Sophomore keeps Nova in check

Pitcher Chris Jones maintained control for most of the game. The key word being "most."

By BRANDON WRIGHT
Published May 27, 2005

SARASOTA - Bring it on.

That was Chris Jones' attitude the night before the biggest game of his life. Gaither had just reached its first state final and would face Davie Nova, formerly USA Today's No.1 team in the nation.

"Ever since I saw that they were ranked No.1, I wanted to throw against them," the sophomore left-hander said.

So there he was, all 6 feet, 170 pounds of Jones, drenched in sweat and confidence. Forget that Nova, the defending state champs, was 29-1. Forget that it entered having scored in double digits 13 times, recorded 14 shutouts and had slipped only to No.2.

Forget that most sophomores faced with the prospect of facing such a powerhouse on the biggest of high school baseball stages would be squirming.

Jones was standing toe to toe with the Titans. And true to his word, Jones didn't look the slightest bit frazzled.

"That was the best he'd thrown all year," Gaither coach Frank Permuy said. "His fastball was live."

Through five innings, Jones had struck out seven, allowed only a slap single and walked one.

"He had a two-seam (fastball) that was starting out on the inside of the plate and running away," Nova's Robert Lara said. "His curve was sharp.

"And he was making clutch pitches."

Then came his one mistake. With runners on first and second in the sixth, Jones jumped ahead of Donnie Amos 0-and-2. He tried to paint the corner with a two-seamer.

But it caught just enough of the plate for Amos to blast one off the right-centerfield wall for a two-run triple. That made it 2-0, and Nova went on to win 3-0.

"They swung the bats well, and I made one mistake," Jones said.

Against that Titans, that's all it took.

[Last modified May 27, 2005, 00:40:18]