WEST POINT — The last time Starkville Academy and Oak Hill Academy baseball faced off this season, the Volunteers dominated in an 8-0 shutout victory in Starkville.
Tuesday night was Oak Hill’s chance to get one back in their home opener – their first game back in West Point since hoisting the Midsouth Association of Independent Schools Class 4A state championship trophy last May.
The Volunteers, however, had much different plans for the night, jumping out to a 6-0 lead by the fourth inning and spoiling the party with an 8-3 win.
“We’re really, really young,” Starkville Academy head coach Tyler Poole said. “We’re playing a really tough schedule, but like I told them, ‘Success isn’t always on the scoreboard, especially when you’re this young.’ We’re trying to get our best baseball going in April.”
Tuesday’s game was dictated by Vols (2-5) starter Blake Little, who threw four shutout innings, striking out seven, while going 3-for-4 at the plate with a pair of RBIs. Brennan Templeton also had a three-hit game for Starkville Academy.
From the first pitch, Little, a sophomore right-hander, had things working on the mound and the Raiders (0-2) couldn’t find a way to break the pattern.
“I felt good,” Little said. “Everything was working for me. I had a nice fastball, ended up with a good curveball and changeup. I thought we handled their lineup well. … I feel like we’re really improving a lot as a team for sure.”
Despite scoring eight runs, hits were hard to come by for the Vols, who did most of their damage by taking advantage of Oak Hill miscues.
Raiders pitching allowed eight free bases on the day, walking six and hitting two.
Oak Hill finished with four errors in the game, contributing to several runs scored for Starkville Academy, but for a team that has nearly replaced its entire starting lineup from last season’s state championship team, early season struggles were almost a certainty.
“We’re getting a little better, one percent every day I like to tell the guys,” Oak Hill head coach John Siary said. “… These guys are old in grade but young in experience. They gotta get their feet wet real quick, but it will come around. By the time we hit district, we should be alright.”
The same can be said for the Vols, now three games under .500 this season with a number of tough tests upcoming on the schedule.
Both their wins this season have come at the expense of the Raiders, but the program, filled with young talent at the moment, seems to have bought into the challenge.
A win like Tuesday’s could go a long way in helping Starkville Academy settle into the season before a grueling district schedule.
“The fact that we’re hanging in, they’re responding,” Poole said. “We’re learning every day. I’m proud of the guys for buying in and getting after it. They’re doing a good job of taking on that role of being the young, upstart program.”
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