Calhoun County baseball: Updates from Day 1

Mar. 6—OXFORD — Wellborn's big Friday at the Calhoun County baseball tournament featured three Jett Smith diving catches and 27 runs, with big hits including Jett Smith's inside-the-park home run.

It was that kind of day, and yes, the No. 12 seed will be back Saturday.

The Panthers went through seven Jacksonville pitchers en route to upsetting the fifth seed 14-11 on Choccolocco Park's signature field. This immediately after Wellborn dispatched No. 13 seed Anniston 14-0.

After mounting two football scores in a baseball tournament, the Panthers advanced to face No. 4 Alexandria in Saturday's at 10 a.m. quarterfinal on the signature field.

Wellborn will play in the quarterfinals for the first time in Nic Burns' eight years on the coaching staff, he said, including four as head coach. He played for the Wes Brooks-coached 2005 team that lost to Jacksonville in the county final at Henry Farm Park.

Burns said his mind didn't flash back to 2005 after his team fought back from a 3-0 deficit after one inning and scored six runs in the top of the sixth inning to lead 14-6. He thought a lot about practices leading up to the tournament.

"I wanted our kids to come out and play tough, and they deserved it," he said. "They played their tails off.

"We came out yesterday with a big energy at practice, and I told them, 'Guys, if you come in tomorrow with that energy, it's going to be a good day for us.'"

Wellborn's postgame celebration included head football coach Jeff Smith running into the postgame huddle, followed by a prayer circle that included some parents.

So many big performances, so little time.

After pitching a five-inning no-hitter against Anniston, Camden Ingram went 3-for-5 with an RBI against Jacksonville.

Brayden Dempsey went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Smith, Joseph Wyatt and Beau Neely had two hits apiece. Neely drove in three runs and Wyatt one.

Wyatt went the distance on the mound, striking out six batters and walking just one. He gave up 16 hits and eight earned runs, but his going the distance allowed Wellborn to save pitchers.

Jett Smith will start against Alexandria.

Perhaps most impressively, Wyatt gathered his nerves after Will Greenwood's hard grounder up the middle to lead off the bottom of the seventh smacked his glove and popped out.

After Carmelo Canales followed with a hard single, Burns made a visit to the mound to settle Wyatt, who retired three of the next four batters and get out with the victory.

"I was very nervous, because they started hitting the ball well and in the gaps," Wyatt said. "That built my motivation up, because I know I have good guys behind me that could stop and make good plays."

Wyatt called Wellborn's victory "very big for us."

It also came with highlight-reel plays, including Jett Smith's web gems at shortstop. He made two diving stops toward the middle against Anniston but ranged longer to deny Jacksonville's Grant Patterson a single behind third base in the fifth inning.

"I was just feeling it tonight," Jett Smith said. "I was having one of those nights. I see it, and I want to go get it."

Jacksonville's Joseph Pridgen followed with a run-scoring triple, but Jett Smith's dive kept a runner off base in advance of Pridgen's hit.

Jett Smith took it one base farther against Anniston, crushing a ball to deep center field to lead off the Panthers' two-run third inning. He beat out the hit for an inside-the-park home run.

Burns said plays like that "just builds confidence. It makes us feel like things are going our way, and God is good."

Wellborn 14, Anniston 0: Smith's inside-the-park home run to lead off the Wellborn third inning and two diving stops at shortstop highlighted the Panthers' mercy-rule start to the tournament.

Wellborn's biggest inning was the seven-run first, which saw the Panthers send 11 batters to the plate against Anniston starter Malichi Deramus. Neely hit a run-scoring triple, and Colby Boyd hit an RBI double. Dempsey hit an RBI single.

Ingram threw a five-inning no-hitter, with six strikeouts, a walk and a hit batsman.

2021 Calhoun County tournament

Friday, March 5

Choccolocco Park

(Field in parenthesis)

No. 12 Wellborn 14, No. 13 Anniston 0

No. 11 Weaver def. No. 14 JCA (forfeit)

Wellborn 14, No. 5 Jacksonville 11

No. 6 Pleasant Valley 15, Weaver 6

Saturday, March 6

Choccolocco Park

No. 7 Saks vs. No. 10 Donoho, 10 a.m. (BB2)

No. 8 White Plains vs. No. 9 Faith Christian, 10 a.m. (BB1)

No. 4 Alexandria vs. Wellborn, 10 a.m. (Signature)

No. 3 Ohatchee vs. Pleasant Valley, 12:30 p.m. (Signature)

No. 2 Piedmont vs. Saks-Donoho, 3 p.m. (Signature)

No. 1 Oxford vs. White Plains-Faith, 5:30 p.m. (Signature)

Monday, March 8

Choccolocco Park

Semifinals, 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. (Signature)

Tuesday, March 9

Jim Case Stadium

Jacksonville State University

Championship, 6 p.m.

Sports Writer Joe Medley: 256-235-3576. On Twitter: @jmedley_star.