For the fourth time in five seasons, the champion of Class AAAAA will be from Cobb. Lassiter of Marietta, ranked No. 30 nationally by MaxPreps, is playing Harrison of Kennesaw.
Lassiter and Harrison are 15 miles apart in this northwest metro Atlanta county that, counting this year, will have been home to the state champion in the highest classification eight times in the past 19 years. Several major leaguers have played their high school ball in Cobb, including first-round picks Kris Benson (Sprayberry High) and Corey Patterson (Harrison).
Harrison coach Mark Elkins, an Illinois native, came to Cobb in 1993 after playing at Tennessee Tech. He has coached Patterson and fellow Harrison alumnus Adam Everitt, a Detroit Tigers shortstop. The sons of Hall of Fame pitcher Bruce Sutter, Ben and Chad, also played at Harrison.
‘’I had no idea how good the high school baseball was in this area when I came here,’’ Elkins said. "I was pleasantly surprised with the caliber of players we had to work with. They were very much more advanced than [those] in the area I grew up in.’’
Harrison most recently won a state title in 1998 with Patterson, now with the Baltimore Orioles.
Lassiter has graduated dozens of major college players and has made the state finals eight of the past 16 years. Scott Kelly, an assistant on Lassiter’s 1999 and 2006 state champions, took over for long-time coach Mickey McMurtry this season. Kelly also played at Lassiter, graduating in 1993.
Kelly says a pivotal point in the growth of Cobb County baseball was the World Series championship of the East Marietta Little League team in 1983. Marc Pisciotta, the star pitcher, went through Marietta’s Walton High and played in the major leagues.
"Ever since that team won the World Series, it seems like Cobb County has been a powerhouse,’’ said Kelly, who was 8-years-old in 1983 but remembers the excitement of watching the team on TV. "I knew that it was cool that you’d see those kids around. Some were at my church and got recognized.’’
Cobb champions over the past 20 years include Walton (1992, 2007), Sprayberry (1995), Harrison (1998), Lassiter (1999, 2006) and Pope (2009). Kell and Kennesaw Mountain, Cobb schools that opened this decade, already have been state runners-up, both times to other Cobb teams. Those seven schools (plus Walker, a Marietta private school in the smallest class that won state titles in 2001 and 2002) are within 20 miles of each other in the northern part of the county.
Not coincidentally, those schools are near East Cobb Baseball, an organization that is nationally known for developing elite players and teams. East Cobb alumni include Jeff Froncoeur, Brian McCann and Jason Heyward.
Most players on the roster of Harrison and Lassiter play summer ball for East Cobb teams. They include Lassiter pitcher/catcher Brandon Stephens (9-1, 2.97 ERA as a pitcher and .468, 13 HR, 43 RBI as a hitter) and Harrison sophomore shorstop Matt Gonzalez (.434-6-44)
‘’These players know each other better than we do as coaches,’’ Elkins said. "They’ve grown up playing with and against each other for years. They’re extremely excited for a chance to play against each other for a state championship.’’
Georgia state finals
AAAAA: Harrison (Kennesaw) at Lassiter (Marietta)
AAAA: Marist (Atlanta) at Lakeside (Evans)
AAA: Ringgold at Columbus
AA: Calhoun at Cook (Adel)
A: Wesleyan (Norcross) at Aquinas (Augusta)
All-Cobb state finals in the highest class
2010: Lassiter vs. Harrison
2007: Walton beat Kennesaw Mountain
2006: Lassiter beat Kell
1998: Harrison beat Sprayberry
1995: Sprayberry beat Lassiter
