GIAA baseball: FPD bats kept in check in championship series opening loss; Gatewood climbs out of early hole to win

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

Class 4A

Brookstone 6, FPD 3, Game 1

          Taft Middleton has been Brookstone’s cog this season, and he added to the resume in a big way with a huge pitching performance to lead Brookstone to a series-opening win.

          Middleton won a pair of showdowns against FPD power hitter Gavin Spillers to preserve the Cougars’ lead and take Game 1

          FPD, down 4-3, worked Middleton in the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases with two outs after a fielder’s choice led to the second out. Middleton got Spillers to fly out to left to end the inning.

          Brookstone added two in the fifth for a 6-3 lead.

          The Vikings got two runners on in the bottom of the sixth, and Middleton induced Spillers into another flyout, to center, to leave runners on first and second.

          The Cougars sealed it with a run in the top of the seventh.

          Middleton had a night. He went 1 for 1 at the plate, walking twice and driving in two runs.

          He gave up six walks, but struck out 8 in six innings for his 11th win. Brennen Neal sat down FPD in the bottom of the seventh in order on 13 pitches to finish it off.

          Shortstop Keon Johnson had 2 of FPD’s 4 hits, with a run and RBI.

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Class AA

Gatewood 8, Edmund Burke 4, Game 1

          The defending champs were in an early hole, before coming to the plate, down 2-0.

          But they quickly climbed back out with 3 runs, then went up 7-4 after 4.

          Ames Johnson went 3 for 3 while Walker Roberts drove in 3 runs on a first-inning two-out homer. A walk, single, sacrifice fly and wild pitch led to two runs in the second.

          Gatewood got its money’s worth out of Roberts, who struck out 8 with 4 walks and 8 hits in the complete-game win.

          Grant Mobley and Mark Thomas Wasden had two hits each for Edmund Burke, which got 8 strikeouts from pitchers Gauge Oglesby and Cooper Rutledge. But three wild pitches and an error hurt the Spartans.

Class A: Robert Toombs 4, Flint River 1

Class AAA: Terrell 15, Valwood 4

Games begin at 10 a.m. on Friday, with 30 minutes between games because of potential weather issues.