WINDSOR – If it was cloudy Friday afternoon at Falcon Park, it wasn’t necessarily the weather.

It could well have been the demeanor of Bertie baseball boss Randy Whitaker.

The sixth-year skipper was still fuming a day after the Falcons lost an 8-0 decision to Tarboro and the Vikings were headed to Bertie County for a rematch.

Bertie, however, responded in a manner their coach appreciated – jumping on Tarboro early and cruising to a 12-0 victory.

&uot;It feels good today, because we didn’t play well yesterday,&uot; Whitaker said. &uot;We reverted to a form of last year – it was a flashback almost.

&uot;Today, we came out and hit the ball and put them down early,&uot; he continued. &uot;We jumped on them and then didn’t let up.&uot;

While the Bertie offense was clicking on all cylinders, so too was senior hurler Corey Castelloe. He threw 87 pitches over five innings and shutout the Vikings to claim the victory.

&uot;It feels very good,&uot; Castelloe said. &uot;Yesterday actually played a lot into today. The way we played yesterday made us want to win.&uot;

The Falcons jumped up early, plating two in the home half of the first frame when Matthew Schwab walked and Chris Lawrence doubled. Both players scored on wild pitches to give the Falcons a 2-0 advantage.

After holding the Vikings off the board in the second, the Falcons added seven to their run total.

Jed Hughes started the inning with a double before Lance Thomas sent him to third with a single. Schwab then drilled a three-run homer to lift the Falcons to a 5-0 advantage.

Lawrence, Castelloe and Chris Gray had consecutive singles, before Jones reached again on a fielder’s choice. Brian Mizelle reached when a pitch hit him and then Marcus Thomas drove in two on a single.

Castelloe delivered a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the third before his team added three more in the home half.

Lawrence was hit by a pitch and then went all the way to third on a Castelloe single to right. Nate Harper, a courtesy runner for Castelloe, swiped second and Lawrence scored when the throw to get Harper was dropped.

Gray delivered an RBI-single to right and then Jones had an RBI-basehit to left to put Bertie up 11-0.

The Falcons plated one in the bottom of the fourth when Hughes singled and then took second on Thomas’ basehit. He scored on a Castelloe RBI-single to right.

&uot;Its nice to go home early on this side of it for a change,&uot; Whitaker said. &uot;We’ve been on the other end the last couple of years.&uot;

He said the team’s hitting took him back to his 1999 team, which did a good job in that area.

&uot;This reminded me of the ’99 team,&uot; he said. &uot;They would score early and put pressure on the other team. That’s what we were able to do today.&uot;

The Falcons, 2-3 on the young season, will host Bear Grass at 4:30 p.m. this afternoon (Tuesday).