GAINESVILLE, Ga. — There are debuts, and then there are debuts.
North Hall sophomore designated hitter Custis Honeycutt, making his first-ever varsity start, cranked a game-tying home run in the bottom of the seventh with two outs that helped propel the Trojans to a thrilling 3-2 win over Pickens on Tuesday at Cottrell Field.
It was the opener of a huge Region 6-3A series between the Class 3A second-ranked Dragons and the fourth-ranked Trojans -- with an early spot for first place on the line as well. The two teams will meet again on Thursday in Jasper and then back at Cottrell Field on Friday.
Honeycutt’s blast tied the game at 2, and after a pinch-hit single by McKinley Kemp, pinch-runner Brayden Martin eventually came around to score the winning run from second on an error by the Pickens second baseman.
North Hall coach Trevor Flow said his group never quit, even after watching a slim 1-0 lead slip away in the top of the seventh.
“I felt like that was playoff baseball in early March,” he said. “And the fact that they didn't give up just says a lot about this group. They just kept pounding away and gave us a chance.”
Honeycutt, who was promoted from the JV team last week, said he just listened to his coaches.
“Coach Flow told me to look slider first pitch, and I just attacked it,” he said. “Then we saw it went over the fence. Just such a great feeling right now.”
Flow said Honeycutt earned a shot.
“That kid’s here at 7:30 in the morning hitting. He’s here on Saturday and Sunday hitting, and he’s here after the games hitting,” Flow said. “We see those things, and he's been hitting the ball well in practice, and I just felt like it was his opportunity.”
Honeycutt also got the first North Hall hit in the third after Pickens starter and Auburn-commit AJ Rice opened the game with five strikeouts and a groundout through the first two innings.
Campbell Payton started for the Trojans (8-3, 4-0 Region 6-3A) and worked in and out of trouble for most of his five-plus innings. He scattered four hits, walked two, and fanned three. Mills Lothridge got the win, pitching the final two innings and allowing two runs (none earned) on three hits.. He struck out two. As a tandem, they held the Dragons to 0-for-9 with runners in scoring positions for the game.
Payton worked around a pair of two-out singles in the first, getting Matthew Davis to ground out back to the mound to get out of the jam. In the second, Payton picked off Jennings Allen at first to get out of another jam working around a lead-off error.
The North Hall defense got Payton out of another potential jam in the fourth when Cole Cable threw to Lothridge at short to catch Matthew Davis off second for the third out after a single by Sam Hammontree.
Meanwhile, Rice went 6 2/3, giving up just four hits and three walks while striking 12. But the Trojans' offense was able to scratch out runs when needed.
North Hall took advantage of its first threat in the fourth. Smith McGarvey and Kenny Foudy walked, and Micah Jimerson singled with one out to load the bases. McGarvey would eventually score on a wild pitch, but they stranded a pair of runners in scoring position.
The Dragons (11-2, 3-1 Region 6-3A) tied the game in the sixth, getting an RBI hit by Dawson Holland after Cable was unable to snare a sinking liner in center with two outs with a runner at second. They took the lead in the seventh on another unearned run.
The Trojans were down to their final out when Honeycutt jumped on a Rice slider and hammered it to left to set the stage for the thrilling comeback.
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