JACKSON -- Chris Griggs and Coleman Barbee dominated on the mound for Jackson County in leading the Panthers to a two-game sweep over Jackson (Ga.) Wednesday in the Class AAA state playoffs.
The Panthers (19-11) took a 6-1 win on Game 1 and closed out the series with a 6-2 victory in Game 2.
Griggs (7-3) took a no-hitter into the seventh before finishing with a one-hitter to get the Game 1 win. Griggs struck out 6 and the only hit was a RBI double with two outs in the seventh to break up the no-hitter and the shutout.
Jackson County pounded out 11 hits in the opening game. Max Wilson had three hits and scored twice. Joel Ellis and Chandler Saine each had two hits and Ellis added two RBI.
In Game 2, Barbee (6-3) gave up two runs on five hits in six innings and fanned 12 Jackson batters. Jase Latty got the save and had three strikeouts for the Panthers. Griggs had two hits and two 2 RBI. Colby Cole belted a solo home run, and Preston Giroux had a hit and one RBI for Jackson County.
The Panthers next will face the winner of the Westminster-Ringgold series next week in the quarterfinals.
Jackson County is 4-0 in the playoffs. The Panthers came into the 2015 playoffs without a single playoff win in program history and now have two straight sweeps.
