How Nolensville stood up to powerful Farragut in TSSAA baseball state title game, even in loss
MURFREESBORO — Nolensville sophomore catcher Evan McElvain didn’t try to hide his tears after the season ended.
That’s how much this postseason run meant to him and the Knights.
Farragut defeated Nolensville 3-1 for the Class 4A state championship Friday at Reese Smith Jr. Field, its third consecutive TSSAA baseball title.
It might have been business as usual for the Admirals, who won their 13th crown overall, but this was Nolensville’s first state championship game appearance in program history.
“I’ll start thinking about next year once this sets in, once the summer gets here. You move on from stuff like this, but you don’t forget,” said McElvain, the brother of former Vanderbilt starting pitcher Chris and current Vandy pitcher Ethan. “We’ve got a lot of potential. Last year, we got eliminated early in districts and it didn’t sit well with anybody with all the talent we had. We knew we didn’t want to feel that again, so we got closer as a team and made it here.”
Nolensville coach Zach Hudson is hoping his next team does the same thing. The Knights didn’t back down from Farragut (40-5), who are ranked 18th nationally in MaxPreps’ poll. Nolensville finished with seven hits to Farragut's six.
Hudson believes his team also stood up well to the Admirals in a 5-1 loss during the regular season.
“Obviously they (Farragut) are great. There’s no doubt about that. They’re elite, they’re the best team in Tennessee,” he said. “But I think we earned a lot of respect. We weren’t intimidated.”
More: Former MLB pitcher Bryan Morris guides alma mater Tullahoma to first TSSAA title in 34 years
Nolensville (34-10) kept within striking distance Friday and nearly tied the game in the top of the fifth inning. McElvain’s screaming line drive was gloved in the air by Farragut shortstop and Mississippi State signee Lukas Buckner, stranding two runners for the third out.
“That ball was smoked,” Hudson said. “If that ball is a little higher, I think it’s probably a tie game.”
More: How Kaylor West's historic perfect game led Liberty Creek to 1st TSSAA softball state title
Nolensville will return five underclassmen who appeared in the state championship game. That doesn't include sophomore pitcher Bo Holloway, a 6-foot-5 left-hander who is already receiving interest from SEC schools.
Senior pitcher Dawson Sweeney, who threw all six innings Friday, surrendering three earned runs on six hits, said the Knights should be proud of the standard they set for the program. Their 34 wins are a program record.
He’s confident the younger guys behind him can keep it going.
“I expect us to be here in the stands next year watching them,” Sweeney said. “This next team’s going to do big things, I can feel it.”
Reach sports writer Tyler Palmateer at tpalmateer@tennessean.com and on the X platform, formerly Twitter, @tpalmateer83.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TSSAA baseball state tournament: Farragut tops Nolensville for 4A title
