Lake Oconee Academy’s William King hit the home run of a lifetime last Thursday against Clinch County.
King blasted a solo shot to left field in the bottom of the ninth inning, helping the No. 1 seed Titans secure a 3-2 victory against the No. 4 seed Panthers and clinch a berth in the second round of the state playoffs.
“I just saw a beach ball,” King said with a smile when asked about the final pitch of game three, which ended in extra innings. “It came in, and I knew it was going to happen. It was just such a cool moment, and the rest was history.”
LOA head coach Mark Miller expressed excitement for King, who has been a key piece for the Titans this season.
“He’s amazing, and when the ball just came off the bat, man, I knew he had drilled that sucker,” Miller said. “He’s a senior who came up big for us to win a ball game and the series.”
The Titans took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when senior Ike O’Neal drove in King, who hit a triple to reach base. O’Neal added another RBI in the third by bringing in Dylan Hiter, extending LOA’s advantage to 2-0.
Ty Hiter started on the mound for LOA and delivered four scoreless innings for the Titans, but Clinch County finally scored in the fifth. The Panthers plated two runs due to an LOA defensive error and tied the game.
Still, Hiter pitched a gem, lasting six complete innings while giving up two earned runs on five hits, along with two strikeouts and four walks. The sophomore right-hander was relieved after the sixth inning as O’Neal took over.
Clinch County had a chance to take the lead in the top of the seventh when a baserunner reached second with one out. However, O’Neal retired the next two Panther batters with strikeouts to end the threat.
O’Neal delivered two more scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth, securing the win on the mound for LOA.
“Ty Hiter came out and pitched a gem through the first six innings, then Ike came in behind him and finished strong,” Miller said. “They just pitched their hearts out in game three and gave us everything they had.”
King’s walk-off home run capped off a drama-filled series. The day before, LOA and Clinch County faced off in a doubleheader, with each team winning one game to set up the winner-take-all scenario on Thursday.
LOA secured a narrow 1-0 victory in Wednesday’s first game, while Clinch County claimed the second game 7-4, setting up a crucial game three the following day. However, the doubleheader didn’t conclude until after midnight due to inclement weather, which included a rain and lightning delay after the opening inning of the first game.
Game three also dealt with a nearly three-hour delay due to similar weather conditions.
“We started the first game of two Wednesday at 4 p.m. and didn’t get finished until 12:30 a.m. on Thursday,” Miller said. “Then we turned around on a school day and played these guys again at 2:30 p.m. That was a lot. I’m proud of these guys for keeping their cool and focusing on what they needed to do, which was to win.”
LOA moved on to the second round of the state playoffs for a third consecutive year and faced Miller County on Tuesday in a doubleheader. The Titans (17-8) easily swept the Pirates (21-9) with wins of 6-3 and 14-1 to advance to the Elite Eight.