In what could be the final day of high school sports for the school year, baseball champions will be decided in classes AAAAA and AA in Gwinnett County on Monday while the AAA best-of-three series plays out in Columbus with a doubleheader.
In AAAAA, Hillgrove plays at Parkview in the deciding third game. Hillgrove overcame an 8-2 deficit Saturday in Game 2 to win 13-10 in 10 innings and force Monday’s 5:30 p.m. winner-take-all showdown.
Expect Hillgrove to throw Max Obrkofler (5-1, 2.91) against Parkview’s Jack Esmonde (3-1, 3.44), although Sunday’s day off might enable each team to bring back its Game 1-2 starters for relief work. Previous playoff rounds didn’t afford a day off between second and third games.
In AA, Buford has the best rotation perhaps in the state, enabling the Wolves to go with Georgia Tech signee Josh Heddinger (9-0, 2.08) in its 4 p.m. deciding game against Pike County. Pike will start Lance Shelton, who threw a three-hitter with no walks in a clinching semifinal against Lovett last week.
The final championship series pits Columbus against Spalding in AAA. Its start was postponed from Saturday to accommodate Spalding’s graduation ceremonies.
Columbus, led by former Little League World Series hero Kyle Carter, is the defending champion. Spalding, which opened in 2000, is seeking its first state title in any sport.
Marist (AAAA) and Hebron Christian (A) won the other state titles in two-game sweeps Saturday.
Schedule
AAAAA: Hillgrove at Parkview, 5:30 p.m.
AAA: Spalding at Columbus, 2 p.m. (DH)
AA: Pike County at Buford, 4 p.m.
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