RINGGOLD, Ga. - The Ringgold Tigers tried to minimize any late-inning drama Thursday, jumping out in front early to sweep Franklin County in the second round of the GHSA Class AAA baseball state playoffs.
Five runs in the first three innings triggered a rout in game one as the Lions, trying desperately to manage their pitching, walked five and hit two others as the Tigers sent 14 batters to the plate in the fourth inning of a 13-2 laugher. The back half of the doubleheader in the best-of-three series was no laughing matter for the Tigers, who stranded 13 baserunners, but starting pitcher Nathan Camp worked past first-inning trouble to provide six strong innings in the 7-2 clincher.
The Tigers, ranked No. 1 in three major polls in Georgia, will remain at home for next week's quarterfinals, hosting Appling County starting Wednesday. Appling County, champion of Region 2-AAA, swept Jackson 4-3 and 12-0 on Thursday.
The Tigers (30-5), who had a tough time putting up runs in last week's first-round series against Redan that went three games, got four RBIs from Gavin Hollis in Thursday's opener. Hollis doubled home a run in the first as Ringgold mustered four hits against starter Grayson York. But his big blow was a three-run homer in his next at-bat, giving the hosts a 5-1 lead and allowing starter Holden Tucker to relax.
Tucker worked all five innings of game one, striking out seven and scattering six hits. The only run he allowed before the final inning was unearned.
Tucker also walked three times as Franklin County (19-16) pitchers issued eight free passes in addition to hitting a pair of Tigers. But there were still clutch hits for Ringgold - Daulton Schley had a two-run double and three RBIs, and Ty Jones added a two-run single.
They picked up where they left off in the second game, with Hollis putting the Tigers on the board with another RBI double in the first. But the night's biggest hit was a three-run double by John Camilucci against surprise starter Landon Bentley.
Franklin County coach Frank Vashaw rolled the dice, holding back ace Blake Wehunt for a third game that never came.
But the Ringgold offense was still shut off as suddenly as a tap being turned in the fourth inning of game two. Landon Hill, the fifth Lions pitcher to work, came in with two on base in a 5-2 game and struck out Schley and Hollis and did not allow a hit for 2 1/3 innings.
Camp helped his own cause by breaking the streak with an RBI single in the seventh inning.
Before that, however, the Tigers switched gears and turned into a relentless running team. Andre Tarver, who reached base four times in the second game, walked in the sixth, stole second, stole third and came home on the catcher's errant throw to make it 6-2.
"What I like about this team is that it isn't one-dimensional," Ringgold coach Brent Tucker admitted afterward. "We started leaving runs out there, so we starting bunting and running a little more. We stole quite a few."