2023 Title Is Vikings’ Third All Time
“Baseball is a funny game.” That’s what Lowndes head baseball coach Ryan Page said in a recent sit-down with ITG Next Georgia as he reflected on his team’s season and the path the Vikings took on the way to winning the 2023 GHSA Class 7A baseball state championship.
Lowndes won the state championship with an impressive run through the playoffs, knocking off some of the best baseball teams in the state. The Vikings defeated Westlake in Round 1, followed by Grayson. Lowndes swept each of the first two playoff rounds with four straight wins. Then came their first loss in the playoffs, a 12-3 loss against North Gwinnett in the third round.
But no worries. Lowndes would bounce back to win consecutive games against the Bulldogs to move into the state semifinal round against North Paulding. The Vikings won both games against the Wolfpack, 3-0 and 4-3, to advance to the state championship series against the Parkview Panthers. Chan Brown’s team is considered to be one of the best baseball programs not only in Georgia but the entire southeast United States. They have won nine state championships and been recognized as national champions three times, in 2012, 2015, and 2018.
So it was understandable that, despite the Vikings’ run through the playoffs, Parkview was the favorite to take state title number 10. But baseball is a funny game, indeed.
With timely hitting, solid pitching and fielding, and taking advantage of Parkview mistakes, Lowndes claimed the state baseball championship with another 2-0 sweep, winning 3-2 and then 5-2. The Vikings, who finished second in our composite Top-25 rankings for all GHSA classes, didn’t make a single error during the two-game championship series.
How It All Started
The 2023 Vikings season began on a good note with a 3-2 win over Lee County. Game 2, however, brought a humbling moment for Lowndes. It was a matchup against the team most considered to be the best in the state, regardless of classification, Houston County. Page can smile now, with a state championship to lean back on, but at the time, in that game in middle Georgia, there wasn’t much to smile about at all.
“We went up there and played about as bad as you can play,” Page said. “We kicked it around and didn’t pitch well.”
Lowndes lost the game 14-2. But the Vikings head coach wasn’t fazed.
“I knew that game wasn’t a true reflection of the type of team we had,” he said. “You have days like that in every sport. You have days when you don’t tackle very well, or the ball just doesn’t go in the hoop. But, to be honest, I didn’t really put a lot of stock in that game. I knew we were better than that and that we would get better the rest of the season.”
Page was right, although it didn’t come quickly. The Vikings’ schedule included a gauntlet of non-region teams, with six opponents that would play for state championships: Houston County, Jackson (Mississippi) Prep, and Florida’s Neumann, Bishop Kenny, St. Johns Country Day, and Tampa Jesuit.
“We were 5-9 through Hoover,” Page said, referring to the multi-team tournament in the Birmingham suburb that would signal the end of the non-region portion of the schedule for his team.
Yes, Lowndes was smarting, but they had just completed a schedule of opponents that included at least two pitchers who, according to Page, are clocked in the mid-90s. That’s MLB-caliber stuff that high schoolers rarely see.
“We got everybody’s best,” Page said. “That’s for sure.”
They may not have realized it at the time, but the Vikings head coach had a method to his madness, so to speak.
“Playing those tough teams all year helped us when we got to the state playoffs and saw those really good arms, and it wasn’t such a shock,” Page said.
It actually began to pay dividends before the postseason came around. Lowndes kicked off region play and rolled through one opponent after another, winning the region championship with a perfect 11-0 region record. It was the Vikings’ third straight region championship, but there would be no dogpile celebration on the infield.
“When I took over as the head coach here, one of the first things I instilled here was that winning a region title would be the expectation,” said Page. “That would be what we are supposed to do. I want these kids to understand that when they walk on the baseball field, they should expect to win.”
That was the mentality Lowndes had when they walked out onto the pristine grounds of Truist Park, home to the Atlanta Braves.
“These players weren’t intimidated when they walked into that stadium,” Page said. “They took it personal, and they had no doubt that they were going to win. It was fun to see that, seeing their confidence.”
Lowndes would end the season red-hot, winning 23 of the final 27 games, including that 10-1 playoff record that secured the 7A state baseball championship.
The Whole Is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts
The great philosopher Aristotle is credited with this oft-repeated saying, which simply means that the team concept comes through much better than a focus on individual contributions. It seems to fit this 2023 Vikings baseball squad, who sent nine starters took the field, but got valuable role play from everyone who wore the uniform.
“We have a team where everyone on this roster is talented, and they all can play,” Page said.
Page recalled a conversation with former Lowndes baseball coach and current athletic director Danny Redshaw that seemed to make sense regarding this year’s Viking team.
“The hardest team you will ever coach is the most talented team you will ever coach,” Page said, repeating the advice Redshaw had given him soon after he arrived at Lowndes. “That was so true with this team, but once everyone understood their role, things began to click with us.”
A lot of those parts are returning next year. Cooper Melvin, Caleb Thornton, and Qrey Lott will graduate, but several Vikings will be back. Among the returning group is No. 1 pitcher Ashton Bohler, and fellow pitcher Noah Thigpen, who missed the entire regular season with an arm injury, but was able to play and contribute this offseason.
Third baseman Tate Sirmans will be back, and shortstop Carson Page, who is committed to Georgia Tech, also returns for his senior season. Jordan Hudson, Coleman Lewis, Cason Fletcher and Nate Slaughter will return. Others listed on the Lowndes roster who could return next season include OF Jude Jaramillo, Ty Macera, Kyle Alonso, Layten Shelton, Eli Willis, Brayden York, Jackson Hill, and Jack Lockhart.
Congratulations to the Lowndes Vikings, GHSA Class 7A baseball state champions.
