By Shane Scoggins
Publisher
Note: This is an updated version of the story which ran in this week's paper.
The Franklin County Lions’ quest for a state baseball championship ended Wednesday with a 7-6 loss in the third and final game of a quarterfinal series against Pierce County in Blackshear.
The loss ended a 27-8 season in which Franklin won its second consecutive Region 8AAA championship and advanced to the state quarterfinals for a second time. It also ended dreams of returning to the state championship series in back-to-back seasons.
Wednesday’s game was a back-and-forth affair between two teams playing at state-championship level.
Pierce County, playing as the visiting team, jumped out to an early lead with three runs in the top of the first inning.
Franklin County surged ahead in the third inning, scoring six runs while sending 12 men to the plate.
Pierce answered with four runs in the top of the fourth to retake the lead for good.
The Lions got men on base in the later innings, but Pierce turned three double plays to squash any threats.
Lawson Gailey, Kayne Jinks and Ty Peeples all had two hits in Wednesday’s contest, with one of Jinks’ hits a double.
Jinks and Duncan Beasley each drove in two runs.
Pierce will move on to face Redan in the state semifinals.
The first two games of the series lived up to expectations.
Game one saw the Lions come from behind for a 6-5 victory.
Pierce County built a 3-0 lead after two innings before Franklin scored in the third inning.
Ty Peeples led off the top of the third with a single and then stole second.
Dee Oliver drove in Peeples with a single to centerfield. He was later caught stealing second.
With two outs, A.J. Peeples singled and was followed by a Kayne Jinks walk.
Chandler Coulter then reached on an error that allowed Peeples to score to cut the lead to 3-2.
Pierce added a fourth run in the bottom of the third.
The Lions tied the score in the top of the fifth.
Jinks walked with one out and went to second on a wild pitch before the second out of the inning.
Garrett Garner hit a hard ground ball and was safe on a Pierce County error that allowed Jinks to score.
Garner went to second on a wild pitch and then scored when Miles Dodd reached on an error to tie the game 4-4.
Franklin moved ahead in the top of the sixth.
Ty Peeples walked and Oliver reached on a two-base error that allowed Peeples to go to third.
After one out, A.J. Peeples was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Jinks then singled to drive in Ty Peeples and Oliver for the final 6-4 lead for the Lions.
Gailey pitched all seven innings for the Lions for the victory.
The senior allowed five runs, four earned, struck out six and walked none.
Oliver and Duncan Beasley had two hits apiece, while Jinks drove in two runs and Ty Peeples scored twice.
The Lions were inches away from ending the season in game two of the series.
With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh, the Lions – playing as the home team for the game – had runners on second and third when a ball sailed over batter Garner’s head.
Gailey broke from third but was tagged out after the catcher caught the ball caroming of the backstop and tossed it to the pitcher covering home.
Pierce then scored two runs in the top of the eighth inning for a 5-3 victory.
The Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
Oliver led off the bottom of the first with a single, stole second and scored on a two-out hit by Jinks.
Franklin then moved ahead in the second inning with two runs.
Dodd led off the inning by reaching on an error. Courtesy runner Landon Bruce went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Beasley and then scored on an error.
Oliver followed with a single and then scored on a double by Gailey to put Franklin up 3-2.
Pierce tied the game in the top of the third thanks to an error and double.
There was no more scoring until the top of the eighth, when Pierce used two singles and a double to plate two runs for the 5-3 win.
Jinks started the game for the Lions but struggled early and was replaced by Dodd, who allowed just two earned runs in eight innings and struck out eight.
Oliver and Gailey each had two hits in the game, with Oliver also scoring two runs.
Franklin went into the Pierce series after sweeping Morgan County 10-0 and 5-1 in a doubleheader May 4 in the second round of the playoffs at FCHS.
The Lions played some of their best baseball of the season against the visiting Bulldogs.
After a slow start, Franklin dominated the first game to win in six innings.
The Lions scored one run in the second inning, two in the fourth, three in the fifth and four in the sixth.
Coach David Skelly said Morgan’s coaches said after the game that the Bulldogs came in believing that the Lions couldn’t generate hits after its fourth-place batter and that Morgan could run the bases freely on catcher A.J. Peeples.
Both proved to be incredibly incorrect.
The Lions got nine hits, eight RBIs and five runs scored from the bottom of its order.
Dodd led the way for Franklin with a home run, a double and a single. He drove in four runs and scored once.
Jinks, hitting in the fourth-spot, also had three hits including a double.
As for the Bulldogs’ ability to run on Peeples, Franklin’s senior catcher threw out Morgan County runners by wide margins in each of the first two innings. Morgan did not attempt to steal for the rest of the series.
Gailey allowed just two hits in the six-inning shutout. He threw just 79 pitches in the game.
Game two was tighter but Franklin was never really threatened in a 5-1 win.
Dodd struck out 13 – including six straight in the first and second innings – in 6 2/3 innings. He allowed just one run and four hits.
Jinks came in to get the last out of the game.
The game was scoreless through three innings, but the Lions, playing as the visiting team scored five runs in the top of the fourth to take control.
Jinks singled to start the inning and was joined on base by Coulter and Garner, who were each hit by pitches.
Dodd then singled to drive in Coulter and Jinks.
Beasley then reached on an error that allowed Garner and Dodd to score for a 4-0 lead.
Ty Peeples then singled to drive in Beasley for a 5-0 lead.
Morgan scored one run in the bottom of the inning, but managed no other runs in the loss.
Gailey and Dodd had two hits apiece in the game, with Dodd driving in two.
Gailey and A.J. Peeples each had doubles.
“Everyone contributed,” Skelly said. “They really did.”