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The Class 2A No. 10-ranked Pike Liberal Arts Patriots (13-8, 4-0) picked up another Area 5 series win on Friday, shutting out Highland Home 14-0 on March 24.

KC Bradford went 2-for-3 at the plate for PLAS with a double and two runs in the win, while Davis Kilcrease went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and two runs. Cole Garrott also went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs. Rhodes Baker, Levi DeBoer, Wilson Cotton and Jackson Booth each scored two runs. Houston Gunter scored one run.

Dawson Bradford earned the shutout on the mound, striking out four batters, while giving up two hits and no runs in five innings pitched. Kilcrease, Payne Jefcoat and Dawson Bradford each earned a double play.

PLAS followed up with an 11-5 non-area loss to Houston Academy on the road on March 25. After Pike took a 2-1 lead in the first inning, Houston Academy scored eight runs in the next four innings to take a 9-2 lead. Pike attempted to rally, scoring three runs in the next two innings, but Houston Academy held on for the 11-5 win.

Garrott went 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI, while DeBoer scored two runs. John Lott, Cotton and Booth scored one run each.

Luke Barron took the loss on the mound, pitching three innings and giving up eight hits and five earned runs with three strikeouts. KC Bradford also struck out three batters, while giving up four hits and four earned runs in three innings pitched. Cotton pitched one inning and retired a batter, while giving up one hit and no earned runs.

The Charles Henderson Trojans (11-7) earned their second victory of the season over Class 2A’s No. 4-ranked Ariton Purple Cats by a score of 8-4 on March 25. Charles Henderson took a 3-0 lead in the third inning but Ariton managed to tie things up 3-3 going into the sixth inning and the score was knotted up 4-4 after seven innings. As things went into extra innings, Charles Henderson took control in the eighth. With the bases loaded, Cooper Johnson was walked giving, Chase Vaznaian the go-ahead run. Next, Bradley Prestwood scored on a wild pitch. Parker Adams then belted an RBI double that drove both Joshua Hooten and Cooper Johnson home to give CHHS the 8-4 lead. In the bottom of the eighth inning, with two outs, Ariton’s Connor Thrash hit a fly ball into center field that Vaznaian snagged to secure the win.

The win also marked the Trojans’ third straight win and fifth win in the last seven games. A total of eight Trojan batters earned hits in the win with Vaznaian and Johnson scoring two runs each, while Hooten, Adams and Will Templin scored one run. Adams also earned a double and KaNeil Lewis stole two bases.

For Ariton, Paxton Steed went 2-for-3 at the plate, while Caden Collier, Phenix Griffin, Lawson Leger and Dalton Murphy scored one run each. Austin Evans pitched three and 2/3 innings for the Purple Cats, striking out one batter and giving up four hits and one earned run.

Lewis pitched four innings and struck out a pair of batters, while giving up one hit and one earned run. Connor Jones pitched two and 1/3 innings and fanned one batter, while giving up two hits and one run. Wes Templin gave up two hits and two earned runs in one inning on the mound and Adams gave up no hits or runs in 1/3 of an inning.