TUNNEL HILL, Ga. – When Northwest Whitfield “erupted” for three runs in the second inning of Saturday’s state playoff game against LaGrange, there was a noticeable reduction of stress in the Bruins’ dugout.
After scoring only one run in each game during Friday’s doubleheader to start the GHSA Class AAAA best-of-three series, the Bruins used Saturday’s early runs and Jake Bearden’s pitching to win 5-2 and earn a second-round matchup at Jefferson that starts Thursday. The Region 8 champion Dragons needed three games to get past Region 7 No. 4 seed Chestatee, beating the War Eagles 6-4 after winning 3-2 and losing 5-3.
Bearden scattered six hits and struck out six batters, and his younger brother Hank struck the big blow in the second inning with a two-run triple that followed Seth Godfrey’s RBI single. For a team with a season batting average of less than .240, the runs were the perfect tonic.
“That was big. Hank’s not getting many pitches to hit, but he finally got into one and drove it the other way for the big hit,” said coach Todd Middleton, whose Bruins (17-15) finished second to Heritage in 6-AAAA to reach the playoffs and had to win Saturday after losing 5-1 before winning 1-0 on Friday.
“We pretty much did what we’ve done most of the year, win two out of three, but it wasn’t easy,” Middleton said. “It’s especially not easy when you invent ways to lose, which we have done at times, but the guys did a great job today.”