BUFORD — On paper, it looked like a huge mismatch.
Region 8-AAAA champion and No. 2-ranked Buford was riding an eight-game win streak and had won 19 of its last 20 games. Meanwhile, Whitewater was reeling down the stretch having lost 10 of its last 11 yet somehow managed to take the No. 4 seed from Region 5-AAAA.
Buford baseball coach Tony Wolfe said he knew better than to take any of that for face value.
“They always play us tough. They don’t look at us as anything other than just another team,” Wolfe said.
The Wolves were taken down to the final pitch by the Wildcats before eventually pulling out a pair of tough wins, 9-5 and 5-4, in the first round of the Class AAAA playoffs Friday at Gerald McQuaig Field.
The Wildcats (11-16) had the tying run at the plate in the final inning of the first game and the winning run at second base in the final inning of the second game before the Wolves (25-3) got a series-ending double play to finish off the sweep and advance to the second round.
“We didn’t let the records bother us. We knew it was going to be a tough series. They have a great program over there,” Wolfe said. “Great teams have to be able to perform under pressure with poise and I think we did that (tonight).”
Senior shortstop and Georgia Tech-signee Austin Wilhite was instrumental in both wins picking up a pair of saves in relief. Neither save, however, was extremely tidy as he had to work out of bases loaded jams in both contests.
“I haven’t been on the mound in a while and it took me a while to kind of find my pitches,” he said. “I was wild in the first game so when I came in in the second game I was just telling myself I couldn’t mess up or be wild. I was glad when I saw the (last pitch) turned into a double play.”
Wolfe said he expects a cleaner effort in the second round when they will face the winner of the Bainbridge-Spalding County series on Wednesday at home.
“It’s always good to have a tough series early and I feel we’ll be able to play a little crisper and more loose,” he said. “(Whitewater) know us so well we were probably a little tight because we know what kind of program they have.”
The first round series was a rematch of the the 2015 Class AAAA state championship series, also won in a sweep by Buford.
Game 1: Buford 9, Whitewater 5
Senior starter Justin Glover got a no-decision and held the Wildcats scoreless until the fifth. He worked around a two-out single to Tyler Dounes in the first inning to give the Wolves a chance to get on the board first. The offense obliged.
After a Brandon Marsh ground out to start the inning, Austin Wilhite reached on a four-pitch walk and brother Nick Wilhite brought him in with a double to the wall in center. Griffin Jolliff followed with a single scoring Nick Wilhite to give the Wolves a 2-0 lead. The Wolves later loaded the bases with two out on a Tanner Alexander walk but White struck out Thames Hudlow to get out of the inning.
Glover surrendered a leadoff walk in the second and then the Buford offense went back to work against White. Dillon Lancaster led off with a single, Marsh followed with a walk, and both moved up a base on a wild pitch. Austin Wilhite knocked both runners in with a two-RBI single to right for a 4-0 lead. Wilhite later scored on a Whitewater error to push the lead to 5-0.
Whitewater threatened in the third putting runners on the corners on a Austin Adams single and a Buford error. But Glover was able to get out of the jam striking out Miles Jones to end the inning.
Glover continued to dominate fanning two and retiring the Wildcats in order in the fourth. The Wolves had a chance to blow it wide open in the bottom of the fourth but left the bases loaded when relief pitcher Trey Jordan struck out Hudlow to get out of the inning with no runs scored.
Things came apart for Glover in the fifth. The Wildcats loaded the bases with no outs. Glover fanned pinch-hitter Austin Gardner but Dounes roped a two-run single to right to pull Whitewater within 5-2. Miles Jones followed with two-run single to pull the Wildcats within 5-4 still just 1 out in the inning. After another hit to Connor Nalley, Glover was lifted for Clay Dickie, who uncorked a wild pitch that scored Jones to tie the game at 5.
But Dickie was outstanding the rest of the way retiring all five batters he faced to eventually earn the win and giving the offense a chance to win it late. The offense did just that manufacturing a two-out rally loading the bases on a Tanner Alexander single sandwiched between walks to Noah Ledford and Kent Baldy.
Lancaster gave the Wolves the final lead driving in courtesy-runner Cole Gunter for a 6-5 lead in the bottom of the sixth beating out an infield hit. Marsh capped it one batter later with a three-run triple to left for a 9-5 lead.
Austin Wilhite came on in the seventh and walked two and yielded on hit to load the bases but struck out JD Norred to end the game and preserve the win.
Game 2: Buford 5, Whitewater 4
The Buford offense picked up where it left off to end the first game. Nick Wilhite doubled with two out and then scored on a RBI single from Jolliff for a 1-0 lead in the top of the first.
The Wildcats, however, answered right back on Jolliff’s first pitch when Austin Adams smacked a solo home run to lead off the first to tie the game at 1-1. They added a run on a a RBI groundout by Nalley for a 2-1 lead.
Buford answered that in the top of the second. Noah Ledford singled and Alexander walked to start and then Ledford scored on a throwing error on a sacrifice attempt by Hudlow. Lancaster drove in Alexander to give Buford a 3-2 lead but was gunned down trying to reach second. Hudlow scored on an RBI groundout by Marsh for a 4-2 lead.
The Wildcats had a rally working in the bottom of the second but Carter Anderson was gunned down at third by Marsh in right field to end the inning.
Whitewater pulled within 4-3 in the third without a hit when Doanes reached on an error, moved to second on a wild pitch, stole third and scored on a throwing error.
Buford answered again loading the bases with no outs in the top of the fourth. Marsh brought in Alexander on a sacrifice fly to push the lead back to 5-3. They loaded the bases again with two out but left the bases loaded when Jolliff popped out to center to end the inning.
The Wildcats inched closer in the fifth when Adams singled and later scored on a double play to pull within 5-4.
In the seventh, Carter Anderson reached on an error prompting Wolfe to go to Austin Wilhite to close it out. Wilhite, however, walked Justin Burdette and after fanning Adams yielded a single to Win Lindsey to load the bases with one out. But he Doanes to hit into a 6-4-3 double play to end the game and the series. It was Wilhite’s fifth save in seven appearances on the season.
“We have kind of groomed Austin for that role and he thrives in it,” Wolfe said. “We only use in the seventh when we need him and he battled for us and got it done.”
