Photo: Justin Hall of Northpoint Christian School slides in under a tag attempt for a run during Sunday’s TSSAA playoff victory over Clarksville Academy. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
It was Sunday and it was Mother’s Day, but Saturday’s graduation at Northpoint Christian School required a loser-out TSSAA first-round baseball playoff game be played between the Trojans and Clarksville Academy on Sunday afternoon. For Northpoint moms, the 7-4 victory over the Cougars was a nice present for the day.
With the win, the Trojans now face a road trip to East Tennessee where starting Wednesday they’ll face Providence Academy in Johnson City. The series winner will get to go to the TSSAA Spring Fling at Murfreesboro for the Division 2-A state tournament.
Sammy Chapman scored twice for the Trojans and also hit safely in two of four at bats in the victory. One of the two hits was a double.
Hudson Brown hit the second of back-to-back home runs during a four-run Northpoint Christian fifth inning. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
Hudson Brown also got a pair of hits, including the second of back-to-back Northpoint home runs in the fifth inning to break open a tie day. Rob Hayes also scored on a blast in the fifth.
The Kentucky signee led the Trojans with a pair of RBIs.
Brown also came to the pitcher’s mound in relief of JB Williams, who started, allowed five hits and three earned runs in three innings of work. Williams struck out three and walked six.
In Brown’s four innings on the hill, he allowed three hits and one run, striking out one.
Kirkpatrick was happy with his ability to hold a good hitting offense like Clarksville Academy.
“If we get four runs in seven innings, we’ve got a really good shot at winning,” Kirkpatrick said. “I was proud of our seniors and the overall effort. It wa a good team win.”
Northpoint took the early lead but the Cougars tied the game at 1-1 heading into the Trojans half of the second. That’s when Northpoint scored a pair of runs for a 3-1 advantage.
However, Clarksville Academy would score two runs of their own in the third inning for a 3-3 tie. It might have been more except for a highlight film running catch in left field by KL Farr for the second out with a man on in the top of the fifth.
Sammy Chapman scored a pair of runs for Northpoint in Sunday’s playoff victory. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
That was followed by a four-run bottom of the fifth inning by Northpoint that put the contest out of reach for the Cougars. Justin Hall scored a run on a steal of home thanks to a wild throw with Rob Hayes at the plate. During the same at bat, Chapman scored on a wild pitch, followed by Hayes losing a pitch over the left field wall.
A new pitcher came in for Clarksville Academy, but Brown promptly welcomed him with a blast over the center field wall for a 7-3 lead.
The Cougars tallied one more run in the sixth but nothing further as the Trojans wrapped up a 7-4 victory.
Northpoint’s victory means three West Region teams have made the second round of the state playoffs: region champion Evangelical Christian, Tipton-Rosemark, and the Trojans.
“It’s a good region,” Kirkpatrick said about the West Region. “We have a really good division in the state here.”
