AA baseball: Lovett tops Wesleyan

In dramatic fashion, the Lovett Lions won the Class AA GHSA baseball championship on Monday at Wesleyan’s Donn Gaebelein Field.

The Lions beat host Wesleyan Wolves 5-4 in Game 3 of the best-of-three series, rebounding from a 12-2 loss in Game 2 earlier in the day. They beat the Wolves 4-2 in Game 1 on Saturday.

With one out in the bottom of the seventh inning of the finale, the Wolves had the tying run at second and go-ahead run at first when Lions senior left-hander Freddy Achecar induced a game-ending double play.

The Lions (25-12-1) won their first championship since 2013 and eighth in program history while preventing Wesleyan from repeating as state champions. For Lions senior and University of Georgia commit Aaron Schunk, he had the privilege of winning state titles his freshman and senior years.

An emotional Schunk – who was the losing pitcher in Game 2, but who began the series-ending double play from shortstop – said this year’s title was his most memorable.

“My heart was racing this entire series – it’s been racing since freshman year,” said Schunk, who finished the series 5-for-8 with a home run, four runs scored and four walks. “This team was underdogs the whole year.”

The Wolves (29-11) ended any hopes of a Lovett sweep with a thumping in Monday’s earlier game, led by Alex Thompson’s three two-run homers. Andy Archer went the distance for Wesleyan, giving up an earned run on seven hits and a walk while striking out four.

In Game 3, Wesleyan took a 4-3 lead in the fourth inning with three solo home runs off Sam Pritchard, the winning pitcher of the series opener. The third home run – hit by Jake McCleskey – knocked Pritchard out of the game. That’s when sophomore Ben O’Meara came on in relief and delivered 2 2/3 innings of shutout ball, being pulled in the seventh after getting an out and walking a batter.

“I’ve never been in a situation like this,” said O’Meara, whose brother Gerry O’Meara was a member of the 2009 Lions AA title team. “It’s just insane, the atmosphere – everything. We never gave up. In Game 2 we lost by 10 runs. We were able to bounce back – I don’t even know how to explain it.”

The Lions tied the game at four in the sixth inning when John Staton scored on a wild pitch. They took the lead in the seventh when Achecar scored on an error.

Achecar then came on in relief for O’Meara in the bottom of the seventh inning and gave up a hit before the game-ending double play.

“I had it hit to my best friend (Schunk) at shortstop and there’s no better way to end it,” Achecar said.