Photo by Erin Nelson
Homewood’s Levi Nickoli (17) makes the toss to second base to record an out as the Patriots face John Carroll in a game at Homewood High School on Thursday, March 17, 2022. Photo by Erin Nelson.
Over the course of the year, The Homewood Star will keep you up to date on the various Homewood and John Carroll high school athletic teams. For previous weekly updates, click here.
BASEBALL
The Homewood baseball team picked up a big Class 6A, Area 9 win over Briarwood last Monday. The Patriots took the win 4-3 in eight innings. Homewood tied the game by scoring a pair of runs in the top of the seventh inning, as Jackson Parris hit a line drive up the middle to bring home the tying run. Jake Traffanstedt put down a successful squeeze bunt in the following inning, scoring the eventual winning run. Witt Brown got the win in relief, going 4 scoreless innings. Levi Nickoli earned the save with a scoreless eighth inning. For Briarwood, Brady Waugh and Cooper Higgins each knocked in a run. Drake Meeks got the start and pitched well, going 5 innings and allowing 1 run on 5 hits with 7 strikeouts.
Homewood took a break from area play to face Ramsay on Tuesday, beating the Rams 16-4 in a strong showing. The Patriots offense had 16 hits in the five-inning contest. James Spencer had 2 hits on the day, while Tripp Gann knocked in 4 runs on 2 hits, including a bases-clearing double in the 12-run second inning. Parker Sansing, Preston Graves, Jonathan Box, Brennan Wheat, and Woods Ray each had hits. Josh Beasley added a 2-run triple as well. Jack Ross earned his second victory in four days on the hill, recording 3 innings of work.
Homewood capped off the area sweep with a 9-7 win over Briarwood on Wednesday. After Homewood burst out of the gates with 7 runs in the first inning, Briarwood chipped away and rallied to tie the game in the fifth inning. But Taylor Patterson came up big for the Patriots in the bottom of the sixth, hitting a 2-run single to put Homewood ahead for good. Waugh’s 3-run homer in the fourth inning was the big highlight in the Lions’ comeback effort. Nickoli earned his first career win after pitching 3 1/3 innings in relief. Charlie Teel had 3 hits in the game and Parris had 2 RBIs. For Briarwood, Higgins, Samuel Burr, Andrew McAdams and Sam Hoff all knocked in runs as well.
SOFTBALL
The Homewood and John Carroll softball teams traveled to Gulf Shores last week to play in the Gulf Coast Classic. Both teams split their two games Monday, with Homewood falling to Hokes Bluff 7-2 and beating Elberta 13-2, while John Carroll beat Decatur Heritage 15-2 and lost to Springville 5-3.
For Homewood, Eva White drove in the Patriots’ 2 runs in the Hokes Bluff game, before the bats game alive in the second game. In that contest, Susanna Sheehan led the way by going 2-for-4 with a triple and 4 runs batted in. White racked up 2 more hits and 2 RBIs, while Hunter Dunn, Emma Lawrence and Abigail Box each drove in runs as well.
John Carroll blew past Decatur Heritage, as Annie Gregory hit a home run and drove in 3 runs. Gracie Mills hit a triple and scored 4 times in the game, while Mallory Ogle went 3-for-4 with an RBI and 4 runs scored as well. Ogle pitched, too, allowing 2 runs (1 earned) on 6 hits in 5 innings. Charlotte Phillips and Kayla Coley-Drayton each knocked in 3 runs, while Avery Seidenfaden and Emily Williams notched an RBI each. In the Cavaliers’ loss, Phillips and Williams drove in runs.
Homewood and John Carroll each split their games Tuesday once again to wrap up pool play. Homewood earned a 5-2 win over Lawrence County and fell to Chattanooga Christian 13-3. John Carroll beat Vernon Hills 11-1 and fell to Ardmore 12-2.
For Homewood, Ella Walker hit a triple and drove in 2 runs in the Chattanooga Christian loss. In the win over Lawrence County, White, Walker, Katherine Howell and Zoe Couch all drove in runs for the Patriots. Couch pitched well, going 4 innings and allowing 2 runs on 5 hits.
For John Carroll, Coley-Drayton had a 2-run double to account for all the offense in the Ardmore loss. But the bats woke up against Vernon Hills. Phillips led the charge with the sticks, going 2-for-2 with a double, a home run and 5 RBIs in the contest. Coley-Drayton finished with 3 hits, — a single, double and triple — and drove in a pair of runs. Mills, Maggie Mackin, MC Golab and Williams all drove in single runs, while Ogle went 3-for-3 and scored 3 times. Gregory threw well, allowing just a run on 3 hits in 4 innings.
John Carroll earned its way into the bracket, but fell to Mortimer Jordan 5-2 on Wednesday morning.
— What else would you like to see mentioned? For any suggestions, feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnesmedia.com.
