By Staff
earn area title
By Scott Cooper- Sports reporter
Brewton's 15-year-old Babe Ruth All-Stars earned a trip to the state tournament -- scheduled to begin July 12 in Huntsville -- after blowing away the competition in the Area-2 tournament that was contested in Opp.
Entering the area tournament as District 7 co-champions along with Atmore, the 15-year-old All-Stars notched a 4-0 win over Andalusia on July 5 before a 9-2 victory against Atmore on July 6 set the stage for the area-clinching performance to follow.
Brewton 7, Atmore 3
Having won consecutive games against no losses in the double-elimination tournament, a July 7 meeting with Atmore was not a must-win situation for Brewton. In the event of a loss, the 15-year-old All-Stars would have another chance to put the wraps on the championship.
With an impressive 7-3 victory, however, Brewton closed-out the competition with the Area-2 crown and, in the process, left little doubt which team would best represent the area in the state tournament.
Focusing their sights on ending the competition without the need for another game, Brewton wasted little time seizing an early advantage.
Jordan Cauley began the first-inning scoring by reaching on an error and moving to second on Justin Smith's walk.
Justin Marshall singled to load the bases before three runs came in due to Atmore defensive miscues.
Hayes Peace drew a walk for one run, Whitney Qualls reached on an error for another run and a third run was allowed home after Wade McCall was hit by a pitch, giving Brewton a 3-0 lead.
Atmore struck back in the bottom half of the first with a solo home run that pulled them closer, 3-1.
In the top of the second, Brewton regained the three-run lead established early in the game. Mikel Riggs reached on an error before moving to second on Jordan Cauley's fielder's choice. Spencer Williamson's RBI single then moved Riggs across the plate while stretching the lead to 4-1.
In an attempt to keep pace, Atmore once again answered in the bottom of the second. After two consecutive passed balls and a walk, an RBI single tightened the score at 4-2.
Pitching and superior defense was the story of the game from the third through fifth innings. To counter the excellent play of Atmore, Brewton's defensive performance was highlighted by the strong pitching of Antonio Gomez along with a virtually error-free performance by the Brewton fielders.
A sixth-inning rally by Atmore, however, posed a threat to the Brewton lead. A double placed a runner in scoring position, and then an RBI single followed to cut the lead down to 4-3.
Heading to the top of the seventh inning with fire in their eyes, the Brewton All-Stars proceeded to put the game away. Smith reached on an error before stealing second base. Smith then crossed the plate on Marshall's single to pad the lead to 5-3.
Hayes Martin stepped to the plate and delivered an RBI that pushed the advantage to 6-3 before an RBI single by McCall widened the gap to 7-3.
Brewton put the finishes touches on the championship with a stellar bottom of the seventh defensive performance. Riggs began with an outstanding defensive play on a grounder to second base before two more groundouts ended the game.
Justin Smith and Antonio Gomez shared duties from the mound in the win.
Although pitching only one inning, Smith got credit for the win while Gomez gave-up four hits and only one earned run over six innings.
Pacing the Brewton offense were Hayes Martin, 1-for-1 with one RBI; Spencer Williamson, 2-for-4 with one RBI; Justin Marshall, 2-for-4 with one RBI and Wade McCall, 1-for-2 with one RBI.