LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN -- Covenant College's most successful baseball season in recent memory came to an abrupt end on Saturday, as the visiting King College Tornado dropped the Scots 3-1 to claim the NCCAA Regional Tournament crown and an automatic bid to the NCCAA World Series. A series of unfortunate events in the last inning of the tournament's finale proved to be the final mistakes in a dismal downfall for the Scots, who had to witness their 1-0 series advantage slip away behind back-to-back King victories.
Although the weekend saw Covenant's World Series hopes eventually fizzle out in the end, it was a weekend that nevertheless began with a bang for the Scots, as they defeated Oakland City and King College with two clutch performances. Game one of the tournament delivered early excitement, as the visiting Oakland City Mighty Oaks took the field looking to upset the host Scots. And, with the Oaks leading 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh and final inning, it appeared as if Covenant was going to suffer a potentially dangerous early loss in the double-elimination tournament. Covenant still had an inning at bat, though, with freshman first-baseman Sterling Witt leading off the bottom of the seventh.
First at bat, Witt knew he needed to set his team up for success, and he would answer that call by hitting a crucial double down the right field line off the first pitch. "Going up to the plate I knew I had to find a way to get on base," said Witt. "The guys in the rotation behind me had been hitting well, and I knew they could send me around if I could just get a hit."
After Witt managed to take third following a wild throw by the Oakland City pitcher, senior Cody Baxter then stepped up to the plate and proved his teammate's words by lifting the ball to deep left field. Although Baxter officially reached second on an E7, his at-bat did indeed bring Witt in for the tying run, and also set up Covenant for the go-ahead, game-winning run. After Brandon Hagopian struck out swinging, Harrison Fisher delivered the clutch performance of the day by doubling to deep left field. As Baxter rounded home plate following the Fisher double, the score moved to 4-3 in Covenant's favor, and the Scot's claimed game one.
Game two against the King College Tornado also saw its fair share of drama, as Covenant found itself in risky territory once again by being tied 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth. With the game on the line, Luke Furuto stepped up to bat and hit a single to center field. After a Jared Carlson pop-out, Sterling Witt proved his metal for the second consecutive game by batting a single through the hole at second base. Then, when Witt managed to steal second and Cody Baxter struck out, Covenant found itself in the peculiar situation of having runners on second and third while also carrying two outs.
Up to bat, though, was game one hero Harrison Fisher, who could cement his status as a clutch performer by carrying his team to victory from home plate yet again. A triple to deep center later, and he had done just that, as the hit brought in three runs for the Scots to take a commanding 6-3 lead. Pitcher Brian Simons then closed out the top of the seventh inning by allowing only one run, and Covenant defeated King College in game two by a 6-4 score.
So, with two wins in hand and no losses on the books, the Scots appeared to be well on their way to postseason success. Thus, when the same King College team that they had defeated just a game before turned around and beat them in back-to-back contests to take the regional title, players, coaches, and spectators alike were left wondering just where everything went wrong. "It's unfortunate we lost two back-to-back games," said pitcher Tyler Smith. "We thought we had things under control, but we let it slip out of our hands." Indeed, a horrid 15-2 loss in game three meant things were not looking good for the Scots as they headed into Saturday's championship contest, but nevertheless, they managed to get their act together and hold King within striking distance for a majority of the game.
Down 3-1, and with runners on first and second in the bottom of the seventh, it appeared to be perfect timing for Covenant's leading home-run hitter, Taylor Oldham, to step up to bat. Full of confidence, Oldham struck the ball well, but saw the hit ground-out into a double play for King. It was an unfortunate event, but things went even further south for the Scots in their final at-bat of the game, when a James Rollins' check swing made contact with a King pitch and sent the ball rolling perilously to the first-baseman for an easy final out. Rollins and the rest of the Covenant team stood in shock as King celebrated the last out in a game that won them both a regional trophy and a trip to the NCCAA World Series.
Covenant was eliminated, and concluded the post-season where it had begun, with a five-hundred record and no silverware to show for their hard work. To make matters worse, the NCCAA announced on Sunday that the final at-large bid to the 2010 World Series would be given to Indiana Wesleyan University, a team that lost in the NCCAA Mid-West Regional championship. So while failing to reach nationals after coming so close will surely be disheartening to the Scots' players for the time being, they can still reflect upon the 2010 season as a successful one, and look to improve in preparation for what lies ahead in 2011. "I know that a lot of these guys will work hard over the summer and come back ready to compete next year," said Smith. "I think this year was a good step forward, but we want to conclude next season with a winning record, a Regional Championship trophy, and a World-Series appearance. I think we can work hard and make that happen."
