David Crockett was Ford tough on Friday, and Unicoi County got trucked.
A.J. Ford pitched a four-hit shutout as the Pioneers beat the Blue Devils, 4-0, in a District 1-AAA baseball tournament elimination game at Sonny Miller Field.
Crockett (16-13) will visit top-seeded Tennessee High on Saturday in the losers’ bracket final. A region berth will be at stake.
The Vikings lost 5-4 to Elizabethton (13-16) on Friday night in the winners’ bracket final.
Elizabethton also beat Crockett by a run on Thursday, but the Pioneers are now a win away from the region.
“A win from regional is huge,” Ford said. “There’s no team I believe in more than this one to do it.”
Ford didn’t walk any Unicoi County batters and struck out one.
“The changeup did wonders today,” Ford said. “My velo wasn’t really there, so it’s always nice to have a pitch like that to rely on.”
Ford had help from his friends. Third baseman Marcus Greenway started a 5-4-3 double play to end the first inning and snagged Ty Engle’s line-drive to start a 5-4 double play that ended the fifth inning after the Blue Devils had put the tying and go-ahead runs on first and second with one out.
“He’s a guy that knows what his stuff is,” Crockett coach Spencer Street said. “He doesn’t try to do too much. He lets guys get themselves out. He threw a ton of strikes and our defense played very well.
“That’s about the fourth time in a row, I think, he’s been able to keep a team off balance for over five innings. And we had to have that.”
Crockett leadoff batter Ronnie Hall reached on an error with one out in the bottom of the third, stole second, took third on throwing error and scored the game’s first run on Greenway’s line-drive single to left field.
Hall was back at it in the fifth. He led off the frame with a double and reached third thanks to an error in the outfield. It sparked a three-run rally that essentially sealed victory.
Greenway singled in Hall, and Nate Walters and Ayden Mullikin each added an RBI before the inning concluded.
Hall was 2-for-4 with two runs and two steals. He reached base in each of his four plate appearances.
Greenway was 2-for-2 with two RBIs, a run and a sacrifice bunt.
“When Ronnie’s going well, we all kind of go that way,” Street said. “When he gets on base good things tend to happen. For him to be able to get on base all four times – that’s huge out of the leadoff spot.
“When Marcus and Ronnie are putting competitive at-bats together, that’s a really good one-two punch. I feel good about the big lumber coming up behind ‘em.”
Ford was 1-for-2. He was hit by a pitch after grounding out on a sharply hit ball and pulling a line-drive single to right field in his first two at-bats.
Mullikin was 2-for-3 with an RBI. It appeared Connor Hendrix would finish 2-for-3, but freshman center fielder Kaden Cutlip made an exceptional diving catch in left-center field to deny Hendrix a two-run double.
“Off the bat, I didn’t think it’d be caught,” Unicoi County coach Chad Gillis said. “But I’ve learned to trust Kaden. Early on I didn’t know his range, but he’s a player.”
Unfortunately, for the Blue Devils, exceptional defense has been just that — the exception instead of the rule. The Devils committed four more errors on Friday.
“We’ve had a lot of frustrating practices and moments in games,” Gillis said, “and my goal was to keep everybody positive and fighting, which I think they did. We got beat tonight. … It was a tremendous job by him (Ford).”
Cutlip, Tanner Berry, Nicky Satterly and Reid Bogart each had a hit for the Devils.
Senior Gavin Tipton allowed three earned runs in five innings for Unicoi County. He walked one and struck out two.
“I thought Tipton threw well,” Gillis said. “They found some holes there late. He has been a great pitcher and outfielder for us the past two years.”