Baseball: Regular season ends this week, district tournament begins

 

Note: This story was updated at 8:05 p.m.

The regular baseball season ends this week, and the district tournament begins.

As of Tuesday, Oak Ridge was 15-11 overall and 7-6 in District 3-AAA.

In their last district game, at home on Tuesday, the Wildcats beat Campbell County 9-1. They were scheduled to play their final regular-season district game, a rescheduled game, at Campbell County this afternoon (Sunday, April 29).

Oak Ridge will play a a non-district game at Walker Valley in Cleveland on Monday and a throwback game using wooden bats at Farragut on Tuesday.

The district tournament starts on Thursday, and games will be hosted by the top two seeds, which could be Karns and either Halls or Powell.

The Wildcats were swept by Halls, Karns, and Powell this season, and Oak Ridge swept Anderson County, Clinton, and Central.

They have had one win over Campbell County, with today’s game remaining. (Note: A reader reported Sunday evening that the Wildcats shut out the Cougars 10-0.)

Oak Ridge Coach Mark Garrison discussed some of the highlights of this season after Tuesday’s home win over the Cougars.

Oak Ridge senior Ian Campbell has had three home runs this season, including one inside the park in Georgia and a grand slam at Coalfield. Senior Seth Caldwell has had two home runs, and senior catcher Jacob Ownby had one home run as well.

That’s six home runs total this season. That’s significant because Oak Ridge has not had many home runs, if any, the past few years.

Caldwell, a right-handed pitcher, had 16 strikeouts at Central. That’s close to the school record of 17 in a game.

Caldwell, who also played basketball this school year and has attracted attention from baseball scouts, has a 6-3 record as a pitcher. Caldwell, who has had the more difficult opponents this season, shares the record for most wins, eight (in 2017), with Spencer Wilson (2016) and Joe Fellers (1993).

Senior Logan Williams, who also plays shortstop, has a 5-0 record as a pitcher this year.

Williams has 28 stolen bases. The record is 35, and Williams will probably break that, Oak Ridge coaches said.

Garrison said the Oak Ridge defense has been good, but the Wildcats have struggled a bit at times to score runs. He said Matthew Swigert has contributed significantly on defense. Swigert has played center field, and that’s allowed Campbell to move into the infield, Garrison said.

Campbell has been the offensive leader, with a .391 batting average, Garrison said. Williams has a .380 batting average, and Caldwell is at .304.

Freshman Jonathan Milloway, a regular starter, has 17 runs batted in (RBIs), and so does Ownby, Garrison said.

On Tuesday, Garrison said Oak Ridge would probably be the fourth seed headed into the district tournament on Thursday, and Central could be the fifth seed.

It’s helped to have experienced seniors this year, Garrison said, including Caldwell, Campbell, Ownby, and Williams. They’ve been starters for three to four years and have played a lot since their freshman years, Garrison said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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