletic Conference race, not just a box score. Freshman left-hander Braylen Stephens outdueled North Adams sophomore right-hander Trace Evans in a 2-1 Indians win Thursday, April 23, on a night when every run felt heavy and every out mattered in Adams County.

North Adams made the trip east on Route 41 looking to grab an early conference edge, and the Green Devils did strike first. Maverick Winkler singled in the opening inning, moved up on another hit and came around on a fielder’s choice for a 1-0 lead. Peebles answered quickly. Bo Johnson singled, Nash Grooms followed with an RBI groundout, and the Indians had the game tied before the first inning ended.

After that, both pitchers settled in and turned the matchup into a classic. Stephens and Evans combined to allow only nine hits, and Evans was sharp even in defeat, working six innings and striking out six Peebles hitters. The difference came in the bottom of the fourth, when Stephens helped decide the game himself. He lined a one-out triple to right field, then scored on a sacrifice fly by Colyn Sims to put Peebles ahead for good.

That single inning held up because Stephens kept finding outs when Peebles needed them most. The Indians backed him with defense, including a double play in the fifth, and when North Adams came to the top of the seventh needing one run to extend the night, Stephens finished the job by retiring the side in order.

The win was Peebles’ sixth conference victory of the season and kept the Indians just percentage points behind Whiteoak in the Southern Hills Athletic Conference small-school race. For a county rivalry that has lately produced tight games, the result fit the trend. A 2025 meeting between the same programs also ended 3-1 in Peebles’ favor, and North Adams entered this one fresh off a far different April memory, a 29-2 SHAC rout of Ripley earlier in the month.

This time, the margin was one clean inning and one clean finish. In a county where Peebles and North Adams measure themselves against both each other and the top of the division, Stephens’ pitching and that fourth-inning triple made the difference.