VALDOSTA — Call Will Petersen the star of the game.

Petersen, Valdosta High’s All-Region center fielder, hit a home run with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning Wednesday night to give VHS a 4-3 victory over Madison County (Fla.) in the Wildcat Invitational.

Madison County pitcher Casey Tuten began the seventh by getting Noah Beatty and winning pitcher Brett McCrary to ground out. Up stepped Petersen, who needed only one pitch.

“I was trying to get on base, because I’m the leadoff hitter, and that’s what I’m supposed to do,” Petersen said. “It just went a little farther this time.”

Petersen sent the Tuten fastball over the left field wall, and the Wildcats (2-0) had a victory.

It was Petersen’s second big hit of the game. In his previous at-bat, the senior stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and drilled a double to the gap in right-center, which scored two runners and tied the game at 2-2.

“Will had a couple of big hits for us,” said Valdosta head coach Bart Shuman.

The game was a pitchers’ duel most of the way. Valdosta’s Kurt Lamon struck out seven hitters and held Madison to six hits over six innings, while Tuten confused the Wildcats the first four innings, holding them to only one hit while fanning five. McCrary, who relieved Lamon, pitched a 1-2-3 seventh.

“We got good pitching tonight,” Shuman said. “Kurt Lamon had a good outing, and then Brett McCrary came in and slammed the door in the seventh.”

Madison got a quick run in the first. Jonathan Richardson singled, then advanced to second on a wild pitch and third on Jeremy Haynes’ single. Richardson then scored on Dustin Humphrey’s groundout, giving the Cowboys a 1-0 lead.

In the third inning, Richardson came home when Valdosta third baseman B.J. Southers, trying to hurry an off-balance throw, threw over the head of first baseman Ashley Bonner.

That 2-0 lead held up for Madison County until the bottom of the fifth, when Lamon led off with a walk, Beatty singled and Southers’ grounder was booted. Petersen came up and drilled his two-run double, tying the score.

But Madison climbed back in front in the sixth. Jeremy Haynes hit a one-out double, and after holding up on an infield single by Humphrey, tried to advance on a pitch in the dirt.

The throw bounced in the dirt and went into the outfield, allowing Haynes to score.

But the Wildcats answered back. Andrew Braley led off the sixth with a double to left center, then came home on John Courson’s single to center, tying the score at 3-3. That set the stage for Petersen in the seventh.

“It’s something you dream about doing,” Petersen said of his game-ending homer.

Valdosta travels to Tallahassee (Fla.)-Chiles at 5 p.m. today. VHS resumes Wildcat Invitational play Friday at 6 p.m. against Berrien.