Photo by Erin Nelson
Oak Mountain head coach Jordan Burson claps as Emma Hawkins steps up to the plate during a game against the Rebels at Oak Mountain High School on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. Photo by Erin Nelson.
Here's a look back at the last week in Briarwood, Chelsea and Oak Mountain high school sports.
BASEBALL
The Chelsea baseball team took the field again last Tuesday, knocking off local foe Briarwood 8-1. For the Hornets, Kaleb Hester hit a double and drove home a pair of runs. Cade Mims, Jason Neal and Jackson Morgan also tallied runs batted in. Walker Thomas contributed a couple of hits. Kaden Heatherly was stellar on the mound, throwing 5 innings of scoreless ball, allowing a single hit and striking out 7 batters. Aiden Hughes threw 2 innings of relief, allowing no runs on a hit with 4 punch outs.
Oak Mountain fell to Hueytown 6-4 on Tuesday. Carter Kimbrell hit a home run and drove in a pair of runs to lead the Eagles offense. Nick McCord, Peyton Parkinson and Kimbrell doubled in the game, while Matt Heiberger and Josh Hart drove runs home. Owen Edwards threw 2 innings of scoreless relief as well.
Oak Mountain suffered an 8-3 loss to Northridge on Wednesday. Heiberger hit a triple and drove in a run, while Hart and Xander Hughes hit a double and knocked in a run. McCord and Liam English each hit a double as well. Alex Harrison threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing 2 hits with 5 strikeouts.
Oak Mountain earned a 3-1 win over Briarwood on Friday. Hughes hit a double and drove in a pair of runs. McCord hit a double as well. Heiberger got the start and earned the win, going 5 scoreless innings, allowing a single hit while striking out 11. Kevin Jasinski came on for the final 2 innings, allowing an unearned run without surrendering a hit.
Chelsea earned a 12-6 win over Benjamin Russell on Saturday. Bryson Mormon led the offense by going 2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBIs. Cody Fortenberry and Morgan each knocked home a pair, while Neal, Thomas and Hughes all drove home a run as well. Steven Shelton threw 3 innings, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits with 3 strikeouts.
Briarwood swept a doubleheader Saturday, as they blew past St. John Paul II 11-1 and then beat Fort Payne 14-6. In the first win, Brady Waugh led the offense by going 3-for-3 with a double and 4 RBIs. Andrew McAdams knocked home a pair, while Cooper Higgins, Sam Hoff and Jackson Adams each had an RBI. Casen Heaps scored 3 runs and Brayden Heaps threw 3 scoreless innings, surrendering just 3 hits and striking out 3 batters.
In the Fort Payne victory, Waugh had another big showing, talling 4 hits and 3 RBIs. Samuel Burr drove home a couple runs as well. Jake Souders was a two-way threat, going 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles and a run batted in, and throwing 2 hitless innings with 4 strikeouts. Casen Heaps, Jackson Barnes and Will Clark all hit a double and drove in a run as well. Hoff was 3-for-4 with an RBI, 3 runs and 2 stolen bases. Seth Staggs added 2 hits and 2 RBIs.
SOFTBALL
The Oak Mountain softball team began the week with a 7-4 win over Chilton County last Monday. Elizabeth Zaleski registered 3 hits and 3 runs batted in. Julia Vincent was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Sheridan Andrews was 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI as well. Kristian Carr got the start in the circle, going 5 innings and allowing 4 runs on 9 hits. Marian Cummings threw the final 2 innings, not allowing a hit or run and striking out 4 batters.
Spain Park grabbed a 3-1 area win over Chelsea on Tuesday. Maggie Daniel hit a double and a triple and drove in 2 runs. Ella Reed threw the complete game, setting a personal best with 17 strikeouts in her 7 innings. She allowed a run on 4 hits in the stellar outing. For Chelsea, Maia Harris allowed 3 runs in 4 2/3 innings, while Julie Amacher threw 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or run.
Chelsea and Oak Mountain played in the Jag Classic hosted by Spain Park over the weekend. On Friday, Chelsea fell to Hartselle 9-8 but rebounded for a 3-0 win over Brooks. In the Hartselle game, Sydney Carroll hit a double and drove in 3 runs, while Maia Harris was 2-for-2 with 3 RBIs as well. Kathryn Bryars notched a pair of RBIs. In the win over Brooks, Julie Amacher threw the complete game, allowing 3 hits in a 7-inning shutout, striking out 4 batters.
Oak Mountain fell to Jasper 7-6 and beat Hazel Green 14-3 on Friday. In the Jasper loss, Andrews was 2-for-3 with a double, a homer and 5 RBIs. Against Hazel Green, Alea Rye went deep, driving in 4 runs in the game. Andrews had another strong game, going 3-for-3 with a triple and a pair of RBIs, scoring 3 runs. Emily Macksin and Carolyn Graham each drove in 3 runs as well. Anna DuBose was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Kristian Carr threw 5 innings, allowing 3 runs (2 earned).
Chelsea’s run in the tournament ended Saturday morning in a 4-3 loss to Pell City. Carroll pitched well in the circle, going 6 innings and allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 3 hits with 6 strikeouts.
Oak Mountain fell to Bibb County in its first game Saturday, ending its tournament run as well.
SOCCER
The Oak Mountain girls soccer team knocked off Hoover 3-0 last Monday.
On Tuesday, Briarwood earned a sweep of Calera, as the boys won 1-0 and the girls won big 10-0. Chelsea suffered losses to Hewitt-Trussville, with the boys falling 2-0 and the girls losing 3-0. Oak Mountain’s boys fell to Fort Payne 1-0.
Vestavia Hills and Oak Mountain’s boys and girls teams squared off Thursday evening. The Vestavia girls claimed a 1-0 win, while the boys finished in a 1-1 draw.
On Friday, Chelsea’s boys notched a 4-0 win over Stanhope Elmore. Briarwood’s boys beat Sparkman 5-3 and the girls took down Bayside Academy 6-0.
TRACK AND FIELD
The Briarwood, Chelsea and Oak Mountain outdoor track and field teams competed at the King of the Mountain Invitational at Vestavia Hills last Saturday.
Briarwood had several girls reach the podium in their events. Bela Doss placed third in the 800- and 1,600-meter runs, Mary Grace Parker was third in the 3,200, Ansley Murphy finished third in the pole vault competition and the 4x100-meter relay team placed third. Charlie Thompson was the top boys performer, finishing eighth in discus.
For Chelsea, Jadlyn Debardlabon won the long jump, reaching 17 feet, 3.75 inches. Lily Rigor reached the podium, finishing second in 300-meter hurdles. The 4x100 relay team was second and the 4x400 relay team finished third as well. For the boys, Eryk Brown was third in the 200, while Parker Campbell finished third in the 3,200.
Oak Mountain’s John Shoemaker won the 3,200, running the race in 9:31. The boys 4x800 relay team also came across the line first, running the relay in 8:24. On the girls side, Samiah Jones was second in long jump and the girls 4x800 relay team was second.
A few Chelsea athletes competed at New Balance Nationals in Boston last week. Cady McPhail competed in the 1,500-meter run and 1-mile run, finishing 55th and 59th overall. Ty Cason and Mia Dunavant competed in those distances as well. Cason and Dunavant were third and fourth in the 1,500, and fourth and fifth in the 1-mile. The girls distance medley relay team was 12th and the 4x800-meter relay was 12th.
Want to see something else mentioned? Feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnesmedia.com.
