Farragut baseball heeds wake-up call to win district championship

Farragut got caught looking ahead and it turned into a wake-up call for the Admirals, who aim for a return to the Class AAA state baseball championship.

Farragut players greet Paul Komistek (32) at home after Komistek hit a homer during the District 4-AAA baseball championship game between Heritage and Farragut on Wednesday, May 9, 2018.

It came on senior night, a painful occasion for a reality check, with a loss to William Blount. 

"We were pretty much in cruise control," coach Matt Buckner said. "Sometimes that happens and you get to thinking people are just going to roll over and let you beat them to death and that's really not going to happen."

Buckner, who said he's very hard on his players, said a "rough couple of days" followed, but the Admirals got it straightened out. Farragut beat Heritage 11-0 on Wednesday to win the District 4-AAA championship, having allowed six runs in four tournament games.

"We definitely came into the tournament with a focus," said Parker Nolan, the district MVP. "We got that loss and had to refocus and create another goal."

Farragut got a similar wake-up call last year, but it came too late. The Admirals lost in the sectional final to Jefferson County last year, missing out on a tip to the state tournament for the first time in a decade.

When the expectations are as high as Farragut's are, it can be easy to look ahead. If you haven't missed state in 10 years, the next trip can feel like a given, even if it's only subconsciously.

Buckner likes his team's expectation of victory but also sees that it can make them overlook the details if they aren't careful.

"We didn't really take one day at a time and it really hurt us," Nolan said. "We were talking about state and it hurt us. We really have to focus in."

Sometimes the Admirals have to remind themselves of that, but the sting of a broken streak does the trick.

"Our guys know that can happen," Buckner said. "They've been humbled."

Now, Farragut is playing its kind of baseball. They've been strong on defense, which makes them hard to handle and they have some big bats.

The nine Admirals at the end of the line of the all-district team make their position clear.