On his Senior Night, Quinn Finnegan couldn’t leave Red Wolves Field wouldn’t taking something with him.
The park has been a big part of his young life. On Tuesday, he made sure it always will be.
After he became the first pitcher from the Central Conference to beat Southern Alamance this year, Finnegan got to take a final trot around the bases, a tradition at Cedar Ridge for seniors following their final home conference game.
Finnegan took the trip alone because he’s Cedar Ridge only senior this year. His teammates wouldn’t have it any other way.
After he rounded the bases and touched home plate, he pulled out a small bottle, where he put in some dirt from home plate and sealed it with a wooden cap. Finnegan had already placed a label on it reading “Dirt from Home Plate.” He’s taking that bottle with him to Staten Island, New York, where he will pitch at Wagner College next year.
“Wherever I go, I want to take Cedar Ridge with me,” Finnegan said. “This is my home. I’ll keep it on my nightstand in college. It’s going to be with me wherever I go. I have to have a piece of home with me everywhere.”
Though Cedar Ridge is out of the Central Conference championship race, Finnegan has truly saved his best for last.
A week after delivering a complete game and hitting a three-run homer in his first-ever win against Orange, Finnegan made his final conference home game one to remember. He went the distance and allowed just one run as Cedar Ridge surprisingly dominated Southern Alamance 7-1 at Red Wolves Field on Tuesday night.
Southern Alamance, #3 in the latest 3A East Region RPI rankings, suffered its first conference loss and fell to 15-4 overall. It was the least amount of runs for the Patriots in a game this year. Finnegan nearly earned his second straight shutout. Kaden Parker’s RBI single with two out in seventh inning to score Johnny Rojas brought in Southern’s only tally of the night.
“Quinn does things the right way,” said Cedar Ridge head coach Bryson Massey. “He’s done things the right way his whole career here. There’s no better way to go out that finish out your senior year being the best you can be. Who cares about being good at the beginning? Be good at the end. Last week, he dominated at Orange. This week, he dominated here at his last outing.”
He also got run support. Cedar Ridge scored seven unanswered runs against Southern starter Mark King, beginning with John Grove’s line drive to centerfield to score Aidan Ryan, who reached on a one-out walk in the first inning.
Finnegan helped his own cause with a leadoff single in the third. Grant McGuffey roped a double on a liner to left field to bring in Finnegan. After Grove walked, Ian McGuffey sliced another liner to left field to bring in Grant McGuffey and Ryan, pushing Cedar Ridge’s lead to 4-0.
Grove scored after a wild pitch. Walker Holmes scored Ian McGuffey on an RBI groundout to increase Cedar Ridge’s lead to 6-0.
Grant McGuffey, who finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs, drove in the final Red Wolf run with an RBI single to bring in Hudson Kelly in the fourth inning.
Southern Alamance had several threats early, but Cedar Ridge delivered possibly its best defensive game of the year. Southern’s Cooper Martin sent a double that rolled to the centerfield fence. King, who singled on the first pitch of the game, held up at third. Noah Madren sent a fly ball to right field, where Carter Warren made the catch. Warren doubled up Partin at second base to end the inning.
The upset postponed Southern Alamance’s coronation as Central Conference champions. The Patriots now lead Person by two games for first place with three league games remaining. Person, who defeated Eastern Alamance on Monday, return to conference action against Williams next Tuesday in Burlington.
“I have a lot of respect for Southern Alamance,” Massey said. “I also believe in my guys wholeheartedly. We’ve played some really good baseball the last two weeks. We’re not going nowhere. We’re here to stay. Cedar Ridge baseball is on the rise. That’s what we expect.”