DALTON, Ga. – For the duration of a game and two innings in the second round of the Georgia Class AAAA state playoffs Wednesday, Dalton couldn’t find the answer neither offensively nor defensively against Northgate.
Once the Catamounts got untracked, they unleashed a comeback that almost propelled them to a victory.
The defending Class AAAA state champion Vikings, coming off an 18-3 victory in the first game, jumped out to a 7-0 lead but had to hold on for an 11-9 win in the second to advance to the state quarterfinals.
Dalton (21-8) had tied the second game at 7 with a combined seven runs in the third and fourth innings, but after Northgate pushed across a run on a wild pitch, Georgia Tech signee Conner Kendrick connected on a three-run homerun in the bottom of the sixth- his second of the game and third of the afternoon.
Down 11-7 going into their last at-bat, the Catamounts mounted a final rally, with Colton Kinnamon scoring on a Nathan Felker groundout and Toombs Norman getting across home plate on a wild pitch, but reliever Ben Swinney nailed the door shut by striking out Mitch Townsend to end the game.
“We’re not quitters,” Dalton coach Bob Brotherton said. “I hated it when Kendrick hit that home run, but at the same time I knew that there was no quit in my guys. They believe that the ‘D’ on their chests means no quit and they bought into that.”
The first game started going south early when, in the first inning, pitcher Will Kiker had to go out with an injury. Brotherton – in an attempt to save ace Kinnamon for the second game – chose to throw some younger pitchers and the Vikings took full advantage, hitting five homeruns.
“The first game wasn’t a tale-tell sign of how good Dalton was,” Northgate coach Greg Hamilton said. “They lost their pitcher and it changed the whole complexion of the game, but they played hard no matter what the score was.”
Kendrick was equally impressive on the mound, getting wins in both games. As a starter in the first game, he scattered two hits – both to first baseman Alex Blackwell – while striking out five in four innings. He came in relief in the second game and pitched three innings for the win.
“It was a true fight,” Brotherton said. “We could have given up after the first game. We could have given up down 7-0 in the second game, but we chose to fight and that’s all I can ask for.”