Sebring Slams Into Final

Gerig Blackman held his home run ball in hand, thinking of the perfect place to display it.

"I want to put it with my great grandfather's baseball things," Blackman said. "I think he'd be proud of me."

Blackman's great grandfather was former Chicago Cubs catcher Paul Gillespie, who played on the last Cubs team to win a National League pennant in 1945.

Gillespie hit a home run in his first major league at-bat, but on this day, his great grandson's grand slam had all the drama of a big-league bomb.

With bases juiced and the score tied at three in the fourth, Blackman sent a fastball over the centerfield fence for grand slam - his first career home run - and sent his Sebring teammates and fans into a frenzy on their way to an 11-5 victory over Spring Hill in the Dixie AAA (ages 9-10) state tournament on Wednesday.

"I just got a hold of a pitch down the middle and gave our team the lead," said the modest Blackman after the game. "It's nice to have your first home run to be in a game that means so much to the team."

The win set up a rematch between Sebring and the undefeated West Seminole Nationals, who defeated South Lake 15-6 on Thursday. The once-defeated Sebring must beat West Seminole twice to win the state title.

Results were not available at press time. See highlandstoday.com/sports immediately following the game and Saturday's Highlands Today for complete coverage, including photos and reaction.

Down 3-1 heading into the fourth, Sebring tied the game on an RBI single by Seth Cannady, which brought home Trey Frazier, and Alex Gomez scored on a wild pitch. A walk to Nick Stafferi and Jimmy Peck loaded the bases for Blackman.

The small-in-stature Blackman showed his big heart by fighting off some tough pitches before his perfect swing ignited the crowd.

"I just kept my eyes on the ball and swung like I was taught," Blackman said. "I can't explain it, but I'm glad it happened."

Jordan Austin reached base on an error and came home on a bad throw to third on his steal attempt to give Sebring an 8-3 lead.

Sebring head coach Bobby Cannon had no explanation for Blackman's sudden power display, but said he was proud of how his team bounced back after Tuesday's late-night game.

"We started slow, and I think the kids were a little tired from last night's game," Cannon said. "But after the rain delay, we seemed to find our stride and picked our game up.

"We left a lot of men on base against West Seminole, and we made sure we didn't make the same mistake tonight."

The game was halted after the first inning for two hours due to thunderstorms.

Peck hit his third and Gomez his second home run of the tournament in the second and fifth innings, respectively, to give Sebring an obvious power advantage over most teams in the tournament.

"You can't fall asleep against any kid in our lineup," Cannon said. "When you least expect it, we'll hit a home run."

After Spring Hill scored twice in the fifth to cut the lead to four, Sebring got those runs back on RBI singles by Connor Cook and Gomez.

Just before going out for the bottom of the sixth, Frazier could be heard talking to his mother and making a request.

"Can you get me a cheeseburger?," Frazier said. "I'm going to finish these guys off."

Frazier was a man of his word, as he struck out the first batter, allowed a base hit and got the final two outs, as Sebring celebrated not only the win, but the chance at redemption against West Seminole.

"I'm glad we get to play them again," Blackman said. "We're going to make sure it doesn't come down to one run like it did last time."

Cannon is confident his team has the tools to beat the scrappy West Seminole squad for the state title and a trip to the Dixie World Series.

"West Seminole is a good hitting team," Cannon said. "But we're going to mix up our pitching and this time, we're going to hit the ball.

"This is what it's all about. The two best teams playing for the title."

WORLD SERIES BOUND?

Visit highlandstoday.com/sports for results from Thursday's state championship final between Sebring and West Seminole National.

See Saturday's sports section for complete coverage, including photos and reaction