Bulldogs Complete Three-Peat Behind Elite Pitching, Timely Hitting, Undefeated Playoff Run
After capturing their second straight state championship following the 2025 baseball season, Lanier County head baseball coach Matthew White was already looking forward to the 2026 season.
White knew he had the majority of that team’s key contributors returning in 2026, with practically all of his pitching staff coming back, as well as just about everyone else around the horn.
So yes, White knew that if his team could stay healthy and perform like they were capable of doing, they would have a good chance at making a run at another state championship.
“We had 8 out of 10 starters returning going into this season, so we felt really good about this group,” White said. “We felt like we had a team good enough to win it all again.”
But White knows that’s easier said than done.
Although the Bulldogs were returning most of the starters from last year’s team, there would still be two spots in the lineup that White would have to fill.
The offensive everyday starters returning in 2026 would be Talen Tarbox, Grant Gano, Cayson Griffin, Drake Wolford, Alex Contreras, Stone Carey, Kendrick Noble, and Hayden Mullis.
The team finished with a collective batting average of .348 and a .493 on-base percentage. The group hit 66 doubles, five triples, and 27 home runs, scoring 289 runs while stealing 131 bases on the year.
The pitching fell to Grant Gano, Alex Contreras, Talen Tarbox, and Stone Carey, who totaled 220 innings pitched with a team ERA of a stunning 1.33 and 357 strikeouts.
So, the core group returning that had won two straight state championships came through as expected.
“We had two guys on the roster who were going to have to step up,” White said.
Fortunately for White and the Bulldogs, it didn’t take long to find those players.
Zach Lee and Tripp Tomlinson would be the ones to step up, with each player making their impact at different points of the season, especially in the playoffs when it counted the most.
According to White, Lee played a little bit in 2025 as a corner infielder and outfielder but earned the starting job this past season as an outfielder.
Tomlinson earned a defensive job later in the season and started throughout the playoffs.
Both not only played their roles in key defensive spots, but each came through at the plate in the playoffs with the game on the line.
Tomlinson had the walk-off single against Baconton Charter in Game 1 of the semifinals, giving the Bulldogs the win.
Then Lee drew the walk in Game 2 of the state championship series against ECI to clinch Lanier County’s third straight state championship.
“Winning is not easy,” White said. “You got to show up and be ready to play the game every day.
“We had to make sure our guys knew that they couldn’t just go out there and show up, but if we played our style of baseball, we felt like we’d be alright in the end.
“We were fortunate to have this group in 2026.
“They had that ‘refuse to lose’ mentality. Even if they fell behind, they always felt like they were within striking distance and that they were going to win the game, and that was powerful.”
With practically the same roster of players returning, the Lanier County head coach had reason to be confident.
