Black Knights seeking 2nd-place finish in Smoky Mountain Conference
Robbinsville – Friday’s 7-2 loss to Hayesville effectively halted Robbinsville’s quest for its first-ever Smoky Mountain Conference championship.
That’s the bad news.
The Black Knights can still cement second-place status in the final season standings: a slot that should not only end Robbinsville’s 13-year postseason drought, but could even pave the way for the first-ever playoff game at Loudon Orr Memorial Field.
That’s obviously the good news.
As they did during the two programs’ first showdown of the year April 23, the Black Knights once again struck first in Friday’s rematch against divisional-champion Hayesville (15-2, 12-0), when Bryc Garrison turned his record-breaking 22nd steal of the season – a new single-year record for Robbinsville (10-5, 7-3) – into a later scamper across the plate on a wild pitch.
But in another reflection from three days prior, the lead did not stick.
The Yellow Jackets put things back at square one when Michael Mauney also scored on a wild pitch in the third. Hayesville later opened the floodgates in the fifth, when Peyton McGaha led off the frame with a solo dinger. Chance Hughes went on to double in Tate Roberts and Kyle Shaheen before the visitors returned to the dugout.
Starting pitcher Ethan Orr cut the deficit in half during the bottom of the inning, flying out to drive in Graylen Orr. But with Ethan (4-3) maxxing out his pitch-count limit, the Jackets stung for three more in the sixth: Mauney and McGaha both scored on wild pitches, before Hughes singled in Roberts.
Tuesday’s scheduled Senior Night festivities against Murphy (4-10, 4-6) was postponed due to rain. Robbinsville instead hosted the Bulldogs after Wednesday’s press deadline, before traveling to Chip Watson Field to return the favor at 4:30 p.m., today in the regular-season conclusion.