Central Purple Pounders pounce early, earn 6-AA title

As they gathered for the team picture just off the infield at Red Bank to mark their first District 6-AA baseball championship, none of the Central Purple Pounders debated about who would be holding the trophy. They gave that honor to the youngest member of the extended team.

Basking in an 8-1 title victory over Hixson on Wednesday, the Pounders happily placed the trophy in the hands of Ripken Carter, the 8-month-old son of Central coach Glen Carter. The little boy then smiled with a joy that was nearly matched by the pride his father had for a team that had claimed the first district title during his tenure.

"That was a great moment," Coach Carter said of the impromptu team picture. "I'm real happy for the boys. They have worked hard all year and it's great to get a district championship. We've come in second three times, and I've been here since 2005.

"This was goal number two," he added. "Goal number one was to win the regular-season title, which means you get the one seed in the tournament."

A pair of one-run regular-season victories over the Wildcats locked up the top seed, and the Pounders' 3-2 win in the bottom of the seventh Monday placed Central (17-13) in the driver's seat for the title.

Hixson (15-14) entered Wednesday's play having reached the title round by mounting a late comeback against Red Bank, downing the Lions in nine innings, 10-9. As a result, Hixson started sophomore pitcher Ryan Sekenski, who surrendered three runs to the Pounders in the first inning.

An RBI double by Tyler Lowe and run-scoring singles by Andrew McDaniel and Walker Waters in the first provided Pounders junior hurler Dakota Fowler plenty of room to work against an emotionally spent Wildcat lineup.

In going the distance, Fowler struck out four and limited the Wildcats to three hits. He allowed a run in the fourth after the Pounders had established a 5-0 advantage.

"I definitely wanted this one, and I wanted to go the whole game," Fowler said. "Getting the runs early did help, but I didn't really get nervous and I was confident in my pitching."

"Dakota did a great job. He made them have to hit the ball and didn't walk that many batters," Carter said. "We didn't want to have to play another one."

After taking early control of the contest, Central used hitting throughout the lineup to lock down the game.

McDaniel was 3-for-3 with two RBIs, stole a base and prompted a balk that brought home the Pounders' sixth run. Lowe registered two doubles and two runs, while fellow senior Jake Hood went 2-for-3 with an RBI.

"With the game that Hixson played last night against Red Bank, I know they used pretty much everybody they have on the mound, and getting ahead early really took a lot of pressure off, especially in this type of game," Carter said.

"When you get into a tough game in the district semis (Monday) and another tough game in the one last night with Red Bank, it's difficult to have that mental toughness, especially when someone jumps out on you like Central did," said Hixson coach Colton Green. "But we won the game last night, and we're still guaranteed another game."

Hixson will travel on Monday to face the District 5-AA champ in the Region 3 tournament semifinals, while Central will host the 5-AA runner-up.

"It's nice knowing that we will open at home in the region," Carter said. "Our number three goal this year is to get through the regions and get to Murfreesboro."

Contact Greg Thompson at sports@timesfreepress.com.

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