In a week filled with out-of-state competition for several area baseball squads, Calera had the best showing of any in notching a 5-1 overall record and making a run to the semifinals of a tournament in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
The Bulldogs surprised Class 6A Oklahoma foe Norman North (3-2) and 4A Salina (12-4) in pool play bookend contests with their only loss coming in the final round to powerful Oak Ridge, TN (12-1).
Colbert, meanwhile, notched a 2-1 record in south Texas games in the Corpus Christi area while Silo posted a 2-2 mark while taking on a host of talented Arizona squads on a trek out west.
Calera Baseball
The Bulldogs cashed in a stellar pitching effort from Gavin Chaffin in the opening win against Norman North as the righthander allowed just two unearned runs on five hits in a complete game gem. He struck out four and walked none.
Calera trailed 2-1 through four innings but plated two in the fifth to snag the lead for good as they utilized a walk, Zaiden Craige bunt single and two-out hit from Hazyn Applegate to move in front.
They followed with a 7-1 win over Fayette County, Alabama, as Logan Bumgarner fired a two-hit complete game that included five strikeouts and two walks. Jaron Varner finished with a team-high three hits with two apiece from Bumgarner, Craige and Talon Rose.
The Bulldogs held off a late charge to beat Jackson South Side, 7-6, in the following matchup with Rose tossing five innings in which he scattered six hits for the pitching victory.
Calera pounded out 15 hits in that outing, spurred by three each from Bumgarner, Varner and Applegate. Craige and Lex Carlton tallied two hits apiece.
In the Salina triumph, Applegate went the distance on the mound, yielding four runs on six hits and fanned six.
The Bulldogs virtually from start to finish with a five-run sixth inning outburst breaking open a tight game. Bumgarner racked up three hits with Rose adding two along with two RBI.
They didn’t get much going offensively in the Oak Ridge loss but rebounded after returning home to Oklahoma in dispatching Marietta, 9-3.
Calera piled up 10 hits with Craige posting three and Bumgarner two in leading the charge.
Demarcus Dunn worked six strong innings on the mound, yielding three runs on six hits and struck out to post the win.
Colbert Baseball
The Leopards blasted their way to a 22-1 victory over Bishop Louis Reicher ahead of a 9-2 loss to Tuloso- Midway, Texas.
They bounced back to toppled Mathis in a 15-0 run rule to conclude the southern trip.
In that finale, Colbert plated one run in the second, two in the third, seven in the fourth and five in the fifth to pull away on a total of 10 hits.
Canon Marr recorded the pitching triumph with four solid frames, scattering three hits along with striking out six.
Marr and Remington Graham each contributed two hits in pacing the Leopards offensively. Isaiah Lopez, Kaden Neill, Eric Hokett, Garrett Taylor, Caleb Pierce and Hudson Brigman each tallied one hit.
Silo Baseball
Silo opened the Spring Break trip with a 10-6 win against Tolleson before seeing a lead slip away in a 9-8 loss to Willow Canyon. The Rebels then fell to powerhouse Cactus Shadows (10-0) and edged Notre Dame Prep (6-5) in the finale.
The Rebels got a combined pitching effort from Braden Hill and Sam Mendenall in game one but it was the red-hot bat of Landon Langley that keyed the assault as the senior produced four hits and scored twice. Jeret House notched three hits and knocked in two runs as well.
A host of errors proved costly in the Willow Canyon defeat as each team wrapped up with nine hits. Bryce Vandenburg led the charge with two hits and drove in three while Hill added two hits and one RBI.
The Rebels picked up just five hits facing Cactus Shadows but bounced back against Notre Dame Prep, scoring three times in the seventh to rally for the victory.
They loaded the bases on three free passes with the first run coming in on a wild pitch. Zane Sander then drove in the final two with a one-out hit.
Nolan Northcott was credited with the pitching victory with two scoreless frames of one-hit relief as he struck out four.