SWEET REPEAT: Bulldog baseball takes second straight state championship
MONTGOMERY – Sweet Water hosted its third state championship trophy in a span of 12 months Thursday. First baseman John Thomas Etheridge squeezed a throw from third baseman Reid Joiner to polish off a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh and Bulldog ballplayers elatedly threw their gloves into the air before leaping onto a celebratory “Dawg” pile.
“We’ve done something that teams haven’t done in a while. We went back to back. And we won one in football, so that’s three in the past two years,” Class 1A state championship Most Valuable Player Jonah Smith said. “I think we’re leaving a big legacy and something for the younger boys to strive for.”
“The hardest thing to do is repeat a state championship. I’ve got some guys that have really got some guts,” head coach John Gluschick said.
After downing Spring Garden 8-0 behind a dominant pitching performance from Jonah Smith at Paterson Field Wednesday, the Bulldogs took to Riverwalk Stadium and placed the stitched orb in the right hand of Sasha Smith Thursday. The younger of the Smith siblings kept Spring Garden off the base paths entirely through the game’s first three innings before finding himself in a bit of a jam in the fifth. Two errors enabled Spring Garden to load the bases before the sophomore hurler induced a line drive to left fielder Trent Sams for the inning’s second out. A Luke Welsh double plated three to cut it to 6-4.
“We didn’t play good that inning and they knew that. You’ve just got to shake it off. The next ground ball is the most important one,” Gluschick said.
After recording the first two outs of the fifth, Sasha departed having allowed only two hits and two walks in four and two-thirds innings of work. Gluschick summoned junior Chance Broussard to the mound.
“That’s our game plan. We tell (Sasha) 12 outs. That’s what he strives to do,” Gluschick said. “We have a good pitching staff and we go to the arms that come in fresh just like Chance Broussard did and we shut the door.” F5r4rfrrrrfrre
Back-to-back singles from Austin Slayton and Weston Kirk to open the bottom of the sixth gave Spring Garden its best chance to upend the Bulldogs. Broussard later delivered a 2-2 offering that the third batter of the inning rolled to shortstop. Jonah Smith fielded and ignited a double play to all but squash the threat. Spring Garden failed to get another runner aboard in the contest.
“Double play is the pitcher’s best friend. It kind of took the wind out of their sail. At that time we were up by two and we were playing for outs,” Gluschick said.
After Trent Sams drove in Shamar Lewis in the top of the third, Sweet Water did the bulk of its offensive damage in the fourth. Jonah Smith and John Thomas Etheridge led off the inning with singles before a Broussard sacrifice bunt moved them over. Spring Garden threw out the lead runner at the plate on the ensuing ground ball, accounting for the fourth Sweet Water out of the series recorded at either third base or home.
“We are aggressive. We’re going to force the issue and other teams know that. I think that word has spread,” Gluschick said. “If I can make them bobble a ball or throw one away, they’ve got to make a good play to get us out. On a lot of occasions, we’ve been successful being aggressive. We want to be the aggressor.”
An error on a Joiner grounder kept the inning alive and loaded the bases. Luke Davis followed with a double into the left field corner that plated all three runners to move it to a 4-0 lead. Lewis followed with a single before Sams legged out an infield single that plated DeShawn Blanks and Lewis for the 6-0 advantage.
The championship caps a remarkable run for the Sweet Water senior class of Jonah Smith, Shamar Lewis, Trent Sams, Luke Davis and DeShawn Blanks. The group has compiled an 83-28 record in three seasons under Gluschick.
“I came in here three years ago and inherited all the baseball players. Nobody graduated. The coaching staff, the players, they changed the environment. From day one it has carried over for three year,” Gluschick said. “We play aggressive. We try to teach the game of baseball the right way. You’re talking 22-11, 32-8 and now 29-9. These seniors have won a lot of ball games.”
