FPD baseball dominates Stratford to win state championship

STATESBORO, Ga. — The detritus of the FPD Vikings’ state championship was made up of many things. 

There were black-and-red hats, gloves and other equipment littered across Georgia Southern’s baseball field. There was a catcher’s chest protector, also black on its front side but neon green on the underbelly, stripped of the straps and velcro that adhered it to its owner. 

And, of course, there were the dugout coolers, emptied of their water and violently-hued liquid and left lopsided between the dirt of the first base line and the infield grass.

All these items and a few more were strewn across the diamond Saturday afternoon after FPD reached the mountaintop of high school baseball, defeating crosstown nemesis Stratford 9-2 in Game 2 to finish a sweep and hoist the GIAA Class 4A state trophy.

The Vikings followed their 7-0 romp over Stratford in Game 1 earlier in the week with another dominant performance to finally claim the state title. FPD and head coach Greg Moore — not to mention the team’s stacked senior class, led by star shortstop Keon Johnson — had been to the championship series each of the past two years but lost on both occasions.

One emotion was repeated by Moore, Johnson and others: gratitude.

“I’m very grateful to be back here obviously. These last two years, this is all we’ve ever wanted to do, and it feels a whole lot better being on the other side … than being on the losing side this time,” Johnson said, smiling. “It was just great to finally climb Everest, and we got it done. I’m just so grateful for this group of guys.”

The ice bath the team doused Moore with probably felt good as the Statesboro sun beat down on the group near the Vikings’ dugout railing. As a black swarm of south Georgia gnats zipped around his red FPD cap, the usually even-keeled Moore said his emotions ran high while his team celebrated.

“I’m just super grateful. We’ve had a great run with these kids,” Moore said. “(We’ve) grown up a lot together — well, they grew up and I got old. We’ve had a lot of fun. I’m just really happy for them because a lot of kids did a lot of really good stuff today.”

Indeed, there were almost too many heroes to name for the Vikings. Johnson certainly sticks out. In his final game at FPD, the Vanderbilt commit hit a solo shot in the fourth inning and had a 3-for-5 day at the dish as part of the Vikings’ thorough triumph. Conner Strandmark, who dominated on the mound in Game 1, added a home run in his final trip to the plate for FPD in Game 2. The senior is committed to pitch for Mercer to begin his college career next year.

“Since I’m gonna be a pitcher in college, I know hitting — especially ending on a bomb — it’s pretty cool,” Strandmark said of his favorite moment in the series. “It’s hard to choose. Kind of 50-50.”

Moore enjoyed the home run a good bit, too.

“We’ve got guys hitting home runs that may never bat again in their life,” the head coach said. “The message today is just enjoy it, and remember what had to happen for all this to be real, and to be very gracious. We serve a really good God.” 

Those were just two of the many fine offensive performances. Brady McHugh and Wyatt Waters had big days at the dish. Every single player in the FPD lineup got a hit. The Vikings did not strike out at the plate until the sixth inning.

When Moore gathered the team in the huddle shortly before going to celebrate with the FPD faithful, the players were debating who would hoist the trophy —not arguing over it, but instead repeatedly nominating other teammates to take it.

And then there was Harrison Strange, who was in his first year on the team after being homeschooled until this season. He pitched a 2-run gem in the clincher, gracefully escaping jams and pitching to contact when he needed to.

Stratford starter Casey von Waldner had some solid moments on the mound, often getting batters to two strikes, but the FPD lineup had patience and scored runs in smaller rallies rather than big bunches. 

The Eagles’ offense could manage walks and singles but never land the big blow, leaving runners stranded. The team’s first extra base hit — an RBI double by Jaxen Justice — did not arrive until it was 9-1 in the seventh inning.

“No, we didn’t play as good as we could, but a lot of credit goes to FPD,” Stratford head coach Barry Veal said. “It’s really not a lot of comfort, but we’re the last team this year to lose a game. That means you made the championship in the highest classification. Next year our goal is to be over there hoisting that trophy like they did.”

The FPD lineup saw von Waldner well, working the count regularly. The majority of the Vikings’ knocks were pulled down the left field line by right-handed hitters.

“I thought (the batters) saw the ball really well,” Moore said. “Casey does a really nice job by mixing stuff up. We were just trying to be picky, not get ourselves out. That takes a lot of patience. These guys can hit really well, (but) sometimes they try to do too much. I thought today they didn’t (do that) at all. They got kinda comfortable in the box and then waited.”

That started right from the jump, as FPD got a two-out rally going before Tinsley Lewis drove in a run with a single. Stratford stuck back in the bottom of the frame to tie it up, though, and it looked like Game 2 might turn into a shootout similar to a game earlier this season that ended in a 9-6 win for the Vikings.

Strange was unfazed, though, getting right back on the bump and not allowing another run until the bottom of the seventh and final inning. 

Meanwhile, the FPD lineup plated three runs in the third, another in the fourth and had a critical four-spot in the sixth that cemented the win. 

As the runs mounted, the spirited FPD section of the stadium made its presence known — an impressive feat, given Game 2 was originally scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. Friday night before rain wreaked havoc on the schedule. 

The parents, fans and students all celebrated together with the team on the patio on the third base side of the stadium after the game, bringing an official end to the Vikings’ long quest for a championship.