Published: May 05, 2009 04:32 pm �� �� ��

LaFayette to face St. Pius X in first round of Class 3A state baseball

LaFayette High baseball coach Mike Dunfee said his team is excited about making its first state playoff appearance since 2005.

However, the Ramblers are far from satisfied.

“We’re happy to be in the playoffs,” he said, “but we’re not happy about just getting there. We’re treating this as business. I’m excited for our guys and they need to embrace the moment, but they don’t need to forget what got us here.”

What has gotten the Ramblers here is one of their best seasons in the past 30 years.

An 18-6 overall record has been highlighted by solid pitching, timely hitting and some incredible comeback victories.

The Ramblers have shared the wealth offensively this season as eight of nine regular starters are hitting .300 or better. As a team, LaFayette is batting a robust .347 with 24 home runs. They can also manufacture runs, having stolen a total of 58 bases.

Junior catcher Bowe Coffman is hitting a team-high .430 with five homers and 28 RBIs. He is tied for the team lead in those two categories with senior second baseman Logan Elliott, who is hitting .382.

Other top sluggers for the Ramblers include Brett Butler (.398, 3 HR, 16 RBIs), Josh Morgan (.381, 4 HR, 16 RBIs), Ryan Clark (.362, 2 HR, 21 RBIs), Jesse Rape (.359, 1 HR, 23 RBIs), Tripp White (.343, 2 HR, 23 RBIs) and Blake Davenport (.302, 1 HR, 16 RBIs).

White and Davenport have been workhorses on the mound as well. White is 9-2 on the season with one save and a 4.60 ERA, having fanned 81 batters in 62.1 innings. Davenport is 7-2 with two saves and a team-best 2.62 ERA. He has struck out 49 hitters in 48 innings.

John Stansell (one win, seven saves) has been solid coming out of the bullpen, while Ethan Hunter is a capable third starter.

LaFayette’s first-round opponent in the Class 3A state playoffs will be the Golden Lions of St. Pius X, the No. 2 seed from Region 5.

J.T. Gilbert’s squad has been to the playoffs in four of his six years as coach. The Lions, ranked No. 8 in the most recent GaSports.com Class 3A coaches poll, come into Friday with a 20-5 overall mark and a 15-2 record in a top-heavy 14-team region.

Like LaFayette, which has just two seniors on its roster, the Lions are a junior-heavy group.

Left-handed hitter Adam Hall and catcher Jeff Gunn are two of the team’s top sluggers. Hall set school records for batting average (.557) and RBIs (46) as a sophomore.

Two of St. Pius’ three seniors are pitchers, including Scott Kramer and southpaw Joseph Tuohy. The final senior, P.G. Standard, plays in the infield.

“They have three solid pitchers and the lefty is tough,” Dunfee said. “They don’t throw all that hard, probably somewhere between 80-85, but they fill up the zone. I think they’re beatable, but we’ll have to play well to win. They are a very disciplined team and they do the little things well.”

St. Pius’ last trip to the postseason came last year when they fell to Loganville in three games in the first round of the Class 4A tournament. LaFayette last went to state in 2005, losing two games to Buford in the Class 2A playoffs.

The first game of Friday’s doubleheader will begin at 1 p.m. at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta with the second game to follow later that afternoon. A third game, if necessary, will be played on Saturday at Oglethorpe.

The winner of the series will travel to No. 1-seeded and No. 3-ranked Creekview or will host No. 4-seeded Eastside in a best-of-three series that will begin on May 13.

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