Brookwood players rush to congratulate Chris Butler (26) after he hit a game-winning single in the seventh inning of the Southeastern Association of Independent Schools Class AA championship game on May 23, 1986.

THOMASVILLE, Ga. — The 1986 Brookwood Warriors have staying power. Memories of the 52 home runs they socked en route to the school’s first state baseball championship remain fresh in the mind of their coach, Ronnie Jones.

“It didn’t have a thing to do with me,” Jones said. “We just had some good players.”

The 1986 Warriors rolled to a 23-3 record, outscoring their opponents 302-64. The team batting average was .400 and they racked up 51 stolen bases.

“There wasn’t a weak spot anywhere in the lineup,” Jones said.

The long ball was prevalent in Brookwood’s playoff run. It pounded six homers in a 20-7 rout of Frederica in the opening round. Sophomore shortstop Chris Butler blasted two, including a grand slam. Second baseman Frankie Piland, right fielder Mark Roland, center fielder Kevin Vick and third baseman Tom Johnson slugged the others.

“Our home runs were distributed pretty evenly throughout the team,” Jones said.

Butler was also an outstanding pitcher. He went the distance in the Warriors’ 6-5 victory over region rival Westwood in the Southeastern Association of Independent Schools Class AA title game.

“He was just amazing,” Jones said. “He went on to get a championship-clinching win at another school in Atlanta. He was just that good.”

In the 1986 title game, Butler, who went on to play in the New York Mets’ minor league organization, maintained his composure after falling behind 5-0 in the first inning.

“We did dig ourselves a hole,” Jones said during a postgame interview. “They hit the ball well in the first inning. That is why I hated to play them for the third time this season. They were facing Chris for the third time in a short time span and I think the first inning showed that a team can get used to a pitcher.”

The hard-throwing Butler altered his strategy after the rough start, frequently resorting to a curveball.

Catcher Mattison Dunaway started Brookwood’s comeback by swatting a first-inning homer. Vick added a circuit clout in the third inning that cut the gap to 5-4.

“I tell folks all the time about all those home runs. They think the fences must have been shorter back then, but they weren’t. They were the same as they are now. Those folks could just hit,” Jones said.

The 1986 Warriors were solid with their gloves, too. A couple of stellar infield plays by Johnson and Piland quelled a Westwood rally in the seventh inning. Butler followed the impressive leatherwork by notching an inning-ending strikeout.

In his team’s seventh at-bat, Butler knocked in the winning run with a two-out single that plated Vick, sending the Warrior Field crowd into a frenzy.

Following the game, Jones had to endure a few uneasy seconds because he was concerned the decisive run might be invalidated. He said he and Vick collided in foul territory near the dugout.

“There was a big discussion about whether I had assisted the runner or not. I was scared to death,” Jones said. “Fortunately, they let us have the run.”

The baseball victory gave the Warriors a 2-1 edge over the Wildcats in state championship meetings that school year. Brookwood also prevailed in football. Westwood came on top in boys basketball.

Coleman Bennett, Lance Butler, Vincent Nalin, Todd Eason Vic Harrison, Russell Brown, Joel Arline and Max Beverly rounded out Brookwood’s 1986 baseball. Pete Reeves was the assistant coach.

“I have to give a lot of credit to Pete that (baseball) championship,” Jones said. “He was an outstanding baseball coach.”