Calhoun slips to third in the Region

The Calhoun High School baseball team can still clinch a spot in the upcoming GHSA 5A state playoffs.

Shoot, the Yellow Jackets could still finish second in Region 7-5A.

But they needed to turn things around immediately. And they need some help.

The Yellow Jackets hopes of first clinching a playoff spot and also hosting a 5A first-round playoff series in a couple of weeks took a big hit Tuesday night, when in a battle of teams tied for second place in Region 7-5A, they were swept by Woodland 8-7 and 11-0 in a doubleheader on the visitors’ field.

In the first game, the Jackets had a 7-2 lead after the third inning, but couldn’t hold it. And in the second game, the Wildcats busted out back-to-back five-run innings to end the game after five innings due to the 10run mercy rule.

The two wins in five hours by Woodland means the Wildcats improved to 8-3 in the Region and clinched a playoff berth because no matter how they did Thursday night against Calhoun and then next week in their closing series against Cass, they will finish in the top four in the Region.

It also meant they were alone in second place in the league and owned a twogame lead over the Jackets when the teams meet for the third and final scheduled time this year on Thursday night back at Chip Henderson Field. (Details of that game were not available at press time).

And it meant entering the end of this week’s action, the Jackets were still needing a couple of victories to solidify their trip to the playoffs because the setbacks to Woodland dropped them to 6-5 and in third place, just a game ahead of fourth-place Cass.

Dalton, with a doubleheader sweep of Hiram Tuesday by first a 14-4 count and than a 7-4 tally, kept its faint playoff hopes alive by staying within range of Calhoun and Cass, despite being 3-8 in the league. If the Catamounts won Thursday night against Hiram (details of that game were not available at press time), that would put them at 4-8 in the Region and give them a chance because they play Calhoun this coming week in a three-game series.

So for the Yellow Jackets, as the season comes upon the final week of scheduled play, they needed to beat Woodland Thursday night on their home field and they still need to win the series

Calhoun senior CJ Hawkins hits the dirt at second base while a Woodland infielder takes the throw during the schools’ Region 7-5A showdown Tuesday night at Woodland.

Calhoun freshman Spencer Evans races for the bag as the Woodland first baseman reaches for the throw Tuesday night in Game One of the teams’ doubleheader.