MURFREESBORO – After Covington won its first Class AA state baseball game Tuesday, a common refrain from players and coaches was “one more win.”
The same was true after Wednesday’s game two win.
Now, after beating Nolensville today 7-3 at Blackman High School for the second time in three days, there really is just “one more win.”
The Chargers (33-7) will play Forrest, a team that beat Covington in last year’s state tournament, tomorrow at 2 p.m. at Middle Tennessee State University’s Reese Smith Jr. Stadium, looking to earn the program’s third state title. The first two came in 1999 and 2006.
“They’re excited, but we gotta control the excitement,” said CHS head coach Brad Warmath.
He’s been dealing with a well-documented illness, but has been in the dugout for every state title game this week and has been assisting interim head coach Chris Messer.
“We came here to win a championship,” Warmath said. “This just got us here.”
Several players have made major contributions in Covington’s three state tournament games, but junior Carter Davis has made the biggest impact and he had another big game today.
“He’s had a great state tournament,” Warmath said. “He’s been a big piece to the puzzle this week. Everybody talks about these seniors, but he just pitched probably the best game of his life.”
Davis went the distance today on the mound, striking out three and allowing just five hits. At the plate he’s been even more impressive. He had his second straight three-hit game, including a solo homer, and is 7 for 10 in three games.
“He’s been unbelievable,” said Messer, who said he didn’t even know who Davis was when we took the job during the offseason.
Austin Baskin sparked Covington’s offense early today with a solo homer in the top of the first inning. After Nolensville scored twice in the bottom of the first, Davis led off the second with a solo homer and Weston Martin hit a two-run bomb moments later to put Covington ahead 4-2.
Stanton Connell singled in a Covington run in the third and Landon Myers drove in a run with a ground ball to make the score 6-3. Martin drove in Covington’s final run with a single in the seventh. Ty Warmath, who had singled, moved to second on a wild pitch and stole third, scored on the hit.
When the game was nearing its conclusion, the gravity of the moment sunk in for Baskin and Ty Warmath.
“I looked at Ty at second base and told him we had three outs to go,” Baskin said. “He looked at me like I was crazy and I said, ‘Yeah, I know, I feel like I’m dreaming, too.’ Tomorrow I think we’ll come out with a really nice attitude to win that state championship.”
“It feels great to have this opportunity,” senior Brock Lomax said. “We’ve been working for this all year. Going through all the adversity we’ve gone through, it’s amazing we’re even here, to be real honest with you. It ain’t going to mean nothing tomorrow if we don’t win.”
Ty Wamath, Brad’s son, said, “It feels great, but it ain’t over until we put that thing on our finger and win that thing. It’s all about the last one. We’re going there to win a state championship. We deserve it, I feel like. I feel like my dad, both of my parents and the fans deserve it. We’re going to get it tomorrow.
Said Messer: “After that win there wasn’t a big-time celebration. The kids started yelling, ‘One more, one more, one more.’ This has been a special team so let’s have a special ending to it.”
