Jarrett Mustain hesitated. The ball off Zach York’s bat appeared headed to the left-center field gap.
Hickory coach Hank Kraft had given Mustain the green light to tag up when the situation presented itself. Here it was.
“I got a late jump off the tag but I ran as fast as I could,” Mustain said.
As soon as the Douglas Freeman outfielder caught the ball, Mustain raced to third base. The throw hit off a player and dribbled to the dugout, allowing Mustain to make the turn – fist raised – and leap onto home plate.
“I knew I was gonna get there,” Mustain said. “I could just feel it.”
Hickory edged Freeman of Richmond 6-4 in 10 innings in the Group 5A state championship Sunday at Robinson Secondary. It’s the Hawks’ first state title.
“Best day of my life,” said Mikey Polansky, who finished 3 for 4 with a home run, two doubles, two RBIs and a walk.
Mustain’s run put the Hawks up 5-4 in the top of the 10th and Stephen Polansky followed with an RBI single that scored his brother, Mikey.
“He’s just a freak of nature,” Kraft said of Mikey Polansky – just a freshman.
Like the 5A South Region final that Freeman won 6-4 after trailing 4-0, Hickory grabbed an early lead. In the third inning, Christian Lowry doubled to center to score Stephen Berczek. Mustain had an RBI sacrifice fly and Mikey Polansky added an RBI double for a 3-0 lead.
Freeman rebounded. The Rebels’ Sam Cox had an RBI triple and JT Bellotti followed with an RBI single to cut the lead to 3-2 in the bottom half of the third.
Mikey Polansky continued his torrid day in the fifth when he cranked a home run down the right field line. Again, Freeman responded – this time with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Connor Melhorn just beat a tag at home on Cox’s RBI double. After dropped third strike and throw to first, Cox raced home from third to tie it 4-4.
Freeman threatened in the seventh, putting two men on base with one out. But when Kyle Farkas flew out to left, Melhorn was doubled up at second after he strayed too far down the base line.
Reliever Ryan Berglund put in five gutsy innings in the win, escaping four innings when the leadoff batter reached base.
“(My coaches) kept telling me I was the right guy for this,” Berglund said. “I believed them and pushed through it … I love my teammates, I love the Hickory Hawks and no one can take this away from us.”
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