BY JESSE SMITHEY
MURFREESBORO — He’s playfully known in the Farragut Baseball dugout as “The Goat.”
Farragut junior short stop Lukas Buckner only gave that moniker more credence Wednesday afternoon.
With the Admirals clinging to a one-run lead over Clarksville in the bottom of the seventh, Clarksville senior Carson Sanders hit a rocket grounder towards left field that looked like it would plate the game-tying run from second.
Buckner had other ideas, though.
The Central Florida commit dove, vacuumed up Sanders’ shot and had the wherewithal to quickly relay the ball over the third baseman Jett Johnston for the force out.
Clarksville had hit consecutive singles to stage a legit scoring threat.
Buckner halted it, and his teammates in the Farragut dugout went bezerk over his play.
“That place in the seventh by Lukas was a pretty special play,” said Farragut coach Matt Buckner, Lukas’ father. “We practice it every day. Obviously, we needed it.”
Admirals starting pitcher Michael Delph shut Clarksville’s rally down completely with a strikeout in the ensuing at-bat, capping a sterling seven-inning, complete-game effort in a 1-0 win in the second day of the Class 4A state tournament.
“The Goat. Lukas Buckner. Made that play right there, man,” said Delph. “That was awesome. Was good to see him work.”
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Farragut (34-8), the defending 4A state champion, must be beaten twice Thursday at host-site Siegel High School to not reach Friday’s state championship game at MTSU. Farragut will play next at 2 p.m. Thursday (Central time) against the winner of Wednesday night’s Clarksville/Stewarts Creek game. Siegel High in Murfreesboro will be the host site.
The Admirals entered Wednesday’s game with Clarksville (34-8) on a hot streak offensively, having averaged 13.4 runs per game in their previous five outings. But Clarksville junior pitcher Brady Davis kept them in check.
Brennon Seigler’s RBI-single in the fifth provided the game’s only run, and Farragut collected just seven hits. Eli Evans led Farragut with a 2-for-4 day.
Delph entered the final frame, having only allowed two hits on the day. And even after he surrendered two in the seventh, Matt Buckner didn’t balk. He left Delph in and let him finish the contest.
That trust was built over time.
Delph, a junior right-hander, is 8-0 this season now with 75 strikeouts, nine walks and a 1.17 ERA.
“He’s been in it since he was a freshman. He’s been in big games,” Matt Buckner said of Delph. “His pitch count was low. I felt good about him. He’s been fantastic recently — really all year.
“I’m proud of him. Now, we just have to get one more (win) and see what we can do.”