GAINESVILLE — Mistakes and timely hitting were the key in the Class AAAAA quarterfinal series between Gainesville and Dalton Tuesday at Ivey-Watson Field.
And both teams benefitted in splitting the first two games of their best-of-three series. Gainesville took Game 1, 7-1, behind a complete-game effort from Sam Carpenter and strung together six of their eight hits in a pivotal five-run sixth inning.
The Catamounts turned the tables in Game 2, taking advantage of four Gainesville errors in the first three innings to run out to a 9-3 lead before hanging on for an 11-7 win to send it to a deciding Game 3.
The two teams’ will finish the series at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at Ivey-Watson Field with the winner moving on to the semifinal round.
“Sam did a great job of battling and we got some hits when we needed them,” Gainesville Jeremy Kemp said of their Game 1 victory. “In the second game we just seemed to lose our focus and it cost us. I was proud of how we battled back but we can’t make mistakes like that and expect to win.
“We didn’t have to tell them what they did wrong. They understand and they’re good at handling things.”
Dalton coach Rhett Parrott sounded much the same about his Catamounts.
“The difference in Game 1 was that they got the timely hits and we couldn’t,” Parrott said. “In the second game we came out with a little more intensity and they made a few mistakes and we were able to take advantage of those. But I was proud of how our guys battled back after losing that first game.”
And both coaches expect more of the same on Wednesday.
“It’s definitely going to be a battle,” Kemp said. “Whoever makes the fewest mistakes will probably win.”
“I think Game 3 is going to be just like the first two,” Parrott said. “Both teams are very similar so playing good defense and getting the big hits are the key. Whichever team can do that best will win.”
The winner will play Houston County, which swept Columbus, in the semifinals on Monday.
Game 1: Gainesville 7, Dalton 1
Carpenter fanned Vinny Vega on four pitches to begin the game but found himself in trouble when Maddux Houghton singled and Cole Shelton reached on an error. But Carpenter got Brock Nelson and Harrison Norman to fly out to end the inning with no runs scoring.
The Red Elephants tried to mount a quick rally in the bottom of the first with Fedrick Cardona walking with one out. But Carpenter grounded into a double play to end the inning.
In the second, Sam Stepp doubled with one for the Catamounts. But Carpenter again was able to get out of the jam striking out Thomas Wright and getting Cade Gabriel to line out to Carrera in center.
The Catamounts had chances early but left three men on base, two in scoring position through the first two innings.
Shelton kept the Red Elephants off-balance early facing the minimum through the first two innings, including two strikeouts to the end the second inning.
Shelton helped himself and the Catamounts eventually take the first lead belting a solo home run to right in the third inning for a 1-0 lead.
A.J. Smallwood got the first hit of the day off Shelton with a seeing-eye single to left to open bottom of the 3rd inning. He moved to second a Jared Smith sacrifice bunt but Jack Langford fanned and Banks Griffith grounded out to short to end the inning.
The Red Elephants responded in the bottom of the fourth. Carpenter led off with a double to right and courtesy runner Dalton Kyle moved to third on a Carrera single to center. Collier Scott knocked in Kyle to tie the game and Faris Mance drove in Carrera to give Gainesville a 2-1 lead.
Wright led off the fifth with a single for the Catamounts. Vega doubled to right putting runners at second and third with one out. Houghton lined out to Griffith at second, Carpenter intentionally walked Shelton to load the bases and then fanned Nelson to end the inning with no runs scoring.
The Catamounts got the lead off batter on in the sixth when Norman reached on the second Gainesville error of the game. After JP Tighe lined out to Carrera in center, Stepp reached on the second error of the inning to put runners at first and second. Carpenter got Wright to pop out to Scott at third and then Scott made a diving stop on a smash by Gabriel to end the inning and preserve the slim lead.
Carpenter led off the sixth with a double then Carrera walks for 1st and 2nd and both moved up on a wild pitch by Shelton. After Scott popped out to short, Mance, Smallwood, and Smith followed with RBI singles to push Gainesville’s lead to 5-1. After Langford lined out to left, Griffith and Cardona ripped RBI singles to make it 7-1.
That knocked out Shelton, who finished going 5 2/3 innings allowing seven runs on nine hits. He came into the game with a low 2.30 ERA on the season.
Carpenter finished off the complete-game victory retiring the final five batters. He yielded just five hits and one run to the Catamounts, who came into the game averaging 9.0 runs a game in the playoffs.
Carpenter finished the day with three doubles and a Game 2 home run.
“Sam saw the ball real well (today),” Kemp said. “He battled on the mound. He has really stepped up in the playoffs.”
Game 2: Dalton 11, Gainesville 7 (Series tied 1-1)
Norman started for Dalton and pitched around a two-out double by Carpenter in the top of the first to get out of the inning and let the Catamounts offense get going.
Scott, meanwhile, struggled from the beginning on the mound for Gainesville. Vega reached on a lead off single, moved to second on an errant pickoff attempt. Houghton then reached on the Red Elephants fifth error of the series moving Vega to third and then Houghton stole second. Shelton knocked in Vega on a bloop single to left and Nelson drove in Houghton on a sacrifice fly to center.
Scott managed to get out of the inning trailing just 2-0 when Norman, who singled, was caught stealing to end the inning after Tighe flew out to right.
Norman kept the Red Elephants off balance retiring four straight into the third.
The Catamounts continued its assault in the second loading the bases with two hits and another Gainesville error with no one out. Vega knocked in a run with sacrifice fly to push their lead to 3-0.
Houghton added a two-run double for a 5-0 lead then he later scored on the fourth Gainesville error of the game to give Dalton a 6-0 lead after two innings.
The Gainesville bats finally broke through against Norman in the third. Griffith had a RBI single and a RBI groundout by Cardona and a sacrifice fly by Carpenter cut the lead to 6-3.
But Dalton got them all right back in the bottom of the inning on five hits and knocked out Collier, who went just 2 2/3 innings allowing nine runs on 11 hits, only six were earned, who was replaced by Noah Bond.
The Red Elephants came back again in the fourth plating two runs on an RBI single by Langford and a fielder’s choice RBI by Griffith to cut the lead to 9-5.
Meanwhile, Bond settled things down for a couple of innings retiring four of the first six batters he faced into the fifth. That allowed the offense to keep chipping away.
Carpenter led off the fifth inning with a solo home run to right to trim the lead to 9-6. Carrera reached on a walk and came around to score on a RBI groundout by Mance to pull within 9-7.
But that’s as close as they could get.
In the sixth, Langford was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a balk by Houghton, who took over for Norman to start the inning. Griffith walked to put runners at first and second. But Houghton got out of the inning getting Carpenter to line out to center to keep it a 9-7 Catamounts lead.
Dalton came right back scoring a pair of runs on a two-run double by Tighe to push its lead to 11-7 heading to the seventh.
“We’re just going to do anything we can to survive,” Kemp said. “Everyone except Sam will be available to pitch but we feel we have several guys that can get the job done.”
A.J. Smallwood is the probable starter for the Red Elephants in Game 3. Brock Nelson will get the ball for the Catamounts.
