NEED TO KNOW:
When: First Round (3 p.m. Wednesday, April 29)
Where: Trustmark Park, Pearl, Miss. (Hosted by Belhaven University)
The Opponent: No. 6 seed Asbury

DEMOREST, Ga. - The regular season champion Piedmont Lions prepare for the CCS tournament, earning a No. 1 seed for the first time since 2019.

Belhaven University will play host for the tournament, with all games being played in Pearl, Miss.

LAST TIME OUT:

Final Regular Season Series Against Huntingdon: Piedmont Swept Doubleheader to Clinch the Regular Season Title

Game One: Piedmont, 7; Huntingdon, 2

The Lions sent Layne Ayers to the mound in game one of the day, and despite early trouble, allowing two unearned runs to come across, the sophomore kept the Lions in the contest while keeping the Hawks off balance.

Down 2-0, the Piedmont offense struck for runs in the second and third, with Cruz Mullinix delivering the tying run via an RBI single. 

With a tie game, both squads traded zeros through the middle innings. 

In the seventh, the Lions turned to Harris Bryson out of the bullpen, and despite traffic in the seventh, the right-hander worked a scoreless inning.

Looking to break through, the Lions went to the plate in the bottom of the seventh, ready to do damage. With one out, John Dickerson reached on a single, turning the lineup over for Cody Funk, who collected a walk. Ben Connelly increased the pressure on the Hawks by reaching on an error, giving the bat to Cole Ellis with the bases loaded. The team leader in batting average and senior Ellis ripped a single, scoring two and giving the Lions a 4-2 lead. Piedmont stranded a pair but entered the eighth with its first lead of the game. 

Bryson went back to work in the eighth inning and quickly collected two outs, but the Huntingdon lineup sparked a two-out rally and loaded the bases, chasing Bryson from the game. The Piedmont closer, Luke Manry, entered seeking a four-out save. On a 1-0 count, Manry induced a weak ground ball to shut down the rally and keep the momentum with the Lions.

Piedmont made the most of the momentum, starting another rally in the bottom of the eighth. After a pair of walks, Dickerson slashed a single, scoring both runners and breaking the game open for the Lions. Wanting more, Ellis stood in with a runner in scoring position once again and drove home another run, giving the Lions a 7-2 lead. 

Manry went to work in the ninth, recording the first two outs quickly before surrendering a double. Manry was not deterred and collected the third out of the inning, sealing the win for the Lions.

Game One: Piedmont, 7; Huntingdon, 2

Riding the high off a sharp game one, the Lions' offense went to work immediately. Funk set the table with a single, finding his way on base again. From there, the rest of the lineup continued to add on. A walk and sacrifice bunt led to a Mullinix ringing single, bringing home a pair and scoring Funk. With that run scored, Cody Funk set the new program record for runs scored in a single season with 54 runs at the time. The record was previously set in 2023 by Carter Ballstadt. The Piedmont offense did not relent, bringing home two more, heading to the top of the second with a 4-0 lead. 

While Drew O'Neil pitched a gem, the offense scored four in the fourth and one more in the fifth to give themselves a 10-0 lead.

The offense found its footing, but the story of the game was O'Neil, who scattered six hits across seven innings of work, allowing no runs.

In the seventh, O'Neil ran into slight trouble with two on and two away, but the freshman didn't blink and got the final out, securing the doubleheader sweep and a regular season title for the Lions.

REGULAR SEASON VS. Asbury

Game One: Asbury, 11; Piedmont, 1

The Eagles scored early and often, taking the Lions out of the game quickly.

Asbury struck early, scoring seven runs across the opening two innings. 

Piedmont looked to battle back, but the strong offense of the Lions was held at bay by Asbury starter Ryan Yates, who shut out the Lions through five innings.

Game Two: Piedmont, 13; Asbury, 2

After a tough outing in the series opener, the Lions scored nine in the second inning to propel them to a game two victory.

Cole Ellis got the scoring started for the Lions with a solo home run in the first inning, giving Piedmont an early 1-0 lead.

Drew O'Neill got the start for the Lions and delivered a strong outing, going seven innings and allowing just two runs while pitching around traffic.

Piedmont broke the game open early in the second inning with a nine-run frame.

Game Three: Piedmont, 8; Asbury, 6

Piedmont put together multiple big innings en route to its victory.

The Lions continued to utilize the home run as Ben Connelly got the scoring started with a two-run homer to center field, giving the Lions a 2-0 lead.

On the mound, Layne Ayers started for the Lions, and the right-hander threw five innings of three-run baseball, allowing Asbury to score only in the third inning. 

The Piedmont lineup added on runs in the fourth and fifth, including a Jack Ryan solo home run, to build its lead.

Luke Manry entered from the bullpen in the bottom of the ninth, retiring the side in order to secure the series win for the Lions. 

PIEDMONT NOTES:
- The Lions concluded the season as the CCS regular season champion, earning the No. 1 seed.
- Piedmont ran through the CCS boasting a +109 run differential and swept #19 Belhaven in a weekend series.
- Cody Funk was a supreme table setter for the Lions. Funk led the team in stolen bases and runs scored. 
- The top three of the Lions order proved to be a buzzsaw for opposing pitching staffs. Cole Ellis led the Lions and the CCS in batting average, staying ever productive in his senior season.
- Three members of the Lions lineup hold the top three spots of batting average in the CCS. Carter Few, Funk and Ellis all stand tall above CCS competition.
- As a team, the Lions led in all triple slash categories BA, OBP and SLG.
- Layne Ayers, Drew O'Neil and Andrew Misirly led the Piedmont pitching staff with Misirly leading the team in ERA among starters and strikeouts. 
- Luke Manry had a strong season as the Lions closer, finishing the regular season with an ERA of 2.42 and an 18-2 strikeout to walk ratio.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:
- Leads team & CCS in batting average (.427)
- Swipped 17 bases and brought home 30 runs