Generals sweep Sonoraville
The Generals need to win just one of this week’s three games to clinch the region and the No. 1 seed for the state playoffs.
The Heritage Generals took three big steps toward winning another Region 7-AAAA title by sweeping a three-game series against Sonoraville last week.
As a result, Heritage (18-7, 10-2) was slated to face off with second-place Northwest Whitfield (18-6, 8-4) in a three-game series to end the regular season this week. The Generals need to win just one of the three games to clinch the region and the No. 1 seed for the state playoffs.
Game 1 was scheduled for Monday of this week at Northwest and Heritage was slated to host the Bruins on Tuesday before the series finale on Thursday back in Tunnel Hill.
HERITAGE 2, SONORAVILLE 1
Game 1 last Monday went eight innings before the Generals finally put it away.
The Phoenix scored in the bottom of the fourth and carried the 1-0 lead into the seventh, but Owen Carstens singled and courtesy runner Sam Coleman raced to second on a sacrifice bunt by J.C. Armour. Coleman scored moments later on a clutch Rbi-single by Brody James.
Then in the top of the eighth, Cody Bryan drew a walk and stole second before a nice piece of opposite field hitting by Brady Chandler moved Bryan to third.
He scored on an Rbi-double off the bat of Max Owens to give Heritage its first lead of the game.
Two singles and a walk loaded up the bases for the Phoenix with one out in the bottom of the eighth, but relief pitcher Ryland Black-long came up with two enormous strikeouts to strand the runners and seal the victory.
James went 3 for 3, while two doubles by Owens accounted for the rest of the Heritage offense. Bryan walked twice, stole two bases and scored once.
Owens allowed three hits and six walks over five innings, but struck out 10 batters to pick up the win. Cohen Fletcher pitched the sixth before Black-long worked the final two frames. He gave up two hits and one walk with five strikeouts.
HERITAGE 3, SONORAVILLE 2
One night later, this time in Boynton, the Generals got all of their runs in the bottom of the first. Maddox Henry singled and took second on a groundout before scoring on an Rbi-single by Chandler. Moments later, Owens blasted a two-run homer to stake the hosts to a 3-0 lead.
The Phoenix got both of their runs in the top of the third, but Chandler would retire 10 of the last 11 Sonoraville hitters he faced, allowing just a one-out single in the sixth.
He pitched the first six innings and scattered seven hits and a walk with three strikeouts to get the victory. The two runs he allowed were earned. BlackLong closed it out in the seventh with a pair of strikeouts to get the save.
Bryce Quails singled to account for the only other hit of the game for Heritage.
HERITAGE 6, SONORAVILLE 0
The sweep came on Friday back in Gordon County as Armour got the start and threw six innings of two-hit ball with two walks and six strikeouts. Black-long struck out one batter in one inning of relief.
Heritage took an early lead after a single and two Sonoraville errors in the bottom of the first. An inning later, two walks and an error brought in the Generals’ second run of the game, while Bryan drove in a run with a fielder’s choice.
It would remain 3-0 until the sixth when a single, an error and a stolen base set the table for Chandler, who came through with a two-run single. Coleman, into run for Chandler, scored on a single by Caden Strickland.
Bryan and Henry each had two hits on the night.