Knoxville Orthopaedic Clinic (KOC) is the proud sponsor of 5Star Preps 2025 Spring Sports Postseason Coverage.
BY DEAN FOX
MURFREESBORO — Garrett Copeland has been around the Farragut baseball program for a long time in multiple roles, and he knows the Admirals’ not-so-secret sauce: pitching and defense.
“That’s kind of been our foundation,” the first-year coach said after Farragut eked out a 1-0 win over Siegel in a Class 4A state tournament game Thursday afternoon.
“I tell our guys all the time that in high school baseball, offensive production will come and go, but defense should show up every day, pitchers should come every day ready to compete.”
That philosophy keeps bearing fruit.
The three-time defending champs broke a scoreless deadlock in the top of the seventh when Aidan Flagg ripped his second double of the game to right and came around to score on Neyland Williams’ RBI single to right, allowing the Admirals to hold on for their second one-run win in as many days.
The Admirals (32-10) managed only six hits but made the most of them, advancing to the winners’ bracket final at 2 p.m. Thursday against either Siegel or Independence.
With a win in either that game or the elimination game that would follow, Farragut would reach Saturday’s championship final with a chance to claim its fourth consecutive title.
Flagg’s lead-off double started the seventh, and he went to third on Braden Humphrey’s sacrifice. Williams came up and delivered a hit to right for the game’s only run.
Farragut has now won 14 consecutive state tournament games.
“I was just looking for a pitch I could hit,” Williams said. “I got down (in the count) early, so I changed my two-strike approach to just put the ball in play, and it worked.”
Sophomore Joey Ray pitched the final 2 2/3 innings to get the win in relief.
Both teams showed off exceptional defense to thwart rallies. In the second inning, Farragut center fielder Zain Kuresh-Smith threw out a Siegel baserunner trying to score. Later in the game, both Kuresh-Smith and Williams made diving grabs in the outfield, cutting off balls that appeared headed for the left-center field gap.
Shortstops Owen Stelzer (Farragut) and Hollie Baker (Siegel) displayed excellent range. Stelzer leaped to catch a liner leading off the fifth, and Baker made multiple plays on the second-base side by relying on his lateral movement.
“Anytime you play error-free baseball in a high school game,” Copeland said, “you’re going to give yourself a chance to win. And then we had good pitching and limited baserunners. We had some chances early and couldn’t get the base hit, and they had some chances early, and they hit the ball right at us.
“At the stage of the season, that’s what you expect — two good high school teams going at it.”
The defense backed the Admirals’ pitching of starter Reid Thomason and relievers Ray and Corey Cole.
“I want to give credit to our pitchers,” Williams said. “We wouldn’t have been in the situation without them.”
FAR 000 000 1 – 1 6 0
SIE 000 000 0 – 0 3 1
Thomason, Cole (5), Ray (5) and Harris; Russell, Lee (6), Hostetler (7) and Thornton. W—Ray. L—Lee.