South Pittsburg’s E. J. Cagle is out a the plate as Chattanooga Christian catcher Weston Gilbert makes the tag Thursday, March 30, 2017 at Chattanooga Christian School.Justin Wheeler wasn’t happy with the showing in his first two plate appearances Thursday against South Pittsburg, so the Chattanooga Christian School senior widened his stance.
It didn’t pay off until he led off the bottom of the ninth inning. With an 0-for-4 showing at that point, the center fielder worked the count to 3-1, got a pitch he liked and blistered a shot down the left-field line that he converted into a triple.
“I was looking for something I could drive,” Wheeler said. “I was thinking three (bases) from the beginning. I just let it rip – running like a tiger was chasing me.”
It set the stage for Chris King, whose hard shot just inside the foul line skipped off the fielder’s glove and created enough time for Wheeler to nail down the Chargers’ 2-1 extra-innings victory over the visiting Pirates.
“John had been struggling a little bit today, not quite getting the barrel to (the pitch). I told him at 3-1, if he got his pitch, to get the barrel to it,” said CCS coach Ben Wharton, who has led the team to a 9-2 start in his first season.