WCHS wins first game with Suess complete game gem
Seth Suess twirled a complete game in Game 1 of the best-of-three first round matchup pitching Ware County to a 3-1 victory over visiting Walnut Grove Wednesday afternoon.
The Region 1-AAAA second- seed Gators (19-11) closed out the regular season dropping four of their last six games in region matchups with secondranked Benedictine and Wayne County to fall out of the Top 10.
The Region 8 third-seed Warriors (20-10) captured four of their last five games to end the regular season.
Suess scattered six hits allowing just a fifth inning run to Walnut Grove. He recorded six strikeouts and hit a batter in his 92pitch outing.
Warriors’ starter Branson Blalock matched Suess with a six-inning complete game effort needing 99 pitches to finish what he started. Blalock was touched for seven hits. Blalock fanned nine, walked two and was charged with a wild pitch.
Ware County scored a run in each of the first two innings for the early 2-0 lead.
The Gators’ first inning run came after two outs and nobody on base. Suess (1-for-2) worked a walk to keep the inning alive and was removed for courtesy runner Brodie Burchett.
Slade Sweat (2-for-3) followed two pitches later with a single to center. Isaiah White’s (1-for-2) ensuing infield single plated Burchett for a 1-0 lead.
Ware County doubled its lead with a run in the second. Keaton Holloway’s (1-for-3) leadoff single was followed by Colt Cox’s (1for-2) first-pitch, sacrifice bunt. Garrison Joyner (1for-3) reached on a bloop single putting runners on the corner.
Holloway raced home after Collin Crawford’s liner to right was caught with an errant throw back to the infield allowing the runners to advance extending the margin to 2-0.
The Gators left two on in the third with Sweat reaching on a one-out error and White drawing a walk. A double steal was followed by consecutive outs to kill the threat.
After stranding four batters through the first four innings, Walnut Grove cut the lead in half in the top of the fifth after two outs and nobody on base.
A two-out single, hit batter and run-scoring single came in a four-pitch sequence slicing the lead to 2-1.
Ware County responded in the bottom of the frame to rebuild the two-run advantage. Suess lined a one-out double to left and scored when Sweat laced an 0-2 pitch for a run-scoring single pushing the margin to 3-1.
After retiring the Warriors in order in the sixth, which included a pair of strikeouts, Walnut Grove started the seventh with a base hit. A 5-4-3 doubleplay and a routine fly to center followed.
