Senators win opening game of Appalachian District Series,12-4, over Georgia Highlands

CARTERSVILLE, GA – Holden Pantier hit a grand slam in the second inning on Tuesday for No. 13 Walters State, and the Senators were never threatened from there on their way to a 12-4 win over No. 17 Georgia Highlands in game one of the NJCAA Appalachian District Series.

With the win, the Senators improved to 51-11 overall. 

Pantier drove in five runs in the game, while Jackson Berry smacked four hits and scored three runs. Miles Shore had two hits, and Jaxon Walker hit a two-run home run after coming in as a defensive replacement. 

On the mound, Brady Scott (6-0) threw seven innings and picked up the win. Scott allowed 12 hits but just four runs and struck out six. Ryan Smith replaced Scott in the eighth and threw the final two innings. Smith allowed just one hit and struck out three. 

Scott left two stranded in the bottom of the first, and Walters State took control in the top of the second. Justin Bell led off with a double, and Jackson Berry followed with a double to put two runners in scoring position. Luke Graham then walked, and Brady Dalton followed with a walk to score Bell and give the Senators the first run of the game. Following a popout, Pantier stepped to the plate and leveled a pitch over the left-center fence for a grand slam to give Walters State a 5-0 lead. 

Georgia Highlands got a run back in the bottom of the second, but Scott left two on again to limit the damage. In the third, Berry started a two-out rally, and Graham followed with a triple down the right-field line to score Berry to make it 6-1. Walters State kept the foot on the gas in the fourth inning, as Fenton led the inning off with a double and scored on a Pantier single to make it 7-1. 

Scott got a 1-2-3 inning in the fourth, but ran into trouble in the fifth with some bloop hits by the Chargers. Georgia Highlands picked up three runs, but Scott stopped it there with a strikeout and groundout to get out of the jam. 

In the sixth, the Senators got two of the runs back. Drew Blalock walked with one out, and Kenny Cox followed with a walk. That brought up Shore, and he doubled in Blalock. Cox would score one batter later to make it 9-4, as Hayden Blair laid down a sacrifice bunt. 

That was the score until the ninth, as Scott and Smith mowed down the Georgia Highlands batters. In the ninth, Shore led off with a single, and Blair followed with a double. Berry then singled home Shore, and he scored two batters later when Walker launched a home run over the fence in right to make it 12-4. 

Smith worked around a two-out walk in the bottom of the ninth, and the Senators took home the opener.

Shelton becomes Walters State Baseball's Winningest Head Coach 

With Tuesday's win, Dave Shelton became the winningest head coach in Walters State Baseball history. 

Shelton collected his 651st victory, surpassing Ken Campbell. Campbell won 650 games during his Hall of Fame career. Shelton's record now sits at 651-141-1 in 12 full seasons (and a partial year in 2020). 

During Shelton's career, Walters State has won 10 regular season TCCAA Championships, seven Region 7 Tournaments and made six trips to the JUCO World Series. Shelton has finished third three times in the World Series and Runner-Up two times. He has been named TCCAA Coach of the Year six times. 

Up Next:

Walters State and Georgia Highlands square off again at Georgia Highlands on Wednesday at 1 pm ET. A win for the Senators would clinch a spot in the JUCO World Series in Grand Junction, CO.