With a pair of future Division I baseball pitchers on the mound who have each hit at least 94 miles per hour this season, the team to strike first certainly figured to take the cake in a top-tier matchup between Ringgold and Gordon Lee on Tuesday.
The showdown between Ringgold's Ross Norman (Georgia State signee) and Gordon Lee's Bo Rhudy (Kennesaw State signee) certainly lived up to the hype as the flamethrowers each had a no-hitter going into the fifth inning with a combined 14 strikeouts.
However, Sam Crew's bat was the force that lifted Ringgold (23-5, 13-0) to its seventh Region 6-AAA championship in the last eight years with a 5-1 win.
Crew delivered a game-changing blast in the bottom of the fifth when the senior first baseman punished Rhudy's outside fastball over three retired Tigers' numbers in right-centerfield for a two-run shot. Crew let out a roar as he rounded first base and then stomped on home plate with authority before being mobbed by his teammates.
For good measure, Crew added a line-drive RBI single to left field on the 10th pitch of his at-bat in the seventh inning to help close out Tuesday's victory.
"What a huge day for Sam on Senior Day," Ringgold head coach Drew Walker said. "He came up huge for us in the seven-hole and delivered two huge hits. This is really a tribute to the consistency the guys have shown all year long. We work them like Navy Seals out here. For them to come up big in key situations shows the hard works pay off. This is huge for their confidence moving forward."
Norman was sensational on the mound as the 6-foot-7 righty had full command all the way through. His only mistake came on a pitch to left-handed slugger Blake Rodgers, as the senior lefty hit a solo shot to right field in the bottom of the seventh for Gordon Lee's (18-7, 10-3) lone run.
Ringgold's defense stepped up in a big way in the fifth and sixth inning as shortstop Sebastian Haggard and second baseman Aiden Hickman each turned double plays. Hickman ended the sixth as he charged to field a slow chopper and tagged the runner before firing to first.
Norman fanned 10 batters as he had his curveball, slider and fastball all working to build his season strikeout total to 110.
"I am going to be honest, I heard a podcast yesterday and they were kind of dissing me a little bit," Norman said. "I took that to heart and was mentally ready to go. I took that motivation out there and was pumped up. To celebrate this win with my teammates was freaking awesome. We have been working for this since June. We just keep coming out here and doing our thing."
Ringgold is currently ranked second in Class AAA, only behind undefeated Harlem, and has a chance to win the program's first state title this postseason.
"We are lucky to have a great tradition here," Walker said. "Ross has been phenomenal all season for us. He really has become one of the best pitchers in the state and his ceiling is enormous as he keeps working and gaining more strength. We are super glad to have him take the ball in big games."
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.