2 Comebacks in a Row! Knights Blast Past South Paulding Spartans 10-5

With Runners on, George, Will and Gil are on the fence encouraging the offense.

Big hitting and great defense including 2 double plays helped the Knights overcome a 3 run deficit to defeat the South Paulding Spartans 10-5. The Spartans came out strong getting the Knights out 3 up/3 down in the top of the first. In the bottom of the first the Spartans used 2 doubles, 2 singles and a squeeze bunt to jump out to a 3-0 lead. With runners on the corners and 1 out, Hunter Williamson stopped the bleeding with the first of two defensive plays of the game. Hunter ranged to his right and fielded a ground ball up the middle right behind 2B, touched the bag for one out and threw to Presley at 1B to complete the double play and get out of the inning.



Hunter turned 2 double plays and went 2 for
3 with a double in win over the Spartans.

The Knights manufactured a run in the 2nd. Mason Doyle reached on a fielder's choice, stole 2nd and 3rd and came home when Hunter hit a hard groundout to SS. Austin Hansell shut the Spartans out in the bottom of the 2nd 3 up and 3 down to keep it 3-1. After 3 walks and a Will Nelson single the Knights pulled into a 3-3 tie in the top of the 3rd. After Austin Schubert tossed a shutout 3rd, the Knights took control in the 4th inning. Hunter led off with a deep double to LCF and came home on a long single by George Krivsky that gave Marietta the lead. With 2 outs, the Knights got 3 straight singles from Will, Jackson Tysinger and Luke Martin that scored 2 more runs and the Knights led 6-3.

The Spartans cut it to 6-4 in the 4th on a triple and single and were threatening to take back over until the 2nd Defensive Play of the Game shut them down. The Spartans hit a hard grounder to SS where Jackson got into perfect position to make the play. The ball jumped off the hard packed infield right into Jackson's chest, but he somehow managed to field it cleanly and tossed to Hunter at 2nd. Hunter touched the bag and turned and fired to Presley who made a nice stretch to finish off a text book 6-4-3 double play to end the threat. As the players celebrated the great play, the coaches noted that they finally gained an advantage from practicing on the concrete like infield of Larry Bell Park.

George had 2 RBI's against South Paulding

As usual, the Knights followed up a great defensive play with a big offensive inning. Mason led off the 5th with a 2B followed by singles from Hunter and Austin. A walk to Presley, RBI ground outs from George and Will and an RBI single from Jackson and the Knights were comfortably ahead 10-4.

The Spartans added one in the 5th, but Schubie closed it out with a great pick off move to third to catch a Spartan runner and end the game. The 2nd straight comeback victory gave the Knights the #1 seed and a bye into the Semi Finals.

Several of the players and families stayed at the Hampton Inn in Carrollton and spent a nice evening by the pool. While the players and siblings splashed in the pool and terrorized the hotel hallways, the parents relived the big hits and double plays.

The Knights were in a position to make a run, but came out flat Sunday afternoon against Team Full Armor of Lagrange. The great defense was a distant memory as the Knights committed 4 first inning errors that led to 4 runs. After a shutout 2nd, another 4 errors in the 3rd and 4th gave Team Armor another 4 runs.



The resort in Carrollton had an outstanding
grocery delivery service.

The Knights finally got fired up after the most bizarre situation the Knights have ever faced. After warming up before the game, Hunter tossed his glove on his bat bag and went into the cage to hit. After BP, Hunter couldn't find his glove and he, Coach Rob and several parents searched the park for it before giving up. Hunter played the first 2 innings with Coach Rob's glove. In the 3rd, from his 3B position, Austin heard several Team Armor players laughing in their dugout about having the glove. Coach Rob asked the Team Armor coach after the inning and they determined that the Team Armor right fielder not only had the glove, but was using it in the field. Team Armor did not apologize but suggested to Coach Rob that his players should be more careful with their equipment in the future.

This got the guys going and they closed the gap to 1 run, but they left the bases loaded in the 6th and could not overcome their defensive lapses and fell 8-7. Jackson, Luke, Schubie, George and Will each had 2 hits. Jackson added 2 RBI's and Luke and Schubie had an RBI each.

In spite of the rough final game, it was a solid weekend for the Knights. They averaged over 8 runs a game and turned 3 double plays in picking up 2 comeback wins. Marietta continues to win games and get better.



The Knights Fan Club lounges poolside at the Hampton Inn Carrollton Resort.