RINGGOLD, Ga. - At this point in his high school baseball career Cole Wilcox doesn't get caught up in too many moments, although Tuesday's Region 6-AAAA opener against Ridgeland was a test of the Heritage senior's nerves.
Pitching in front of an estimated 30 professional scouts, Wilcox cemented his standing as a possible top-20 major league draftee with a one-hit, nine-strikeout performance in a five-inning 10-0 win.
The right-hander allowed a first-inning single and permitted just one more baserunner - a fourth-inning walk - over the final four innings and twice struck out the side. He fanned the final four Panthers batters on just 14 pitches.
"He's used to all the attention," Heritage coach Eric Beagles said. "The past couple of years he's seen it a lot. Today was a bit extraordinary because it's a Tuesday and some games were rained out, so these scouts were able to come see Cole and it worked out well.
"It was good to get him out here and get things going in the right direction starting region play. We look at it like preseason, regular season and postseason, so this is a good start to the regular season."
Wilcox also was part of a potent top of the order that produced all eight of the Generals hits, all 10 RBIs and eight of the runs. Batting cleanup, he hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning.
Leadoff man Lance Dockery was 3-for-3 with four runs scored and three stolen bases, while No. 2 hitter Luke Grant added two hits, three RBIs and three runs and shortstop Johnathan Hickman had two hits and two RBIs.
The Generals, after a 1-4 start, have won three of their past four games.
"Sometimes you have to go through a rough spot, and you are always going to go through adversity," Beagles said. "It's all about how you handle it, and we've gotten through it together. I'm very pleased with that."
The Generals scored two runs in each of the first and second innings, with each of the top three hitters getting two hits each and the Panthers helping them with a pair of errors and failing to make a couple of plays that might have saved runs.
The game was 4-0 entering the fourth inning when Wilcox hit his homer. The scouts were disappointed an inning later when two Ridgeland pitchers walked four batters and hit another to end the game early.
For Wilcox, who lost his only other start 2-1 to Ringgold, the outing was reassuring that his final prep season was on track.
"It's good to be this sharp at the first of the season," said Wilcox, who couldn't help but notice the abundance of scouts lined up along the fences. "At the beginning you see them, but then you just forget they are there and just play ball.
"We've all grown up playing summer ball with the scouts there, so it's no big deal. It's fun; it makes the game more fun when they are around."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296; follow on Twitter @youngsports22.