After 0-6 start to season, Greeneville defeats Riverside to win first baseball state title
MURFREESBORO — Greeneville coach Andy Collins decided to do something different this season.
In years past, Collins — in his third season as head coach of the Greene Devils — had the mindset of winning each game. This season, he wanted his team to peak at the right time.
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After an 0-6 start, that’s what happened.
Greeneville (27-11-1) defeated Riverside 11-0 in five innings in the Class AA state championship game on Friday at Reese Smith Jr. Field. It’s the Greene Devils’ first baseball state championship in their second trip to Spring Fling.
The slow start was a product of playing good teams and the Greene Devils trying to find their identity. It took time, but they did.
“It’s a process,” Collins said. “They gotta buy into the process. They can’t worry about the winning and the losing. It’s a process and that’s the mindset that they undertook. If you believe in the process a little bit more then winning takes care of itself. And that’s a hard thing to convince guys that start off 0-6.”
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Collins said a lot of people didn’t believe Greeneville would get to this point after the start.
The turning point started during the district tournament. Greeneville got hot at the right time and rode that wave all the way through Spring Fling and the state championship.
“We peaked at just the right time, right at the end of the season,” second baseman Jordan Idell said. “We started playing for each other and everything was working out.”
Idell went 2-for-2 with five RBIs. In the second inning, Idell cranked a three-run home run over the left-field fence. Greeneville scored at least three runs in each of the first three innings.
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Friday was a culmination of a season that started inauspiciously for Greeneville. The Greene Devils made believers out of everyone.
“We just wanted to play for each other and it’s just so sweet to go out this way. Go out in style,” Idell said. “Much less get here but even just win it. That’s awesome.”
Reach Luis Torres at ltorres1@jacksonsun.com or 731-425-9638 and follow him on Twitter @LFTorresIII.