FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — In a massive top-five battle to open Region 8-4A play, No. 3 Cherokee Bluff used a pair of doubles in the fifth inning to knock off top-ranked North Oconee 6-2 on Wednesday.
Along with timely hitting, pitcher Brady Stephens was stellar on the hill, tossing the complete game while allowing zero earned runs, four hits, and fanning 10 Titans to earn the win.
Bluff's Caleb Miele (1-for-3, 2 RBIs) and Bryce England (1-for-3, 2 RBI) each doubled to blow open the game in the bottom of the fifth inning, an inning that started with back-to-back walks and ended with four much-needed runs.
Miele's rip, on a 3-2 count, scored Ethan England (walked) and Ryland Ackerman (walked), and the next at-bat, England, also staring down a 3-2 count, smashed a grounder to left field to bring Ty Corbin and Tanka Mukono for the 6-2 lead.
The Bears (8-0, 1-0) defense hunkered down, recording six straight outs while allowing just one base runner.
Stephens started the top of the sixth, hitting KJ Moon with a pitch but settled in, fanning Kyle Jones, then forcing Ethan Jarvis into a 1-4-3 double play to end the inning.
After a scoreless bottom of the sixth inning, Stephens forced the Titans (5-1, 0-1) into two straight ground outs and finished with a strike out looking to seal the win.
Earlier in the game, North Oconee grabbed the early lead in the top of the first inning on a Bluff error, but the Bears answered in the second as House homered to center field, followed by Thompson's double and Kemp single. Ethan England crushed a hard ground ball on the next at-bat and reached on an error. Thompson scored to give the Bears a 2-1 advantage after two innings.
The Titans tied the game in the fifth inning on Bluff's second error to tie the game 2-2.
Kaden Thompson recorded two hits on the day, and Brett House and Landon Kemp each had one hit.
WALNUT GROVE 7,
NORTH HALL 6
On Wednesday, the No. 2 ranked Trojans' seventh-inning rally fell short in the loss to ninth-ranked Walnut Grove at home.
It was the second straight loss for North Hall and the first Region 8-4A blemish.
The Trojans (7-2, 0-1) battled back from a 7-4 deficit to close within one run in the final inning. North Hall opened the seventh with an Andrew Hlavacek (2-for-3, 1 RBI) single to center, a Jon Jon Read (1-for-3, 1 RBI), and Mills Lothridge (1-for-2, 1 RBI) walk to load the bases with one out. Korbyn Sosebee (1-for-3, 2 RBI) singled on a 1-2 count to left field that scored Hlavacek, and Read scored on the throw to cut the lead to 7-6.
North Hall led 1-0 until the four-run Walnut Grove third inning and a one-run fourth inning.
The Trojans answered in the fifth with three runs.
Ajay Jones, Kaleb Sexton, and Luke Sanders also had one hit each.
SECKINGER 19,
EAST FORSYTH 9
The Jaguars scattered 19 runs across seven innings to blow past East Forsyth on the road Wednesday.
Seckinger blew open the game with a six-run second inning for a 7-1 lead. Later in the game, the Jaguars added seven runs in the seventh inning.
East Forsyth cut the lead to 12-9 in the bottom of the sixth.
Mathew Lyons was 3-for-4 with four RBIs.
FORSYTH CENTRAL 2,
NORTH FORSYTH 0
Forsyth Central turned two of North Forsyth's four errors into runs in the shutout win in Coal Mountain on Wednesday.
The Raiders left five runners stranded.
Meanwhile, Alex Hernandez pitched five two-hit innings while striking out seven Raiders to get the win.
GAINESVILLE 11,
DULUTH 0
Gainesville opened with five runs over the first two innings to set the pace in the five-inning win at Duluth on Wednesday.
The Red Elephants added four runs in the fourth and two in the fifth.
Anthony Lugo was 3-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Smith McGarvey and Dawson Vaughn were 2-for-3 with one RBI. Riley Valentine was 2-for-3, and Baxter Wright, Jeremy Medina and Phillip Williams had one hit each.
JEFFERSON 11,
COMMERCE 8
Jefferson scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning and held Commerce scoreless in the bottom to get the win.
After Commerce grabbed the lead, 2-1, in the bottom of the first, the Dragons scored seven straight runs to take an 8-2 lead.
Owen Primm was key in the offensive explosion with a three-run homer in the third inning. Primm was 1-for-3 on the day with 3 RBIs.
Commerce, however, answered with six runs across the fifth and sixth innings to tie the game, 8-8.
Coleson Thomason ripped a two-run bomb in the Tigers' two-run fifth inning.
Brennan Carter earned the win on the mound, giving up two runs on four hits while striking out five in four innings of work.
EAST HALL 11,
CEDAR SHOALS 1
Josh Niles struck out 11 batters and allowed just one run on three hits to lead East Hall past Cedar Shoals at home on Wednesday.
The Vikings scored seven runs over the first three innings to take a 7-0 lead. They scored four runs in the third off Christian McCullough, Levi Kinney, Drew Campbell and Niles each drove in runs.
McCullough and Campbell drove in two runs each.
WEST HALL 5,
BANKS COUNTY 4
Camden Page went five innings allowing just three runs on two hits and striking out 11 as the Spartans got their first win of the season.
West Hall (1-5) led 4-0 after getting two runs in the second and single runs in the third and fifth. Banks County (4-4) answered with three in the bottom of the fifth. The Spartans pushed the lead to 5-3 in the sixth and then held on.
Evan Connor came on to pitch the final two innings for West Hall but not before the Leopards staged a rally. Banks County. Freshman Gavin Sears doubled in a run with one but Connor was able to strike out the final two batters to preserve the win.
Brett Sturm had two hits and scored twice for West Hall. Justin Shaffer and Marcus Pugh both had a hit and an RBI and Connor and Drew Svetz both had one hit for the Spartans.
Sears had two of Banks County’s four hits. Andrew Humphries and Cam Cooper had the other two hits for the Leopards.
Hunter Heath took the loss for Banks County allowing three runs on three hits and fanning four in four innings.
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL SCOREBOARD, Wednesday, March 1
East Hall 11, Cedar Shoals 1*
Dawson County 12, Union County 0
Forsyth Central 2, North Forsyth 0
Gainesville 11, Duluth 0
Jefferson 11, Commerce 8
Cherokee Bluff 6, North Oconee 2*
Seckinger 19, East Forsyth 9*
Peach County 10, Towns County 0
Walnut Grove 7, North Hall 6*
West Hall 5, Banks County 4
