HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Staring at an early 3-0 deficit in the Class A quarterfinal contest against Greater Beckley Christian, Gilmer County junior pitcher Kolten Holbert had a message to his team that was well-received.
Holbert retired 16 of the last 18 batters he faced in a complete game victory to lead the Titans into the state semifinal round with a 10-3 win over the Crusaders.
“I think we came out still a little nervous there. Holbert settled in and put up zeroes the rest of the way. He told the guys, ‘If you just get me some runs, I am going to put up zeroes the rest of the way’. They did it,” said Gilmer County head coach Jacob Wolfe. “We did everything we needed to do. We did the little things, started putting the ball in play and good things happened.”
Holbert allowed just one hit after giving up three runs in the first inning. He tossed a 3-hitter and struck out a dozen batters.
“I know he is a good player. He surprises me all the time. He is the leader of our team.”
After a scoreless first inning, Gilmer County scored all ten of their runs over the next four frames. With the game tied at 3, the Titans scored three in the fourth and four more in the fifth to break the game wide open.
Each GCHS starter reached base at least once as the Titans collected 13 hits. Roddick Page went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in at two doubles in the cleanup spot.
“He’s a stellar freshman. He has come up big. You might see him on Thursday on the mound. He has done a lot for us this season and he has a really good batting average.”
Dallas Goodrich, Remington Huffman, Lexington Grogg and Seth Stewart each had multi-hit games for the Titans.
“All the way through the lineup, we hit. The bottom of the order carried us there early. Everybody did their part.”
The Crusaders (23-14) took an early lead in the first inning with a two-run double from Paul Fox. GBC made their first state tournament appearance.
Gilmer County (28-7) will face top-seeded Huntington St. Joseph’s (32-3) in the semifinal round, Thursday at 10 a.m.