FRIDAY ROUNDUP: Trinity opens playoff with sweep of Southside-Selma; 6A tennis update

Preston Berry slides into second ahead of the throw in Trinity’s first-round win over Southside Selma on Thursday. (Tim Gayle)

By TIM GAYLE

BASEBALL

Trinity 16-21, Southside-Selma 0-0

Ben Easterling pitched the Wildcats to a 16-0 shutout in the opener and Coleman Ellis duplicated the shutout in a 21-0 win as Trinity made quick work of the overmatched Panthers in the first round of the 3A state playoffs on Thursday at Whittle-Armstrong Field.

Trinity (20-7) won its 13th consecutive game in the process and will travel to face the winner of Friday’s series between Bayside Academy and Houston Academy in the second round next week. 

Macon East Academy 0-10, Morgan Academy 4-3

SELMA -- Two top seeds took advantage of the weekend off by scheduling each other in a doubleheader at Morgan Academy on Thursday.

Andrew Thomas pitched a one-hitter in helping the Senators shut out Macon East 4-0 before the Knights rallied for a 10-3 win in the second game of the doubleheader.

Thomas pitched a complete game in the opener, striking out 11 and allowing only a hit by Colby Cox in a defensive struggle the Senators won with two runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth.

Cox took the loss on the mound for Macon East, pitching four innings and allowing four hits and two runs while striking out four.

In the second game, Matthew Kitchens, with a little help from Morgan, pitched the Knights to victory. 

Macon East scored four runs in the fifth inning to break a 3-3 tie and added three more in the seventh. Cox had three hits and Cox and Khamani Driver each had a pair of RBIs as Morgan committed five errors in the game.

Kitchens allowed just three hits in six innings of work while striking out five.

Morgan drew a first-round bye in the playoffs this weekend and will play host to Lee-Scott in a second-round series next Thursday. 

Macon East (24-9) drew a first-round bye in the playoffs this weekend and will play host to the winner of Friday’s series between Wilcox Academy and Southern Academy next Thursday. 

SOFTBALL

Catholic 10, Jeff Davis 0 (5)

Alanna Aiken pitched a complete game no-hitter, striking out 10 batters, as the Knights coasted to a 10-0 win over Jeff Davis on Thursday. At the plate, Nona Johnson hit a grand slam, Riley Wilcoxson had a pair of hits and Carissa Gilbert had a pair of RBIs.

Catholic (18-12-1) will play host to Alabama Christian next Tuesday. 

Macon East Academy 18, Lee-Scott Academy 1 (3)
CECIL -- Kylee Smith and Taylor McKinney combined on a two-hitter as the Knights scored 17 runs in the first inning and another in the second in an 18-1 win shortened to three innings by the mercy rule.

Smith struck out three in her two innings of work while driving in three runs at the plate. Alyssa Clark had a pair of hits to lead the Macon East offense.

Macon East (38-15) will play host to Morgan Academy on Friday.  

Catholic 15, Robert E Lee 0 (3)

Carissa Gilbert and Jennifer Looney combined to strike out eight Generals and limit Robert E. Lee to just one hit in a game shortened to three innings by the mercy rule.

At the plate, Alanna Aiken had a pair of hits, scored a pair of runs and drove in two more. Chloe Walden and CeCe Crawford each had three RBIs, while Mallory Hildebrand, Nona Johnson and Hannah Parrish each had two RBIs.

Catholic (17-12-1) will play host to Jeff Davis on Thursday.

GIRLS SOCCER

Trinity 5, Houston Academy 0

Emilyn Etheredge scored three goals and Katherine Warren and Mary Davis Bricken each added a goal as Trinity shut out Houston Academy 5-0 in the regular-season finale on Wednesday. 

Healey Mathison assisted on two of the goals, while Mary Alice Sasser and Bentley Moore each added an assist to help Trinity improve to 8-0 in area play. 

Trinity (15-4-1) will play host to Bayside Academy in the first round of the 1A-3A state playoffs on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Ragsdale-Boykin Field. Tickets can be purchased on GoFan.

GIRLS TENNIS

Montgomery Academy in third behind Mountain Brook, St. Paul’s in 6A state tournament 

All three Montgomery Academy doubles teams advanced into Friday’s semifinal round, giving the Eagles some hope as they enter the final day of competition in third place, trailing Mountain Brook (43) and St. Paul’s Episcopal (39) with 37 points. 

Trinity is tied for 10th with nine points.

At No. 1 doubles, Montgomery Academy’s Jenna Chandler and Mae Mae Voltz beat Buckhorn’s Makiyah Hawthorne and Jessica Gorman 6-0, 6-1, and St. Paul’s Libbie Hamilton and Emma Clement 6-0, 6-0 and will face Jasper’s Sophia Poolos and Amelia Poolos in Friday’s semifinals.

Trinity’s Sydney Speagle and Margaret Roby lost their first-round match to Decatur’s Anna Harbin and Abby Glover 6-4, 6-1.

At No. 2 doubles, Montgomery Academy’s Gabby Barrera and McRae Freeman beat Buckhorn’s Callista Throop and Nora Heeney 6-0, 6-0 and Jasper’s Jenna Brown and Riley Aldridge 6-1, 6-3 to reach Friday’s semifinal round.

Trinity’s Hollister Dorey and Mary Elizabeth Hill lost their opening match to St. Paul’s Maggie Sullivan and Emma Jane Hamilton 6-4, 6-1.

At No. 3 doubles, Montgomery Academy’s Cate Peeples and MaryLee Kelso beat Arab’s Josselyn Kalber and Shelby Moore 6-1, 6-1 and Buckhorn’s Ashley Hills and Isabelle Youngren 6-0, 6-2 to reach Friday’s semifinal round.

Trinity’s Stella Kate Grayson and Kensley Williamson beat Gardendale’s Lauren Daniel and Kenzie Chambers-Robinson 6-0, 6-0 before losing to Northridge’s Alice Rowley and Carther Thomason 6-1, 6-2.

Trinity’s top three singles players lost their opening-round match, but No. 4 Roby, No. 5 Grayson and No. 6 Williamson all won opening-round matches before losing the second one.

Montgomery Academy faced a similar fate as No. 4 Freeman lost an opening match and No. 3 Voltz and No. 5 Ann Cobern Chapman won opening-round matches before losing the next match.

At. No. 1 singles, Barrera beat Trinity’s Speagle 6-0, 6-2, and Helena’s Joana Atchley 6-1, 6-1, to reach the semifinals and at No. 2 singles, Chandler beat Buckhorn’s Jessica Gorman 6-2, 6-0, to reach the quarterfinals. At No. 6 singles, Kareena Singh beat Springville’s Reagan Kendrick 6-1, 6-1, and Trinity’s Williamson 6-1, 6-1, to reach Friday’s semifinals.  

BOYS TENNIS

Trinity holds slim lead over Montgomery Academy in 6A state tournament

Trinity’s Samuel Treadwell upended Mountain Brook’s Ethan Shunnarah 6-1, 6-1, to reach Friday’s semifinals at No. 4 singles, giving the Wildcats a slim lead over the rest of the 6A field entering today’s action in the state tournament at the Mobile Tennis Center.

Treadwell’s quarterfinal win gave Trinity 39 points, followed by Montgomery Academy (35), Northridge (33), Mountain Brook (32) and Briarwood Christian (29) in the race for the 6A state championship. 

At No. 1 singles, Trinity’s Thomas Treadwell defeated Fort Payne’s Bryson Lyles 6-1, 6-0 to reach the quarterfinals, while Montgomery Academy’s Hamilton Chapman beat Buckhorn’s Tyler Hills 6-0, 6-0, to reach the quarterfinals.

At No. 2 singles, Trinity’s Timothy Hornsby lost his opening match to Mountain Brook’s Dru Gresham but Montgomery Academy’s Whit Davis beat Fort Payne’s Shao Chen 6-0, 6-0, to reach the quarterfinals.

At No. 3 singles, Montgomery Academy’s Guy Hughes beat McGill-Toolen’s Nick Short 6-2, 6-3, to reach the Friday quarterfinals against Trinity’s Luke Franklin, who defeated Mortimer Jordan’s Andrew Krack 6-0, 6-1.

At No.4 singles, Montgomery Academy’s John Alford beat Buckhorn’s Michal Lesesne 6-0, 6-0, to reach the quarterfinals and Samuel Treadwell beat Springville’s Matthew Love, but then managed to squeeze in a quarterfinal win over Shunnarah to give the Wildcats the points lead.

At No. 5 singles, Montgomery Academy’s Charlie Hill beat Chelsea’s Eli Southerland 6-2, 6-1, to reach Friday’s quarterfinal round against Trinity’s James Treadwell, who beat Hillcrest’s Andrew Scott 6-0, 6-2.

At No. 6 singles, Montgomery Academy’s Jackson Brown lost his opening-round match, while Trinity’s Jon Paul Tankersley beat Buckhorn’s Nathan Scruggs 6-1, 7-5.

At No. 1 doubles, Chapman-Davis beat Briarwood Christian’s Luke Wolf and Aubrey Middleton 6-2, 6-2, and Mortimer Jordan’s Caise McGraw and Troy Mann 6-0, 6-1, to reach Friday’s semifinal round against Trinity’s Thomas Treadwell and Hornsby, who beat McGill’s Zachary Regan and Nick Short 6-2, 6-3, and Northridge’s Thomas Harper and Kelen Rhea 6-3, 7-5.

At No. 2 doubles, Trinity’s Samuel and Jame Treadwell reached Friday’s semifinal round by beating Fort Payne’s Anthony Chim and Austin Evans 6-0, 6-1, and Briarwood’s Jase Schwanke and Lesesne 6-7, 7-5, 1-0(6). The MA duo of Hughes and Hill lost in the opening round.

At No. 3 doubles, Alford-Brown beat McGill’s Austen Jackson and Joseph Blanchette 6-0, 6-1, and Hillcrest’s Walker Dreyfus and Jeremiah Lowther 6-1, 6-1 to reach Friday’s semifinal round, while the Trinity team of Franklin and Matthew Satcher lost in the opening round.