Hurricanes go 3-0 at Battle for Bartow

Fifth-ranked Cartersville won twice Friday to wrap up the Canes’ participation in the 2021 Battle for Bartow with a 3-0 mark.

The Canes, who beat Cedartown Thursday night, collected wins over Centennial and Johns Creek Friday.

In other games involving local teams at the Battle for Bartow, Cass lost to Cedartown and Woodland suffered losses to Cedartown and Fellowship Christian.

Elsewhere, Adairsville dropped a Region 6-AAA game to Sonoraville.

CARTERSVILLE 6, CENTENNIAL 5 (9 inn.)

Cal Goss worked a scoreless eighth and ninth inning Friday to pick up a pitching win as Cartersville beat Centennial 6-5 in extra innings.

Cartersville, playing as the visiting team, trailed 5-2 heading to the seventh inning Friday afternoon against Centennial but rallied for three runs in the inning to send the game into extra innings.

After a scoreless eighth inning, Cartersville’s Hank Smith doubled into right field to drive home Curt Bonner for a go-ahead run and a 6-5 lead.

Relief pitcher Cal Goss — who worked the final two innings on the mound — retired the Knights in order in the bottom of the ninth to earn the pitching win.

Davis Williams (5 IP, 5R, 4ER, 6H, 0BB, 5K) made the pitching start for Cartersville with Gunner Millsap (2 IP, 0R, 1H, 1K) working the sixth and seventh innings on the mound.

Smith finished with two hits including the game-winning RBI. Blake Sutton also had two hits and one RBI. Bonner drove home a pair of runs and had one hit. Elliott Eastin contributed one hit and one RBI. Jake Brasfield had one hit and Colt McKibben drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.

Peyton Sperier had three hits for Centennial. The loss drops the Knights to 6-15 for the season.

CARTERSVILLE 13, JOHNS CREEK 6

The Canes banged out 13 hits Friday night and led throughout in a 13-6 win over Johns Creek in both teams’ final game of the 2021 Battle for Bartow.

Cartersville sent 19 different players to the plate and used five different pitchers in the win.

Silas Freeman worked 2 and 2/3 innings on the mound to pick up the pitching win in relief recording three strikeouts. Freeman did not allow a run and yielded only one hit and two walks.

Paul Gamble (2 IP, 1R, 0ER, 1H, 2BB, 3K) started on the bump for the Hurricanes. Ryan Johnson (1.1 IP, 4R, 2ER, 2H, 2BB, 3K) and Collin Eaton (1 IP, 1ER, 3H, 2K) also pitched for Cartersville.

Four different Canes had two hits to lead the Canes’ offense.

Jake Brasfield had two hits including a three-run home run. Drew Rothschild had two hits, a sacrifice fly, and two RBIs. Trey Holstein finished with two hits including a double and one RBI and Jimbo Gaines also added two hits.

Parker McPherson (RBI), Ben Williams (RBI), Hank Smith (double), Landon Cole (double), and Trip Bradley contributed one hit apiece.

The loss dropped the Gladiators to 6-16 for the season.

Cartersville (19-7) returns to Region 7-AAAAA action Tuesday at Cass at 5:55 p.m.

SONORAVILLE 6, ADAIRSVILLE 2

Adairsville led visiting Sonoraville 2-0 through four innings Friday night but the Phoenix scored two runs in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings to down the Tigers, 6-2.

Braden Powell suffered the pitching loss for Adairsville in relief of starter Evan Sanders. Powell gave up four earned runs on two hits and four walks. Sanders worked the first five innings allowing a pair of earned runs on six hits and four walks. Powell struck out three. Sanders fanned five.

Powell and Logan Hunt paced the Tigers’ offense with two hits each. Powell had one RBI. Hunt’s two hits included a double.

Jack Whitley and Sanders had one hit each for Adairsville. Elijah Padgett added one RBI.

Sonoraville improved to 14-8 for the season and 8-4 in Region 6-AAA.

Adairsville (7-13, 2-8) will host 6th-ranked Ringgold Tuesday at 5:55 p.m.

CEDARTOWN 9, WOODLAND 8

Woodland trailed Cedartown 9-2 in the fifth inning Friday afternoon and rallied to pull within one run of the Bulldogs but came up short in a 9-8 loss during action at the Battle for Bartow at LakePoint.

Cedartown led 3-2 after one inning and built a 9-2 lead with three runs in both the fourth and fifth innings.

The Wildcats then scored six times — all with two outs — in the bottom of the fifth to narrow their deficit to 9-8. An error by Cedartown and a pair of walks contributed to the big inning, but Woodland bats also produced four hits in the frame. Julian Wright and Peyton Posey had singles. Carter Heath and Jacob Gravett both doubled in the inning.

Unfortunately for Woodland, their bats would produce only one more hit over the final two innings — a one-out single by Trevor Collum in the sixth — and the Wildcats finished one run short.

Nate Rosser (0.1 IP, 3ER, 0H, 4BB) was tagged with the pitching loss for Woodland. Scotty Smith (3.2 IP, 6R, 5ER, 9H, 2BB, 4K) made the pitching start for the Wildcats and Collum (3 IP, 0R, 2H, 1BB) retired the final nine outs.

Cade Dingler, Denver Nale, and Corben Cuzzort combined for seven hits and four RBIs to lead the Cedartown offense.

Peyton Posey led the Wildcats with three hits including a double and two RBIs.

FELLOWSHIP CHRISTIAN 5, WOODLAND 3

Woodland out hit Fellowship Christian ten to six Friday night, but fell short on the scoreboard in a 5-3 loss during the Battle for Bartow at LakePoint in Emerson.

The Wildcats led 2-0 through three innings but the Paladins scored three times in the fourth inning to take a 3-2 lead.

Woodland tied the game 3-3 in seventh to send the game to an extra inning before Fellowship Christian posted two runs in the top of the eighth for a 5-3 win.

Ayden Ray (4 IP, 2ER, 1H, 2BB, 4K) took the pitching loss for Woodland in relief of starter Drew Billings (4 IP, 3ER, 5H, 1BB, 2K).

Carter Heath, Chase Carson, and Billings had two hits each. One of the hits by Billings was a double. Carson’s hits included a triple and one RBI.

Jacob Gravett contributed a triple and one RBI. Julian Wright had a double. Trevor Collum and Ayden Ray both had one hit apiece.

Fellowship Christian, ranked No. 3 in Class A Private, improved to 14-4 on the season.

Woodland (8-17) travels to Calhoun Tuesday at 5:55 p.m. to resume action in Region 7-AAAAA.

CEDARTOWN 5, CASS 2

The Colonels fell behind 3-0 in the first inning Friday afternoon and couldn’t catch the Cedartown Bulldogs in a 5-2 loss at LakePoint in the Battle for Bartow.

Cass narrowed the lead to 3-1 in the second inning and narrowed the margin to 4-2 in the fifth inning but would get no closer.

Jayden Smith (3 IP, 4R, 3ER, 5H, 1BB, 5K) was the losing pitcher for the Colonels. Jordan Gani (3 IP, 1ER, 2H, 2BB) pitched three innings in relief.

Denver Nale and Eli Barrow combined for four hits and two RBIs to lead the Cedartown offense.

Aidan Larkin had one hit and one RBI for the Colonels. Gani contributed a double. Bentley Markley and Hayden Cole finished with one hit each.

Cass (6-15) returns to Region 7-AAAAA action Tuesday in a home game against 5th-ranked Cartersville at 5:55 p.m.