Albany State wins game three at Edward Waters after two losses

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — For two games in Jacksonville, the Albany State Golden Rams kept finding ways to come up just short.

Friday night slipped away late.
Saturday’s first game unraveled quickly.

By late afternoon, however, the Golden Rams finally found something else — a way to win.

Behind three home runs, 12 hits and a nerve-steadying relief appearance with the bases loaded in the final inning, Albany State held off Edward Waters 7-6 in Saturday’s series finale at JP Small Ballpark, salvaging the final game of the three-game SIAC series.

“I was really proud of how the team fought back and won in game three,” Albany State coach Scot Hemmings said. “We had several opportunities to win Friday night’s game but just never got the big hit. Game two got sloppy on us, but in game three we swung the bats well and made some big plays.”

The biggest play came at the very end.

With Albany State clinging to a one-run lead in the bottom of the seventh, Edward Waters loaded the bases with one out. Hemmings turned to Dereck Foster, who promptly slammed the door, recording a strikeout and a foul out to secure the win.

The Golden Rams needed every bit of it.

Edward Waters struck first in the finale, scoring three runs in the opening inning. Albany State answered in the second when Isaiah Haygood crushed a three-run homer to center field, instantly erasing the deficit.

One inning later, Arin Chevers — the former Westover standout — drilled a solo home run to left center to give Albany State its first lead of the game.

The Tigers briefly tied the contest again, but the Golden Rams continued to respond.

David Kile, a Terrell Academy graduate, drove in Chevers with an RBI single in the fifth inning to regain the lead, and Aiden Payne followed with a solo homer in the sixth to stretch the advantage to 6-4.

Albany State added what proved to be a critical insurance run in the seventh when Kile delivered another RBI single to score David Cooper.

The Golden Rams finished with 12 hits in the win. Payne led the charge with three hits and a home run, Chevers added two hits, including his homer, and Kile collected two hits and two RBIs.

Jeremiah Reddell, a Worth County product, earned the victory on the mound as Albany State pieced together the final outs with its bullpen.

Earlier Saturday, the Golden Rams absorbed a lopsided 11-1 loss in the opening game of the doubleheader.

Chevers accounted for Albany State’s lone run with a solo home run in the first inning, but Edward Waters answered with five runs in the second and never looked back.

The weekend began Friday night with what Hemmings called a missed opportunity.

Albany State led early when Luke Addison doubled down the right-field line to score Aiden Payne in the first inning. Edward Waters responded with a solo homer in the third before taking control with four runs in the fifth.

The Golden Rams nearly rallied.

Kile drove in a run in the seventh, and Chevers ripped a two-run single in the eighth to pull Albany State within 5-4, but the comeback stopped there.

Still, the way the Golden Rams finished the weekend left Hemmings encouraged.

“During game three it looked like we found a little bit of our offense and our bullpen really threw the ball well,” Hemmings said.

Albany State will now have several days to regroup. The Golden Rams do not play a midweek game and will return to action March 21-22 with a conference series at Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee.

“We can get some rest,” Hemmings said, “and get ready for the final six weeks of the season.”