Fowl ball: Geese sightings have been rally cry for Stewarts Creek baseball

Most of you played the game "duck, duck, goose" when you were a child.

The Stewarts Creek baseball team has played quite a bit of that during the postseason.

As in "see a goose, duck elimination."

However the Class AAA state tournament concludes, the postseason for the Red Hawks has been one filled with drama and flocks of geese that seem to light a fire under Stewarts Creek players, coaches and fans.

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"The funny thing is that we actually have geese around our (home) field and we've tried to get rid of them," said SCHS senior pitcher/first baseman Daniel Freeman.

Added Stewarts Creek coach Mike Bartlett, "We have to put up (reflective) goose tape in the fall and spring to keep them from eating the grass and (defecating) on the field. It's not funny during the fall and spring, trying to keep them off the field."

The Red Hawks, who battled Jefferson County in Thursday's AAA bracket finals, now embrace the waterfowl, which seem to be following them wherever they play.

It started in Friday's Class AAA sectional battle at Ooltewah. In the 10th inning of the elimination game, the team was sparked by a flock of geese that flew over the field as the team was batting.

After an eruption of cheers from fans, the Red Hawks promptly scored two runs and ultimately punched their state tournament ticket with a 6-4 win.

It happened again Wednesday, again with SCHS facing elimination, and again in extra innings.

This time geese flew over Oakland's baseball stadium in the top of the 12th inning against Houston. Right after, Freeman gave his team the lead for good.

"We had a walk and then an error on their pitcher. I'm about to get in the box and I hear a parent say, 'The geese, they showed up,'" Freeman said. "The pitcher threw a wild pitch, putting runners on second and third, and I hit a (two-run) line drive to right field."

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Stewarts Creek coach Mike Bartlett isn't very superstitious. He doesn't mind the extra spark, however.

"It seems to motivate them," Bartlett said. "It did at (Ooltewah) and it did tonight."

Bartlett won't turn away any extra motivation. He'd like to think it has more to do with players than fowl.

"It's people stepping up at the right time," Bartlett said. "No matter what kind of day they had, they stepped up when needed."

Fans have embraced the new rally birds as well. Visible during Wednesday's state tournament games were six ceramic geese, each named after one of the baseball coaches.

"It's kind of become the symbol of our team," Freeman said. "When we see the geese, we stop and think, 'It's just a game, let's get back to what we know.'"

Reach Cecil Joyce at cjoyce@dnj.com or 615-278-5168 and on Twitter @Cecil_Joyce.