If the Starr’s Mill Panthers were to nominate one player for a player of the week award, without question, nobody would be more deserving of such an accolade than Danny Beadling.

Two days after pitching a complete-game victory against top-ranked Woodward Academy, Beadling accounted for almost half of the Panthers’ runs in their 12-1 victory over Region 2-AAAA rival Creekside in the second game of a doubleheader Wednesday in Fayetteville.

The victory completed a sweep of Creekside for Starr’s Mill, which won the early game in five innings, 13-2.

It was a memorable day for Beadling, a kid who started the season languishing on the bench.

“I told him after the game, ‘You want to keep playing, don’t you?’” Starr’s Mill coach Brent Moseley said of Beadling. “He’s very talented. It’s just that he has to carry it to the field. He does great in practice.”

Beadling was among many reasons Starr’s Mill (11-7, 7-2 region) was able to extend its winning streak to three games and remain in a second-place tie with Northgate in the region.

The Panthers had 10 hits, and four players had at least two hits against Creekside in the second game: David Norman (3-for-4, two RBI), Ken Jackson (2-for-3, four RBI), Beadling (2-for-4, five RBI) and Myles Jaye (2-for-4).

Starting pitcher Drew Johnson also played a key role in Starr's Mill's victory. He was exceptional, striking out eight and allowing one run, five hits and one walk for the complete-game six-inning victory.

Starr’s Mill took a 4-0 lead in the first inning of the second game against Creekside ace right-hander Demondre Arnold, scoring two runs each on a fielder’s choice by Ed Cook and a double by Jackson.

It was just the start Starr’s Mill needed against Arnold, who has been terrific for Creekside. He was the winning pitcher in Creekside’s 10-0 victory over Northgate, a team that crushed Starr’s Mill 15-5 last week, in late March, and Arnold threw well against Woodward in the first week of April.

The Panthers didn’t score again until the sixth, when Arnold was taken out of the game.

One batter after Jackson drew a bases-loaded walk, Beadling hammered a grand slam to make it 12-1 in the sixth.

Johnson pitched a scoreless sixth to bring the game-ending mercy rule into effect.

In the opening game, a combination of hitting and pitching carried Starr’s Mill again.

Starr’s Mill had 10 hits, and four players had two hits: Johnson (2-for-2), Jaye (2-for-3, one RBI), Cook (2-for-3, two RBI) and Norman (2-for-2, three RBI).

The Panthers’ two biggest hits were a three-run double by Norman and an RBI double by Michael Jeanes, and their most productive inning was the second, in which they scored seven runs.

Jaye struck out eight and gave up two runs (both earned), one walk and eight hits for the complete-game victory.

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