Photo by Erin Nelson.
Oak Mountain’s Avery Smith (5) passes the ball in a match against Vestavia Hills at the Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex on Thursday, March 9, 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 Hoover baseball shut out Chelsea 6-0 last Monday. The Bucs were led offensively by Mason Blasche, who registered a pair of hits and drove in a pair of runs. Cade Carr, Carter Jackman, Colin Rengering and Jaxson Wood all knocked in a run as well. Camdyn Teague hit a double and RJ Hamilton tallied a pair of hits as well. Will Adams threw 5 innings of 1-hit ball for the Bucs, striking out 12 batters. Rengering threw 2 hitless innings, notching 3 strikeouts. Chris McNeill hit a double for Chelsea’s only hit.
Oak Mountain fell to Helena 4-3 on Tuesday. Carter Kimbrell led the Eagles by going 3-for-4 with a double and 2 RBIs. Liam English also knocked in a run. Peyton Parkinson hit a double, while Brooks Braswell notched a pair of hits. Nick McCord threw 5 innings, allowing 4 runs (2 earned) on 7 hits with 5 strikeouts.
Briarwood earned a win Tuesday, beating Pelham 14-3. For the Lions, Brady Waugh led the offense by hitting a home run and driving in 3 runs. Jake Souders tallied a pair of hits and knocked in 3 as well. Will Clark had 2 RBIs and scored 4 runs, Casen Heaps knocked in a pair, Sam Hoff was 3-for-4 with 3 runs scored and Andrew McAdams hit a double. Brayden Heaps threw 4 1/3 innings of hitless and scoreless ball, striking out 6 hitters.
Oak Mountain suffered an 11-0 loss to Gardendale on Thursday. Cooper Jarvis, Bryson Barnes and Connor Burdette each knocked in a pair of runs for the Rockets. Ty McGraw threw 5 innings, surrendering only a single hit.
Chelsea blew past Helena 10-0 on Thursday. Walker Thomas and Aiden Hughes led the way for the Hornets’ attack, as each contributed a pair of hits, a double and 2 RBIs. Paxton Stallings knocked in a pair of runs, Jackson Morgan was 2-for-3 with an RBI and Cody Fortenberry tallied a pair of hits. Kaden Heatherly threw 5 stellar innings, surrendering a lone hit with 5 strikeouts.
Briarwood also notched a convincing win Thursday, beating Pelham 11-1. Waugh hit another homer, driving in 4 runs. Clark was 2-for-3 with a double and 3 RBIs, while Jackson Adams went 3-for-3 with 2 RBIs. Sam Hoff and Samuel Burr each drove in a run as well. Drake Meeks was strong on the mound, going 5 innings and allowing an unearned run on a hit with 10 strikeouts.
Chelsea took down Vestavia Hills 8-7 on Saturday. Kaleb Hester led the Hornets offense, going 3-for-4 with a solo home run. Thomas was 3-for-4 with an RBI, Fortenberry had a pair of hits and an RBI, and Paxton Stallings and Hughes each knocked in a run. Brandon Ridderhoff threw 4 hitless innings, striking out 5. For Vestavia, William Tonsmeire and Hudson Walburn each drove in a pair of runs. Christopher Johnston, John Martin Richter and Will Cox each knocked in a run, Jackson Harris hit a double and Grant Downey went 2-for-4. Josh Brooks threw 2 innings, allowing a run on 3 hits.
Chelsea also beat Calera 5-1 on Saturday. Fortenberry led the offense by going 2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBIs. Steven Shelton threw the complete game, allowing a run on 3 hits with 8 strikeouts in 7 innings.
Briarwood took down Moody 11-2 on Saturday. Souders led the offense, as he went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and 2 RBIs. Will Clark, Seth Staggs and Parker Daniels each tallied a pair of hits and 2 RBIs in the contest. Brayden Heaps hit a double, Casen Heaps knocked in a run, and Jackson Adams went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Adams also threw 2 hitless innings as well. Waugh scored 3 runs for the Lions.
SOFTBALL
The Spain Park softball team earned a 6-3 area victory over Oak Mountain last Monday. The Jags were led by Ella Reed, who threw the complete game, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits with 8 strikeouts. Reagan Stewart knocked in 3 runs for the Jags, while Ella Ussery hit a double and knocked home a pair of runs. Elizabeth Zaleski hit a home run and drove in all 3 runs for the Eagles. Marian Cummings was strong in relief, as she threw 5 hitless innings.
Chelsea suffered a 16-6 loss to Chilton County on Tuesday. For the Hornets, Kathryn Bryars led the offense with a pair of hits, including a double, and 2 RBIs. Samantha Sutton and Claire Purkey each tallied a pair of hits and drove in a run. Ava Morris was 3-for-3 with a run batted in.
Helena defeated Briarwood 12-1 on Tuesday. Oak Mountain also suffered a loss Tuesday, falling to area foe Thompson 11-5. Alea Rye hit a double and knocked home a pair of runs for the Eagles. Chalea Clemmons and Kendall Channell homered in the game for the Warriors.
Chelsea picked up a 7-3 win over Leeds on Thursday. Bryars led the offense with 2 RBIs, while Baylor McCluney was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI as well. Sydney Carroll threw the complete game, allowing 3 runs on 4 hits with 4 strikeouts in the game.
Chelsea played in the Buccaneer Round Robin at the Hoover Met over the weekend, beginning play Friday. The Hornets fell in a wild 18-17 affair against Moody. Morgan Brewer led the offensive outburst, as she went 3-for-3 with a double, a home run and 7 RBIs. Bryars had 3 hits, a homer and 2 RBIs, while Makenna Harper also homered and drove in a pair. Maia Harris went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI, Carroll was 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI and 3 runs scored, and Madeline Epperson hit a double and drove in a pair.
Chelsea played two more games Saturday, falling to Helena 5-4 and tying Cullman 7-7. In the Chelsea game, Harper hit a triple and drove in a pair of runs, while Harris knocked in the other 2 runs. Against Cullman, Carroll hit a homer and knocked in a pair of runs, while Claire Purkey hit a double and drove in a run as well.
Briarwood played in the McAdory Tournament on Saturday. The Lions began play with a 7-4 loss to McAdory, before rallying to blow out Paul Bryant 18-2. Meredith Kellum had a huge game, going 2-for-3 with a double, a home run and 7 RBIs. Stella Meeks hit an inside-the-park homer and drove in 4 runs as well. Kate Atkinson drove in a run and scored 3 times.
SOCCER
The Chelsea girls soccer team suffered a 2-0 loss to Thompson last Monday.
Briarwood’s boys and girls took on Helena on Tuesday evening, with the boys winning 3-2 and the girls winning big 6-0. Chelsea’s boys earned a hard-fought 1-0 win over Gardendale, while Oak Mountain’s boys and girls knocked off Hewitt-Trussville. The boys won 2-1 and the girls won 1-0.
Chelsea’s boys took down Spain Park 7-1 on Thursday in an area contest. Oak Mountain’s boys defeated Hoover 1-0, as the Eagles scored on a late corner kick. Spain Park’s girls beat Chelsea 5-2.
Briarwood’s soccer teams swept Pelham on Friday, with the girls winning 9-0 and the boys winning 1-0.
TRACK AND FIELD
The Briarwood and Chelsea outdoor track and field teams competed in the Homewood Invitational last Saturday.
The Lions had several girls finish in the top 10 of their events. Anna Reid Frost was seventh in the 100-meter dash, Bela Doss was fourth and Mary Grace Parker was eighth in the 800-meter run, Reese Rasmussen was sixth and Greyce Godbehere was ninth in the 100-meter hurdles, Rasmussen was sixth in 300 hurdles, Sallie Montgomery was sixth in the long jump and triple jump, Ansley Murphy finished second in pole vault, and the girls 4x100- and 4x800- teams placed sixth and fifth.
The boys 4x800 relay team finished ninth as well.
For Chelsea, Jadyn Debardlabon won the long jump, reaching 18 feet, 1 inch. Callie Wright was eighth in the 100-meter dash, while Emma Raines McGough finished ninth in high jump.
Parker Campbell placed sixth in the 1,600 for the boys.
GOLF
The Briarwood boys golf team finished as the top Class 6A team and second overall in the Husky Invitational last Monday at RTJ Oxmoor Ridge.
Briarwood’s boys finished second overall in the Coosa River Invitational at RTJ Silver Lakes on Thursday. Sam Burns was the team’s low scorer with a round of 76.
TENNIS
The Briarwood boys and girls tennis teams earned victories last Thursday over Shades Valley. The boys 9-0 and the girls won 5-4.
Want to see something else mentioned? Feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnesmedia.com.
