Woodland's playoff hopes suffer hit in home finale'

The Hiram Hornets pounded out 18 hits and scored runs in every inning Wednesday to take a 12-2 five-inning win at Woodland and dampen the Wildcats' playoff hopes in the process.

Trenton Parker, Dalton Skinner, and Kyle Foley — batting at the top of the Hornets’ order — combined for 11 hits and seven RBI to lead Hiram’s offense. Skinner homered, Ryan Nolan added three hits including a pair of doubles, and Josh Franklin finished with a pair of hits and two RBI for Hiram.

Skinner (5 IP, 2ER, 5H, 3BB, 6K) also tossed a five-inning complete game for the Hornets’ pitching victory.

Toby Queen led Woodland with two hits. Koby Stansel (3.1 IP, 7R, 5ER, 11H, 0BB, 4K), who started on the mound and took the pitching loss, had one hit and one RBI. Dylan Webb and Garrett Cornett had the other Wildcats’ hits.

Woodland (15-14, 8-7), currently tied for fifth in Region 7-AAAAA, will close out the regular season Friday at Hiram (6-19, 3-12) at 5:55 p.m. The Wildcats now need a win Friday and some help from other region games Friday to secure a state playoff berth. "The playoff scenario is a mess right now," said Woodland coach Colby Coursey Wednesday night. "We hold some of the head-to-head tiebreakers but it gets even more complicated in a three-way or four-way tie. None of it matters, however, if we don't win Friday." Carrollton (24-5, 13-2) has clinched the region's top spot and will be a 1-seed in the state playoffs. Villa Rica (10-5 in region), Rome (9-6) and Kell (9-6) are currently in the next three spots heading into Friday’s final regular season games. Woodland and East Paulding (both 8-7 in the region) are tied for fifth and currently "on the outside of the playoffs looking in."

In addition to Woodland's game at Hiram, the other region games Friday involving playoff implications and seeding include Rome at Carrollton, Paulding County at Villa Rica, and East Paulding at Kell.