With Adkins, Hillgrove's Never out of It

One piece of advice if you’re making the hour-plus drive to Lilburn this afternoon for Game 3 of state championship baseball series against : Plan on staying to the end.

In averaging 8.5 runs a game this season, the Hawks (29-8) have proved they’re never out of a game, no matter how big the deficit.

They showed it against in the state quarterfinals, cutting a 6-1 deficit to 6-5 before , then in extra innings after trailing 5-0 through four innings and 6-5 in the bottom of the seventh.

They showed it against Newnan in the semifinals, falling behind 3-0 in Game 1, then storming back to win 8-6 en route to a and a spot in the finals.

And they showed it again in Saturday at Parkview.

The Hawks had a frustrating Game 1 on offense, piling up hits but stranding runners on base in every inning. They trailed 6-2 in the top of the seventh and final inning against ace Panther reliever Phillip Taylor and were quickly down to their last out.

But that would-be last out was senior catcher Michael Adkins, who was simply the best player on the field Saturday. His third hit of the game, a single, kept Hillgrove alive.

The Hawks got a bit of luck when Parkview right fielder Ryan Blanton couldn’t handle Tucker Ehmig’s shallow fly ball, and Max Oberkofler made the Panthers pay by blasting a three-run homer just out of Blanton’s reach two pitches later.

The only real surprise of the rally was that it fell short with the potential tying run, Tyler Graham, standing on second after a double.

The huge, maroon-clad Hillgrove crowd watched the Hawks fall behind 3-0 before recording an out in Game 2 and trail 5-0 in the second inning and 8-2 after three innings. But those fans never stopped cheering; they seemed to know the Hawks had the Panthers right where they wanted them.

Justin Mobley hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth inning, followed immediately by a solo shot by Ryan Raper, and suddenly the Hawks were only a run behind.

Sure, Parkview star slugger Matt Olson hit a two-run homer in the top of the sixth, his second home run of the game, to extend the lead to 10-7. No big deal for the Hawks, not with a superhero named Michael Adkins on their side.

The situation was perfect. Eric Baguley stood on third after being hit by a Taylor pitch to lead off the sixth. Ryan Raper was on first after forcing out Tyler Mauzy, who had reached on a single. Hillgrove had two outs, and Adkins stepped to the plate.

To that point, Adkins had batted six times in the doubleheader. After flying out to right in the first inning of Game 1, he hit two doubles and a single, then had a home run, a double and a single in Game 2.

Was there any doubt he would tie the game?

Sure enough, he crushed a 1-0 pitch to left-center for a three-run homer, and it was a 10-10 game.

It was then only a matter of time until Hillgrove won. Sure, it was a lot of time, four tense innings. And it was an unlikely ending, a three-run homer by Robert Stewart, his first of the year, after the senior failed twice to put down a sacrifice bunt.

But the delay was in part because Parkview refused to let Adkins win the game, intentionally walking him in the ninth inning.

Adkins was nothing short of remarkable Saturday. He caught both games of the doubleheader, 16 innings in all, and played stellar defense behind the plate, throwing out the one runner who tried to steal a base on him.

At bat, he was seven of eight with two homers, three doubles, two singles and a walk. He’s on a streak of reaching base in eight consecutive plate appearances and getting hits in seven consecutive at-bats.

He’s not the entire Hillgrove offense, of course. Five other Hawks hit home runs Saturday, and the team totaled 25 hits in the two games. But win or lose, today’s winner-take-all game will be Adkins’ last in a Hillgrove uniform, and it should be something special.

Just don’t leave until the final swing.

If You Go

What: Hillgrove at Parkview in the final game of a the best-of-three state championship series

Where: Parkview High, 998 Cole Dr., Lilburn

When: 5:30 p.m., but get there early if you want a seat with a good view of the field

Tickets: $7