Movin’ on up

By Staff
Booth sits at 645 wins as of Tuesday, just 2 shy of tying state record
Justin Schuver, Hartselle Enquirer
Hartselle coach William Booth picked up his 645th win after the Tigers won game two of a doubleheader against Muscle Shoals April 6. With the victory, Booth is now two games shy of tying former Vestavia Hills coach Sammy Dunn’s Alabama record of 647 victories.
The Tigers played in a doubleheader at home against Russellville Tuesday and went on the road to Bob Jnes and Germantown, Tenn., later in the week. Look in next week’s Enquirer for coverage of these games.
Hartselle 1, 10
Muscle Shoals 8, 3
The No. 10 Tigers split a doubleheader against No. 8 Muscle Shoals Thursday at Ruben Sims Field. After looking completely outmatched in game one and falling by the score of 8-1, the Tigers’ bats came to life in the second game and Hartselle took a 10-3 victory.
In game one, Hartselle fell behind 3-0 in the first inning before scoring its only run in the second when Jake Bradford scored on a Muscle Shoals error.
Drew Clark’s home run in the sixth inning plated three runs and made the score 8-1.
Game two was a better outcome for Hartselle, with the Tigers scoring in the first inning when Justin Hargett led off with a double and came around to score on a wild pitch.
Muscle Shoals’ Josh Andrews had a three-run home run in the second inning that put the Trojans ahead 3-1, but that would be all the offense the Trojans would muster off Hartselle sophomore starter J.C. Bates.
Bates pitched a complete game, striking out five and scattering four hits to improve his personal record to 7-1.
Bates also had a big hit in the game, hitting a home run with the bases loaded in the sixth inning to put the game out of reach.
McCaghren tied the game with a sacrifice fly that scored Hargett in the third inning. Josh Aycox scored earlier that inning to bring Hartselle within one.
Daxton Maze had an RBI double that plated Joe McClanahan in the third and Hartselle took its first lead of the series. McCaghren picked up his second RBI of the game in the fourth inning with a double that scored Hargett and put the Tigers up 5-1.
The other run before Bates’ grand slam came on an RBI single by Nathan Kimbrell that scored pinch runner Tyler Young, who replaced McClanahan on the bases.
The win in the second game gave Hartselle sole possession of first place in case of a tie between the two teams at the end of the regular season. The Tigers swept Muscle Shoals on the road in a March 28 doubleheader.
Hartselle 19, 9
Athens 4, 1
The Tigers pulled off a doubleheader sweep of an overmatched Athens squad on the road April 6.
In game one, Jordan Parker hit a home run in just the second Hartselle at-bat of the game, getting the Tiger offense started in a hurry after Justin Hargett led off with a hit. The Tigers got at least one hit and one RBI from nine different players, making it easy going for starting pitcher Keith McCaghren.
McCaghren pitched two innings and struck out one, then gave way to J.C. Bates for three innings and Ryder Brasher for the final inning. Bates struck out six in his work.
McCaghren was also a force offensively, finishing 2-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs. Hargett finished 2-for-3 with four runs and an RBI and Parker was 2-for-5 with two runs, three RBIs and two home runs.
Joe McClanahan finished 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs, Jake Bradford had a run and two RBIs and Daxton Maze was 4-for-5 with three runs, four RBIs and three doubles.
Also standing out offensively for the Tigers were Quinn Dunlap, who was 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs, Wes Chenault who was 2-for-4 with a run and RBI and Josh Aycox who finished 1-for-4 with two runs and an RBI.
In game two, the Hartselle offense gave starter Will Rankin plenty of insurance, although he did not need it. Rankin struck out six and gave up three hits in six innings of work, before giving way to Luke Bole for the final inning. Bole struck out the side in his only inning of work.
Offensively, Hargett was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Parker finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and hit his third home run of the doubleheader. Maze scored a run, Chenault had an RBI and a run and Cline Thompson had two RBIs for No. 10 Hartselle, who improved to 21-11 with the sweep.