It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t particularly efficient. But it was very, very effective.
The CCA Patriots, behind another double-digit strikeout performance from starter Blake Bryant on a rainy and dreary day, defeated the David Emanuel Academy Eagles 5-0 at J.I. Clements Field on the Georgia Southern University campus in Statesboro in game one of the GIAA Class A state championship series.
Bryant never found himself in serious trouble though the Eagles did accomplish a rare feat – they recorded two hits and three walks off the righty, whose fastball hovered between 92-95 mph all day long.
In the top of the third, Hayden Powell singled to left on a 1-2 pitch. The Eagles, however, could not take advantage of the hit and Powell never made it past first.
In the top of the sixth, Brody Fleming singled on a sharp line drive to left. He also reached on a two-strike offering. Afterwards, Bryant settled down and got out of the inning without any damage.
The Patriots, meanwhile, scored their runs in two innings – the first and the fifth. In the first, Gray McLean led off with a single then stole second. He scored on a Thomas Gentry single. Gentry stole second then moved to third on an error. Skyler Woods walked to put runners on the corners with nobody out. With Bryant at the plate, Tyson Crosby, who was pinch running for Woods, stole second. An error allowed Gentry to score and Crosby to advance to third. Bryant eventually walked, putting runners at second and third for the second time of the inning. Jackson Knight followed with a grounder to third that scored Crosby for a 3-0 CCA lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Patriots scored two insurance runs when Woods singled, scoring McLean and Gentry.
CCA managed just four hits but made the most out of four DEA errors. McLean was 2-3 with two runs. Gentry went 1-3 with two runs and an RBI. Woods drove in two. Bryant walked twice and Knight drove in one. McLean and Crosby stole three bases. Sam Ables and Gentry swiped two while Landon Willians stole one.
Nobody outside of the top three recorded a hit.
Bryant went the distance in his final high school start, throwing a 109-pitch complete game shutout. He gave up two hits, walked three, and struck out 12.
The Patriots and the Eagles square off again Friday at 10 a.m. A CCA win secures a second-consecutive state championship. A DEA win forces a winner-take-all game three Saturday morning.
