The Gatewood Gators (18-7, 5-0) are nearing the start of the GIAA state playoffs, with just two non-region games remaining in their regular season.
The Gators finished last week with a 4-1 win over Pinewood Christian, followed by an 11-7 loss the next day to First Presbyterian Day, the top-ranked team in GIAA 4A.
Gatewood made the most of a long trip to Bellville last Tuesday by beating the Patriots. Starting pitcher Wilson Moore put together an outstanding performance for the Gators, allowing just two hits and one run in five innings while striking out six Patriot batters.
Meanwhile, the Gators’ offense provided seven hits with one run scored in the fourth inning, two runs in the fifth, and one run in the sixth inning. Hunter Johnson and Lawson Moore led the team in RBIs with one apiece. Johnson and Drew Love led the team in hits with two each.
Lawson Moore pitched the final two innings against Pinewood Christian without surrendering a single hit while striking out three batters and issuing zero walks.
The biggest achievement for the Gators so far this season has been clinching the region title for the third consecutive year. Gatewood finished with a perfect 8-0 Record in region play to secure home-field advantage for the entirety of the playoffs.
If advancing to state, Gatewood’s championship series will be played in Columbus.
“It’s a big deal, especially in regard to playoff seeding,” Gators head coach Brandon Moss said of finishing first. “Even though the value of region play has been diminished the last few years due to using power rankings, we still place high importance on region play. With our schedule, it’s really the only opportunity during the regular season to show where we stack up against teams in our classification.”
Moss said he expects his team to continue playing well heading into the playoffs, but noted he’d like to see some improvement on defense and lower pitch counts from on the mound.
“I’d like to see us continue to have the type of at-bats we’ve been having lately, clean up our defense a little, and most importantly, get a little better at putting hitters away in fewer pitches,” he said. “We have a really strong pitching staff, and because of that, we get a lot of strikeouts. Strikeouts lead to high pitch counts. High pitch counts lead to an overused bullpen, and that can really hurt you in a playoff series.”
To wrap up the regular season, Gatewood will travel to Tallulah Falls (18-8, 14-4) this Tuesday (past press time). The Gators beat the Indians 4-0 in the 2025 season opener in February.
Gatewood will finish its regular season with a 5 p.m. start on Wednesday in Eatonton versus Bulloch Academy (19-6, 6-3), a team they beat 3-2 on April Fool’s Day.