ADEL, Ga. — A week ago, Zach Bradley was at the lowest point in his baseball career.
The Calhoun High School senior outfielder had struck out five times in six at-bats in the Yellow Jackets’ GHSA Class AA semifinal sweep at Lovett, resulting in a benching halfway through the second game.
Today, Bradley returns home a hero after knocking in six runs in Calhoun’s championship-clinching two wins at Cook County. Bradley’s sixth-inning three-run homer erased a 3-1 deficit in Monday’s game two with the Jackets having already lost game one. His two-run double in the fifth inning Tuesday gave Calhoun a 4-1 lead, and he later added a solo homer as the Jackets won the deciding game 8-2.
“Once Zach hit that ball Monday, we never looked back,” fellow senior Carter Harrison said. “That homer really took them out of it, it seemed.”
The unassuming Bradley was still beaming after completing his two days of redemption.
“It feels amazing to come through and help us win a title as a senior,” he said. “Monday, we just had to stay strong. I came up with a chance to do something Monday and I was just wanting to help us stay alive. For us to win after losing that first game says a lot about this team and the seniors.”
Calhoun coach Chip Henderson couldn’t say enough about the team’s seven seniors, who helped win 113 games in four years.
“They mean the world to us,” he said. “They really helped raise the Calhoun program to a new level. From Carter Harrison to Mott Hyde to Michael Johnson to Zach Bradley to Jordan Poole … every one of them were special.”