Centreville baseball advances to state semifinals
Published 12:00 am Friday, May 4, 2018
The Centreville Academy Tigers punched their ticket to the MAIS Class AA South State championship baseball series Thursday after completing their second-round sweep over Newton Academy, 3-2.
Centreville jumped out to score three runs in bottom of the first inning and held on with stellar defense to seal the win.
“It’s been a few years since we’ve been in this position,” Centreville coach Jason Horne said. “It feels really good and the kids are really excited.”
Horne said though the defense really pulled through, the fast start was a big help.
“We were able to muster out a few early runs and were able to get out of a few jams,” he said. “We always seemed to get a ground ball right at the right time.”
Jace Delee earned the win pitching 4.1 innings, striking out six batters and giving up just one hit. Brandon McIntyre got the save in the final 2.3 innings while also allowing just one hit.
“They both pitched great,” Horne said.
Dustin Roberts led the Tiger offense batting 2-for-3 with one RBI and one run scored.
Moving forward, Centreville (21-8) will play Brookhaven Academy in the state semifinals next week. Horne said he expects Game 1 to be Tuesday at home, but it has not been confirmed.
“I’m really proud of the kids,” Horne said. “We’ve played well most of the year, and hopefully we can keep it going.”