LEBANON, Tenn. - Garrett Carmichael had experienced the feeling before, but never in a varsity game. And certainly not with so much riding on the outcome of a game.
The Baylor senior picked a great time for his first varsity home run, stroking a two-out, two-run shot in the fifth inning to help his team to an 8-2 win over Christian Brothers in the opening round of the Division II-AA baseball state tournament Tuesday evening at Wilson Central High School.
"I thought I got all of it at contact," said Carmichael, the Red Raiders No. 8 hitter. "I've hit a few in practice but never in a game, so that was certainly a great feeling. I was just waiting for a good pitch, looking for a fastball, and that's what he threw.
"None of us have ever experienced the state tournament, so this was a really big deal. A great win for our confidence."
Baylor will play the winner between McCallie and Memphis University School today at 1:30 p.m. EDT. The Blue Tornado's game Tuesday didn't begin until after 10 p.m., following a lengthy weather delay, and ended after the Times Free Press deadline. Details from that late game can be found at timesfreepress.com.
Baylor started three freshmen and three sophomores in its first state-tournament appearance in four years, but the baby Raiders certainly were not in awe of their surroundings. The team totaled 12 hits and rallied from a 2-0 early deficit with four runs in the third inning and four in the fifth in support of senior right-handed pitcher Alex Butler, who went the distance, striking out seven.
Sophomore Gehrig Ebel was 2-4 with a run, classmate Christian Martin was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and freshman Daniel Corona drove in two as well. Junior Stanley King also went 2-for-3 with an RBI, and Teddy Lepcio drove in a run.
"We hit the ball well up and down our lineup," Red Raiders coach Greg Elie said. "For such a young group of guys to come out and play the way we did today is really impressive. We had several guys step up at the plate, and I'm really happy for Garrett.
"Alex is a gutsy kid on the mound, and he just keeps giving us solid innings. This is just a really fun group to be around because of the way they approach the game. Now we have to turn around and come right back and keep hitting it this way, because as big a win as this was, it we've still got work to do."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.