Wolves start 2-1
Rome High comes up short against Villa Rica in a Region 7-5A contest.
The learning moments are coming for the Rome Wolves as they get adjusted to a new coach and a new season. But they are finding winning moments as well to keep their focus positive.
For its first week of Region 7- 5A competition, Rome’s baseball team played three games in four days and came out of it with a 2- 1 mark in the league. The final contest in that stretch came Friday evening as the Wolves were edged 5- 4 by Villa Rica at Legion Field “behind the levee.”
The visiting Wildcats came back from a 4-1 deficit that Rome built in a rollicking first inning where the Wolves got five of their seven hits.
“We’ve got to learn to deal with adversity,” firstyear Rome head coach Jim Tejcek said. “You’ve got to give them credit. They beat us. They didn’t quit.”
Villa Rica got on the board first with a solo home run from pitcher Noah Best in the third at-bat of the game. Rome then countered with four runs in the bottom of the first, highlighted by Sevie Andrews’ RBI double off the outfield wall.
Chandler Bridges and Braden Hyde also had an RBI each for Rome during the rally as Xavier Roberts-Donaldson, Connor Bullard, Bridges and Andrews all scored.
Alden Astin threw 4 2/3 innings and struck out three for the Wolves but gave up two runs each in the fourth and fifth innings. Knox Kadum took the mound with two outs in the fifth and finished the game, striking out one.
The week started with back-to-back wins over Paulding County, including a 9-6 win Tuesday on the road where Rome was down 5-1 in the sixth before mounting a comeback. An early lead led to a 4-1 win over the Patriots in Rome on Wednesday.
“I’m super proud of our guys for how they’ve played starting in the region,” Tejcek said. “We hung in there, and I like the position we’re in. Our pitching and our defense have been key for us so far. We’re going to be all right.”