GREENE COUNTY
Lake Oconee Academy baseball made history last week with two huge wins over Christian Heritage. The Titans bested the Lions 6-5 and 3-2, advancing to the next round of the Class A Division II playoffs.
Lake Oconee Academy’s triumph in the first round was also a step in the right direction for the program. The Titans made history as the two wins over Christian Heritage were their first-ever in the playoffs.
LOA head coach Mark Miller highlighted winning game one against the Bears set the tone for his guys.
“It was great to get off to a good start,” Miller said. “You don’t want to lose that first one.”
In game one, Lake Oconee Academy and Christian Heritage were tied 3-3 going into the sixth inning. However, the Titans would claim the lead as they plated three runs in the top half of the frame.
LOA sophomore Hayden Brown had a one-out, bases clearing triple, scoring Trace Wood and Ian Watson. Brown then crossed the plate on a single by Maddox Robinson during the next at-bat for LOA.
Unfortunately, the Titans couldn’t do any more damage as Dylan Hiter grounded into a double play to end the inning, but they still held a 6-3 lead over the Lions heading into the bottom of the sixth.
Christian Heritage didn’t give up, though. The Lions added two runs in the bottom of the sixth on consecutive groundouts, but Lake Oconee Academy’s defense finally came up with the third out.
LOA’s Garrett Payne got the victory on the mound. The senior right-hander pitched 5.0 innings, allowing five runs on nine hits. Payne also struck four opposing batters and walked four in the win.
The Titans jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first as Watson, Payne and Trace Wood had RBI hits.
The Lions got a run back in the bottom half of the first inning, but Payne followed that up with three shutout innings. They did plate two runs in their half of the fifth inning to tie the game up at 3-3.
In game two, Watson had the game and series-clinching hit in the bottom half of the seventh inning. He took an off-speed pitch and drove it into the left field, scoring Harrison Tolleson for the win.
LOA entered the final inning down 2-1 but did enough to come out on top. Cameron Kelley led off the frame with a hit and moved to second on a single by Tolleson. He then crossed the plate and tied the game up at 2-2 with Christian Heritage when Wood blasted a line drive single to left field.
Miller said it’s one of the most exciting finishes he’s seen in a long career of coaching baseball.
“Our bench cleared and it was pretty amazing,” the first-year LOA head coach said. “I’ve coached a long time and it was pretty exciting, even for me. Kids dog-piled each other on the infield and parents were going nuts. So, it was pretty exciting to see that, especially as we made history.”
Wood also was huge on the mound for Lake Oconee Academy. The junior pitched a complete seven-inning game, allowing two runs on four hits. Wood also walked four and struck out two hitters.
According to Miller, his players have put in a lot of hard work this season and it all paid off last week.
“It’s really satisfying and gratifying to see,” Miller said. “Like I said, having coached for so long, there are years where you make the playoffs and others when you don’t. It’s just really nice to be in them and you learn to appreciate it. Now, I think the guys believe that since we’ve made it into the Sweet 16, there’s no reason we can’t continue to go even further, despite next having a tough opponent.”
No. 3-seed LOA (18-12) moves on to the second round, where it will face top-seed Schley County (22-7). The Titans and Wildcats faced each other two years ago in the first round of the playoffs. Schley County swept that series against Lake Oconee Academy, ending its 2021 season.
Schley County won the Region 6 title with a perfect 12-0 record. The top-seed Wildcats previously defeated Wilkinson County 10-0 and 17-0 in the first round of the state playoffs last week.