Mavs end season in three-way tie after downing Halls, CHS
After clinching a share of the District 4-AAA regular-season championship with consecutive wins over Knoxville Halls and rival Clinton last week, Anderson County dropped its final two games of the 2023 campaign.
The Mavericks (19-12), who will be the No.2 seed in the coming district tournament, lost their regular-season finale 8-3 to Heritage High School in Maryville Monday night.
Anderson County fell behind the Mountaineers 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning. But the Mavericks would rally to take a 2-1 lead in the top of the second as Reece Wilkerson singled to drive in Trent Strickland to tie the game 1-1.
The Mavs took a 2-1 lead when Wilkerson came home on a passed ball.
After the Mountaineers scored twice in the bottom of the second, Anderson County tied the game 3-3 when Luke Lankford reached on a fielder’s choice. He picked up an RBI when Strickland scored his second run of the game.
The game remained tied until Heritage scored five runs in the sixth.
Strickland went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored for ACHS. Wilkerson also came up with two hits, an RBI and a run scored for the Mavs, who dropped a 7-4 decision to Stone Memorial in Crossville on Saturday afternoon.
Anderson County opens play in the district tournament Thursday night when it takes on Knoxville Halls (which finished in a three-way tie for first place with the Mavericks and Clinton) at 7:45 p.m.
ACHS won two out of three from the third-seeded Red Devils, but had to forfeit one of those victories due to using an ineligible pitcher, who exceeded his pitch limit before making a relief appearance against Halls.
Clinton will host the district tournament, as it claimed the No. 1 seed by virtue of a coin flip.