Darton rallies from five runs down to defeat Georgia Perimeter

ALBANY — The Darton State College baseball team came back from a five-run deficit to beat Georgia Perimeter 9-7 in the first of a four-game series Tuesday afternoon at Darton.

Trailing 7-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Cavaliers (34-16, 21-8 conference) scored four runs on four hits, including a two-RBI single from Cody Ilgenfritz to complete the come back.

“I was looking for a fastball to drive,” Ilgenfritz said. “I started off with a fastball and fouled it off. Then I took another fastball on the outside corner for a strike, so I was down 0-2. I just kept fighting and ended up with a line-drive single.”

Trailing by five in the bottom of the second, the Cavaliers began to chip away as Colton Thomas drove home Mike Huggins for their second run. Then in the bottom of the fourth, Darton struck for three more runs on the strength of three GPC walks, a hit batsman and a fielder’s choice RBI by Thomas, cutting the Jaguars’ lead to 6-5.

Darton starting pitcher T.J. Roberts went one and two-thirds of an inning, giving up six runs on seven hits in the first two innings. The Jaguars were led offensively by third baseman Will Kilgore, who went 4 for 4 with two RBIs. Roberts was relieved by Taylor Ferringer, who held the Georgia Perimeter hitters in check, giving up a run on four hits until being relieved by Eric Henderson in the top of the seventh inning.

Henderson, who ended up being the winning pitcher, had a solid seventh and eighth inning as he only gave up two hits and retired the last two batters to seal the win for the Cavaliers.

“I was just trying to keep them where they were,” Henderson said. “I had confidence in my team that they would bring us back and we would win the game if I just did my job.”

Georgia Perimeter added a run in the sixth inning as Kilgore drove home the second of his two RBIs. But Darton responded in their half of the eighth inning by scoring a run off an RBI single by Ilgenfritz. The Cavaliers loaded the bases on an infield single by William Golden in which Jaguars’ pitcher Eric Stahl and first baseman John Banks collided trying to field the ball. That led to three more runs by the Cavaliers to take the lead and the win.

It was a much-needed win for Darton, having lost three of their last four games.

“Our hitters just got in there and grinded out at bats,” Darton coach Scot Hemmings said. “The best thing about it was they never went up there just to be swinging. They were disciplined and focused. There was a lot of attention in there. That’s the type of team that has shown up 34 times this year. When they show up, they’re unbelievable.”