With a pair of wins over region foe Trinity Christian of Dublin two weeks ago, the Gatewood baseball team set their league record at 2-0, then added a third region win last Tuesday in Eatonton with a 16-1 decision over Central Fellowship Christian Academy (CFCA).
However, a 14-4 home loss to First Presbyterian Day (FPD) on March 19 followed.
“I think there were lessons to be learned in the way FPD approached the game, specifically in their offensive approach,” Gatewood head coach Brandon Moss said. “They had excellent two-strike approaches and converted several of those into scoring opportunities, whereas we really struggled with two strikes, specifically 3-2 counts.
“I think watching an older, more experienced group who have a small ball approach to keep an at-bat or inning going is a great learning lesson for a young team that can at times try to do too much at the plate, specifically with two strikes,” he added.
“Learning to execute better pitches when hitters are behind in counts and put them away as opposed to letting them hang around and work back into counts, as well as making poorly executed two-strike pitches, is also a learning lesson.”
Following the ugly loss to FPD, the Gators showed there would be no lingering disappointment as they shut out CFCA the following day in Macon. The game was called via the mercy rule after Gatewood went up 16-0 after just three innings.
“Obviously, after a tough loss, bouncing back and having some success was a good way to end the week,” Moss said.
Against CFCA, senior Ben Brannen threw a three-inning no-hitter while striking out six of the 10 batters he faced. At the plate, Brannen had one hit, one RBI, one walk, and two runs scored.
Both Jayden Moss and Drew Love had two-hit games with two RBIs each against CFCA, and as a team, the Gators had 13 hits, 16 runs, and 11 RBIs.
The Gators look to improve their region record this week with a pair of games against rival Brentwood, hosting this Tuesday at 6 p.m. (past press time), and then visiting Sandersville on Friday for the rematch.