Vikings Down Bamberg-Ehrhardt 11-1, Overwhelm Hannah-Pamplico 19-0, 7-4 for Lower State Title

The Latta Vikings earned an 11-1 win over Bamberg-Ehrhardt on Wednesday night to advance to the Lower State Championship on Friday, where they shut out Hannah-Pamplico 19-0 in game one and downed the Raiders 7-4 in game two to claim the Class A title.

The Vikings improved to 21-6-2 as they prepared to face upper state champion Lewisville in the state championship series. The Vikings were set to host game one on Monday night and will travel to Lewisville for game two on Wednesday. A third game will be held at a neutral site on Friday, if necessary.

On Wednesday, the Vikings faced elimination against the Bamberg-Ehrhardt Red Raiders but took a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the first quarter and went ahead from there, picking up one run each in the third and fourth, two in the fifth, and three in the sixth to cap the win.

John Kever Love earned the win on the mound, giving up five hits in six innings with one earned run, three walks, and seven outs. Bamberg-Ehrhardt’s Sandiler took the loss, pitching one inning for five hits, three earned runs, and one walk. Crider pitched three innings for five hits, four runs, one earned run, and two walks; Etheridge pitched 1.1 innings for three hits and one earned run; and Zeisla took a turn on the mound for two hits, three earned runs, and one walk.

Brady Hatchell went 3-for-4 with two RBI and one run; Caleb Mishue went 3-for-4 with one RBI and two runs; McLeod Carmichael went 2-for-3 with two RBI, also getting a sacrifice fly; John Kever Love went 2-for-3 with one RBI, one walk, and a fielder’s choice; Jackson Williams went 1-for-3 with a triple, two RBI, and two runs scored, also drawing a walk; Jonathan Ray went 1-for-2 with a triple, one RBI, and one run, also reaching on an error and making two sacrifice bunts; Eric McGirt went 1-for-2 with one run and two walks; Cledus Williams went 1-for-2 with one RBI, also getting a hit by pitch and making a sacrifice fly; Austin Miller went 1-for-4 with one run, also reaching on an error; Noah Moody scored one run with a stolen base; and Daniel Khalil and Deonte Stanley each scored one run.

For the Raiders, Zeisla went 2-for-2 with one walk, one run, and two stolen bases; Etheridge went 1-for-3 with a double, a stolen base, and one RBI; Hawks went 1-for-3; Chandler went 1-for-3; and Schwaits and Bunch each drew a walk. Bamberg had five hits and three errors in the effort.

Click here to view a photo gallery from Wednesdays game!

The Vikings needed to win twice on Friday to claim the lower state title and they came prepared, earning a 19-0 win in game one.

Eric McGirt opened the game with at triple and scored on a passed ball, and Cledus Williams drew a walk and advanced on passed balls to put the Vikings up 2-0 in the top of the first. With two outs in the second, McGirt doubled, Cledus Williams and Jackson Williams each drew walks, and John Kever Love singled to bring in the first two runners. Jackson Williams scored on an error to put Latta up 5-0 after two.

In the top of the third, Latta picked up five runs with Caleb Mishue reaching on an error, Jonathan Ray drawing a walk, and Mcleod Carmichael making a sacrifice bunt for the first out. Brady Hatchell followed with a double to score Mishue, and Ray scored on a single from McGirt, who stole second. Hatchell scored on a sacrifice fly from Cledus Williams, and Jackson Williams singled to score McGirt before coming in on a double from Love. Austin Miller flew out to end the inning with the Vikings up 10-0.

Latta sealed the win with nine runs in the top of the fourth. Mishue led off with a single, and Ray reached on an error, followed by a single from Carmichael to bring in Mishue. Hatchell drew a walk to advance the runners, and McGirt singled to score Ray. Cledus Williams and Jackson Williams both doubled to score all the runners, leaving Jackson Williams at second. Love singled to score him, then advanced on passed balls to reach third before scoring on an error. Miller drew a walk and Mishue reached on an error before Ray flew out for the first out of the inning. Carmichael drew a walk to put runners on first and second, but Hatchell flew out and McGirt was struck out to end the scoring.

In their last at bat in the top of the fifth, Cledus Williams drew walk, but Jackson Williams and Miller both flew out and Love struck out.

Hannah-Pamplico went three up, three down in every inning except the fifth. Vic Cooper led off with a single, followed by Noah Pilotte and Brandon Williamson. But Mason Hicks flew out, and Ethan McAllister hit into a double play to end the game.

McLeod Carmichael got the win on the mound, pitching all five innings for three hits and three outs. Hannah-Pamplico’s Easton Tanner took the loss, pitching for one run, three walks, and two outs. Vic Cooper pitched for five hits, five runs, four earned runs, three walks, and two outs, and Nick Owens pitched for 10 hits, 13 runs, eight earned runs, and two walks.

At bat for Latta, Eric McGirt went 4-for-5 with a triple, a double, two RBI, a stolen base, and four runs scored; John Kever Love went 4-for-4 with a double, a stolen base, and four RBI; Jackson Williams went 2-for-3 with a double, three RBI, and three runs, also drawing a walk; Cledus Williams went 1-for-1 with a double, three RBI, and one run, also making a sacrifice fly and drawing two walks; Caleb Mishue went 1-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored, also reaching on two errors; Austin Miller went 1-for-4 with one run and a walk; McLeod Carmichael went 1-for-2 with one RBI, also making a sacrifice bunt and drawing a walk; Brady Hatchell went 1-for-3 with a double, one RBI, and two runs scored, also drawing a walk; Jonathan Ray reached with an error and a walk for two runs; Daniel Khalil scored two runs; and Noah Moody and Deonte Stanley each scored a run.

For the Raiders, Vic Cooper, Noah Pilotte, and Brandon Williamson each went 1-for-2.

The win forced a second game, with the Vikings earning a 7-4 win over the Raiders.

Hannah-Pamplico led off with one run in the top of the first, with Whit Tanguay reaching on an error, advancing on a double from Cooper, and scoring as Pilotte reached on an error.

In the bottom of the first, Latta picked up five runs with McGirt leading off with a single, followed by a walk for Cledus Williams and singles for Jackson Williams, John Kever Love, and Austin Miller. Mishue struck out for the first out, and Ray made a sacrifice fly to score Love. Miller scored on a passed ball before Carmichael grounded out to leave Latta up 5-1.

The Raiders went three up, three out in the top of the second, and Cledus Williams was the only Viking to reach base in the bottom of the inning on a hit by pitch.

Hannah-Pamplico picked up one run in the top of the third with Tanner leading off with a double and advancing on a sacrifice bunt from Will Bazen. Carson Mays reached on an error to score Tanner, but the next two batters grounded out to end the inning with the Raiders still trailing 5-2.

In the bottom of the inning, the Vikings reached on a single from Love, who advanced on single from Miller and Ray and scored on a walk from Carmichael. With one out and the bases loaded, Hatchell hit into a double play to end the inning.

Hannah-Pamplico attempted to rally in the fourth, opening the inning with a triple from Pilotte, followed by a single from Williamson, who advanced on errors to reach third. Mason Hicks reached on an error and advanced on a single from Ethan McAllister that scored Williamson. Tanner made a sacrifice bunt to put runners at second and third, but the Viking pitchers struck out the next two batters to leave the Raiders trailing 6-4.

Latta went three up, three down in the bottom of the inning, and struck out three batters in the top of the fifth, allowing only Pilotte to reach on an error. In the bottom of the fifth, with one out, Miller and Mishue both reached on errors and a sacrifice bunt from Ray scored Miller for a 7-4 lead. Carmichael struck out to leave Mishue stranded on third.

Hannah-Pamplico went three up and out in the sixth and seventh, and Latta’s McGirt single din the sixth and stole second before advancing to third. Cledus Williams reached on an error and stole second, but the next two batters flew out to end the game.

Carmichael got the win on the mound, pitching three innings for four hits, four runs, and two earned runs. Love pitched four innings for one hit and nine outs. For Hannah-Pamplico, Hicks pitched four and a third innings for seven hits, seven runs, four earned runs, two walks, one hit by pitch, and four outs. Tanguay pitched one and two-thirds innings for one hit and two outs.

For the Vikings, Miller went 2-for-3 with one RBI and two runs scored and also reached on an error; Love went 2-for-4 with one RBI and two runs; McGirt went 2-for-4 with one run and a stolen base; Jackson Williams went 1-for-4 with one RBI and one run; Ray went 1-for-1 with two RBI, a sacrifice fly, and a sacrifice bunt; Cledus Williams reached on a walk, an error, and a hit by pitch; Mishue reached on an error; Carmichael picked up one RBI on a walk; and Daniel Khalil scored one run with a stolen base.

For the Raiders, McAllister went 1-for-3 with one RBI; Williamson went 1-for-3 with one RBI and one run; Pilotte went 1-for-3 with a triple, a stolen base, and one run, also reaching on two errors; Cooper went 1-for-3 with a double; Tanner went 1-for-2 with a double and one run, also making a sacrifice bunt; Mays picked up one RBI, reaching on an error; Bazen made a sacrifice bunt; Hicks reached on an error; and Tanguay scored one run after reaching on an error.

Click the images below to view at full size. NOTE: Due to early deadlines, full photo galleries won’t appear until next week.