Piedmont, AL – Senior’s first home hit with a grand slam determines piedmont’s game 1 win over Gordo in the third round of 3A playoff series 3rd-round playoff game set for Friday. 3 is scheduled for Friday
Joe Medley Joe Medley
Red Bull “gives you wings,” but Mountain Dew must provide Sloan Smith power.
It was the Piedmont Senior hit the first of his home runs at any pitch on Thursday with a grand slam. It helped in the Bulldogs coming back to win against Gordo 7-6 in the first game of their third round Class 3A playoff series at Piedmont.
After Gordo was victorious in the nightcap in the series’ best of three by 1-0 Smith’s grand slam stood out as the most important reason Piedmont got to the today’s 2. p.m. Game 3.
“After playing, I asked “Dadgum Sloan What did you consume?'” Piedmont coach Matt Deerman told reporters. “He stated, ‘I’ve been drinking lots of Mountain Dew.'”
Named “Ice Man” because of his calm when under stress, Smith was stirring the beverage in the time Piedmont required it most on Thursday.
Gordo recorded four RBI in the first half of the game and a fourth to give the team a 5-0 advantage in fourth Piedmont fourth.
A mistake on Cole Wilson’s bases loaded grounder and Cole Austin’s shot that hit the wall, which slid into and out of Gordo left Fielder Landon Fike’s glove. closing the gap to 5-2.
The close catch on the wall caused runners to stand, and the bases were filled for Smith to barrel it 315 feet and over the fence that runs through the left corner, giving Piedmont an advantage of 6-5.
“Coach instructed me to get heads up for the squeeze call however, I didn’t really wish to do that,” Smith said. “I was trying to find a ball to strike and I found one that was over the middle of the plate. I took an impressive swing on the ball and it went over..
“I’ve not known what a appears like in public but this was cool.”
Piedmont required all six its runs in the fourth inning and another, McClane Mohon’s RBI single in the sixth, to make it through Game 1.
The Bulldogs also fought off a bases-loaded one-out standoff at the end of seventh. Jack Hayes, who started the inning with relief was able to get a strikeout, and got a 1-2 count from Brady Jones when Deerman summoned Kale Austin to the mound. Austin managed to get Jones to throw out the ball to end the inning.
Gordo continued the match because of Brax Garrison’s sacrifice fly in the fourth game 2. Garrison’s fly into the center field secured the sole run of an inning of pitching battle with Gordo’s Austin Baines and Piedmont’s Cole Austin.
Smith’s first home run became an issue in the ballpark following the day’s play. Smith was greeted with affection by numerous former and current teammates and players, including Easton Kirk, who parlayed his home-run ability into a thriving academic career during his time at Troy.
The current co-teammate Jack Hayes, one of Smith’s closest buddies, called Smith’s big slam “a very cool experience.”
“He wasn’t the most powerful player in his time, but we didn’t really expect for him to go home,” Hayes said. “I think it’s because of the Mountain Dew that he’s consumed.”
Smith stated that Smith said he’s “developed an fascination with Mountain Dew” as well consumes “four to five canned drinks every day.”
“It’s always been a passion of mine,” he said. “I frequently hunt for turkey and am a huge fan of Mountain Dew in the morning.”
He described his grand-slam moment as “pretty bizarre.”
“In this setting, and especially in this setting, it’s quite awesome,” he said. “That I could present it to everyone here, seniors year, is pretty cool.”
