Eagles to clash with Atlanta in playoff opener
Photo by David Kapitan
The Canton Eagles are scheduled to open their playoff run this week, taking on District 14-4A fourth seed Atlanta in the bi-district round.
The Canton Eagles have had little to play for in recent weeks, easily outpacing second place Van in District 13-4A play by four games to coast into the postseason with a sterling 24-2 record overall.
Things will change this week with the Eagles slated to take on Atlanta in a best-of-three bi-district round playoff series May 2, 4. Game one was scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. May 2 at 5 p.m. in Atlanta. After a day off, the series will resume May 4 at 4 p.m. in Canton. Game three, if necessary, will begin approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game two.
Warm-up games
Prior to the start of this year's playoffs, the Canton Eagles hosted both Athens and Edgewood for a pair of warm-up games April 28.
The Eagles, winners of 11 straight games entering play, coasted past Athens 6-0 in their first game of the afternoon.
Johnnie Krawietz got the starting nod for Canton, needing just 75 pitches to breeze through six innings of one-hit baseball. Colbey Johnson wrapped up the game by working a perfect seventh inning in relief.
Simon Miller helped to lead Canton's offense going 2/3 with a triple and an RBI, Blayne Clower went 2/4 with a triple, an RBI and a run scored and Colbey Johnson went 1/3 with 2 RBI and a run scored.
Other leading hitters for Canton included Cade Shaw going 1/1 with a run scored and Tyler Massey going 1/1 with a double and a run scored.
Shaky defense would prove to be Canton's undoing in their second game of the afternoon with the Eagles losing 7-1 to state-ranked Edgewood.
Canton committed a total of five errors in the contest, clearing the way for six unearned runs by the Bulldogs.
Cade Shaw got the start for the Eagles, allowing five unearned runs while striking out six over five innings. Colbey Johnson once again came on in relief, allowing an earned run over two innings.
Offensively, Blayne Clower finished 1/2 with a double and a run scored, Simon Miller went 1/3 with an RBI, Colbey Johnson went 1/2, Dane Herrin went 1/3 and Tyler Bryant went 1/2.
