In high school action this week, Starkville kept its winning streak alive, Caledonia’s baseball team handed Region 1-5A-leading Lafayette its first conference loss of the season and New Hope got a no-hit performance on the mound as teams roll on through their baseball and softball schedules.
Starkville
With the game tied at 2-2 heading into the sixth inning, Starkville exploded for five runs, including a three-run homer by Marcus Hendrix, to take down Clinton 7-2 Tuesday night at home.
The game was the first of two in the Yellow Jackets’ last Region 2-7A contest in the regular season and gave the team its sixth straight victory. Four different Jackets (17-8-1, 6-3) had two hits each, and Hendrix led the squad with three RBI. Tyson Knox started on the mound and pitched the first 4.2 innings to the tune of five hits, two runs, two walks and three strikeouts, and Taj Prater came in for one inning and walked two batters. Kaden Wilson closed the game with one walk and one strikeout. Starkville sits at No. 3 in the region standings with the same conference record as No. 2 Madison Central, which split their series earlier in the year. Starkville and Clinton end their series Friday at Clinton.
Starkville’s softball team didn’t have as much luck against Clinton on Tuesday and fell 12-1 to the visiting Arrows.
The game was tied at 1-1 heading into the third inning, where Clinton exploded for eight runs to pull away for good. The Jackets (7-14, 1-6) were held to just two hits and the team committed six errors. Starkville is back in action Friday at home against Germantown.
Caledonia
It took a long 11 innings, but Caledonia’s baseball team accomplished what no Region 1-5A team has done all season – defeat reigning 5A champion Lafayette.
With their backs against the wall against the visiting Commodores, who are ranked as the No. 2 5A team in the state by Max Preps, Trevor Dennis belted a sacrifice fly to right field to send home Aaron Harris for the 4-3 walkoff victory on Tuesday. The clutch play squashed Lafayette’s nine-game win streak and halted its spree of consecutive conference wins at six games.
The Commodores (15-7, 6-1) grabbed a brief 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning before the Cavs (12-9, 5-2) opened up their offense in the bottom half for three runs. Garrett Holloman got the scoring started with a groundout to send Dennis across the plate, and then Jackson Dawkins delivered a two-run double to right field to put his team up 3-1. Lafayette tacked on one run in the third inning and one more run in the sixth to tie the game and eventually force extra innings.
Both teams got stellar pitching performances from their hurlers with Chandler Cobb who captured the win for the Cavs. He pitched in relief of Reid Garrett for the final three innings and gave up only one hit, walking four and striking out one. Garrett worked the first eight innings and relinquished nine hits, allowing three earned runs with two walks and six strikeouts. Together, along with a solid display of defense behind them, they stranded 10 Lafayette runners.
The two teams close out the series on Friday at Lafayette.
In softball, the region-leading Cavs also grabbed a narrow 3-2 win over the Commodores on Tuesday. Caledonia pitcher Kennedy Trotter gave up an early solo homer to Caroline Kelly in the second inning for the 1-0 deficit, but the Cavs (17-2, 6-1) responded with two runs in the fifth and one more in the seventh to pull back ahead. The Commodores landed one run in the bottom of the seventh and put runners on second and third, but Trotter closed out the game with a strikeout. Trotter, who gave up seven hits, two earned runs and struck out four batters through seven innings, led the team with two hits and two RBI. Molly Harlow also had two hits.
The teams finish off the series today in Caledonia.
Starkville Academy
The Volunteers’ baseball team went the distance with East Rankin Academy in a MAIS District 2-4A contest on Tuesday but a late mistake gave the Patriots a 2-1 victory in eight innings.
With the bases loaded in top of the eighth, a balk by SA (16-9, 2-5) pitcher Jack Northcutt allowed the Patriots to take the lead for good. Blake Little and Joseph Portera led the team with two hits each, and pitchers Northcutt and Micah Buckner combined for eight strikeouts and eight hits. The teams finish off the series today at East Rankin Academy in a doubleheader.
New Hope
New Hope pitcher Brayden Edmiston hurled a no-hitter and notched a team-high four hits to lead his team to a 14-0 shutout of Region 1-5A foe West Point Tuesday on the road.
Edmiston issued zero walks and zero hits and fanned six Green Wave (7-16, 2-5) batters to help his team win the fourth of its last five games. New Hope (12-11, 3-4) scored two runs in the first innings, four in the third and eight in the fifth for the shutout. Both teams square off again Friday in New Hope to close out the series.
In softball, New Hope also grabbed a win over West Point, 16-1.
The Trojans (13-12, 4-3) plated eight runs in the first inning, four in the third and four in the fifth all while holding the Green Wave (6-17, 2-5), which scored its only run in the fourth, to just two hits. Tatum McBride nearly hit for the cycle with a double, triple and home run on three hits, and Kennedi Martin also had three hits as well. Kaselyn Harcrow pitched all five innings of two-hit softball and struck out eight batters.
The series closes today at New Hope.
Heritage Academy
The Patriots ended a spree of three straight MAIS Division 2-4A losses on Tuesday with a 7-5 win against visiting Hartfield Academy.
After falling behind 1-0, Charlie Fowler drilled a two-run homer to put Heritage up 2-1 in the first inning and two more runs in the third gave the team a much better cushion. Hartfield tacked on one run in the fourth and two more in the sixth to tie the game, but the Patriots (10-10, 3-4) immediately responded with three runs in the bottom of the sixth and held on for the win. Fowler had two of the team’s seven hits, and pitcher Jack Tompkins grabbed the win on the mound. He worked the fifth and sixth innings and gave up five hits, three earned runs and also fanned three.
Heritage and Hartfield close out their series today at Hartfield Academy in a doubleheader.
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