The John Milledge Academy (JMA) Trojans picked up a pair of wins and a loss last week, then added another win on Monday night to improve their record to 8-2.
The Trojans avenged a 16-1 run-rule drubbing early this season at Strong Rock Christian in Locust Grove with a 10-3 win over the Patriots last Tuesday in Milledgeville.
Two days later in Newnan, however, JMA fell 10-2 to Heritage before countering that loss back home in Milledgeville on Friday night with a 3-0 shutout over the Hawks.
“We made too many mistakes in the first game versus [Heritage],” JMA head coach Tucker Bradley acknowledged. “You can’t allow 10 runs on five hits and expect to win many ball games.
“Gus [Cummings] gave us another quality start on Friday, and the defense made plays behind him,” Bradley continued. “That, mixed with timely hitting and sacrifice bunts to get the job done on Friday, was the major key.”
The coach voiced a similar opinion about the Trojans’ games with Strong Rock.
“Same thing really,” he said. “We made a lot of unforced errors at their place and flipped the script at ours. Our bats were much better.
“Kellen Eady had a huge grand slam to ice the game. [Grayson] Paradise has been unbelievable in every start. I’m glad to see him having a lot of success, and we will need him to continue to get better to give us a shot in May.”
Paradise pitched a seven-inning complete game against Strong Rock last Tuesday, striking out 11 Patriots while allowing just three hits and three runs, and walking just two in the Trojans’ 10-3 win.
Also continuing to play well for the Trojans is sophomore Asa Wall, who has hit safely in eight consecutive games. Wall is batting a team-best .519 at the plate with 14 hits, two home runs, and 13 RBIs.
The Trojans captured their eighth win of the season on Monday at Windsor, with a 21-4 mercy rule final after five innings. The rule was enforced as the Trojans led by more than 10 runs after five innings.
JMA hosted region rival Piedmont in its biggest game of the season thus far on Tuesday this week before visiting the Cougars in Monticello on Thursday. Piedmont currently has a 10-1 overall record and a 2-0 region record.
“It’ll be fun baseball. In our region, there’s no easy week, so I’m excited to get going and see what our guys are made of,” Bradley said. “Piedmont is a great team, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we compare to them.”
The Trojans will also host Bethlehem Christian Academy this Friday at 5:30 p.m.