The Reset: Bucs baseball falls in Game 3, track and field competes at sectional

Over the course of the year, the Hoover Sun will keep you up to date on the various Hoover and Spain Park high school athletic teams. For previous weekly updates, click here.

BASEBALL

The Hoover baseball team wrapped up the regular season with a 7-3 win over Smiths Station on Monday night, in a game played at Auburn’s Plainsman Park. Evan Veal (three RBIs) and Nolan Hammonds notched two hits apiece and six pitchers combined to scatter six hits for the Bucs.

The Bucs faced Hewitt-Trussville in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs over the weekend. The two teams split on Friday, but Hewitt-Trussville put together a seventh-inning rally to win Game 3 and end Hoover’s season.. Click here for a recap of the doubleheader split and here for a recap of Game 3.

SOFTBALL

Hoover

The Hoover softball team held Senior Night on Wednesday, as the Bucs honored Pepper Nichols, Paige Williamson, Mallory Mus, Fran Fernandez and Hannah Minor. All five seniors contributed in an 11-0 win over McAdory. Nichols went 4-for-4 and scored three runs, Mus tripled and drove in three runs, Williamson notched a hit and scored a run, and Minor and Fernandez combined for a three-hit shutout in the circle. Campbell Hecklinski also homered in the game, knocking in three runs.

Hoover competed in the Cullman Pre-State Blowout over the weekend and won both pool games on Friday. The Bucs beat Hayden, 2-1, to start the day, as Sydney Chandler’s two-run hit was the difference. Brynn Parker went six innings and allowed one run on four hits. Hoover walked off 1-0 winners over Chelsea in the second game, after Brookelyn Cannon tripled to lead off the fifth and Hannah Presley knocked her in to win the game. Cannon pitched as well, throwing five innings of shutout ball with four strikeouts.

The Bucs were eliminated in their first game on Saturday, a 7-3 loss to Helena. Presley knocked in two of Hoover’s runs in the game.

Spain Park

The Spain Park softball team played in its second annual Alzheimer’s awareness game, defeating Chelsea 2-1 on Wednesday night in a game played at Birmingham-Southern. Bailey Bowers drove in both Jags runs, including the second on a walk-off double in the eighth inning. Maddie Majors picked up three hits and scored both runs. Kate Campbell and Annabelle Widra each hurled four great innings in the circle.

Spain Park competed in the Cullman Pre-State Blowout over the weekend and opened the tournament with a pair of pool wins on Friday. The Jags knocked off Shelby County, 4-0, to start the day. Majors was 2-for-2 with a double and two RBIs, while Widra racked up three hits. Campbell notched a pair of hits and threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings in the circle. The second game was a dramatic, 4-3, win over Helena, as the Jags scored three runs in the final inning to win. Bowers’ game-winning hit capped off a four-hit game. Majors and Widra each got two hits and an RBI as well.

Saturday featured a quick exit from the tournament, as the Jags lost to Hartselle, 3-1. Bowers doubled and drove in a run in the game.

SOCCER

Hoover

The Hoover girls soccer team closed its season with a 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Monday night. The boys team closed out the regular season with a 5-1 win over Thompson on Tuesday. Vint Narvaez scored the Bucs’ first two goals, Harrison Gilmer scored the third and Seth Davis scored the final two.

Hoover’s boys will open the playoffs at Mountain Brook this Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Spain Park

The Spain Park boys soccer team honored its seniors on Monday night, as the Jags fell to Prattville, 2-0. The girls wrapped up their regular season with a 2-1 win over Mountain Brook on Tuesday to secure the area championship.

Spain Park’s girls will begin the playoffs by hosting Thompson at 6 p.m. Tuesday.

TRACK AND FIELD

Hoover

The Hoover outdoor track and field teams competed in the Class 7A, Section 3 meet, held at Mountain Brook on Friday and Saturday. The top five finishers in each event qualified for the state tournament, to be held this upcoming weekend in Gulf Shores.

For the girls, Melanie Hall ran the 200-meter dash in 26.18 seconds to finish fourth and advance to the state meet. Chakiya Plummer (56.05, second) and Michelle Nkoudou (57.61, third) advanced in the 400. Sydney Steely won the 800 (2:18.24) and was second in the 1600 (5:10.85). Emma Langley finished second in the 800 in 2:18.88. Ava Weems came home fifth in 5:17.14 in the 1600 and was third in the 3200, posting a time of 11:36.74. Caroline Sall finished second in the 3200 in 11:34.15.

Nkoudou (14.57), Plummer (14.94) and Genesis Jones (15.74) took home the top three spots in the 100 hurdles, while Plummer (43.47) and Nkoudou (45.53) finished first and second in the 300 hurdles. The girls 4x100 (49.48, third), 4x400 (4:14.67, fourth) and 4x800 (10:09.23, third) relay teams all advanced.

In the field, Genesis Jones was second in the high jump, posting a leap of 5 feet, 2 inches. Adetola Koiki won the long jump at 17-7, followed by Genesis Jones at 17-3.25. Alexandria Stone was fifth with a 16-2.5. In the triple jump, Amanda Jones (34-10.75) finished third. Riley White won the pole vault competition, as she cleared 12 feet. Natalie Tashman cleared 11 feet to finish third. Amber Bury was second in the javelin toss (117-1) and Rosalind Staie (37-10.5, first), Deja Washington (36-1.75, second) and Erin Williams (31-9, fifth) advanced in the shot put.

For the boys, RJ Nelson (10.84) and Zach Elam (11.01) took home the top two spots in the 100-meter dash. Nelson (22.16) and Jonathan Martin (22.64) were the top two in the 200. Marion Humphrey (48.23, first) and Elam (50.81, fourth) were quick enough to advance out of the 400, while Alex Leary won the 800 in 1:56.78. Humphrey won the 110 hurdles in 14.18 seconds, followed by Noah Williams (14.56, second) and Kennon Johnson (15.29, third). In the 300 hurdles, Humphrey (36.81, first), Johnson (39.36, second) and Williams (41.03, fourth) advanced. The boys 4x100 (41.99, first), 4x400 (3:15.96, first) and 4x800 (8:16.57, third) relay teams advanced as well.

In the field, Kyle Smith’s 6-6 in the high jump was good enough for third. Smith (22-1.25, first), John Watkins (20-10.25, fourth) and Anthony Davis (20-8.5, fifth) each advanced in the long jump. The same three also posted top-four finishes in the triple jump, as Smith went 47-0.5 for first, Watkins was second with a 45-9 and Davis was fourth with a 42-6. James Courson won the pole vault by clearing 16 feet and Jonathan Snell was second in the discus with a toss of 138-2.

Spain Park

The Spain Park outdoor track and field teams also competed in the Class 7A, Section 3 meet at Mountain Brook over the weekend. The top five finishers in each event qualified for the state tournament, to be held this upcoming weekend in Gulf Shores.

For the girls, Sydney Taylor advanced to the state by placing third in the 100-meter dash, finishing in 12.45 seconds. The girls 4x800 relay team finished second in 10:06.95 to advance as well. In the field, Makenna Kuhn cleared 9 feet to place fifth in the pole vault, while Katelyn McClure won the discus toss with a distance of 113 feet, 4 inches.

For the boys, Jacob Warner finished fourth in the 3200 in 9:40.6. The boys 4x800 relay team also qualified for state, finishing fifth in 8:44.18. Steven Pate was fourth in the discus toss (131-4), Josh Wallace was second in the javelin toss (158-3) and Matthew Gray (50-1.5, second) and Jake Pughsley (49-8.25, third) qualified from the shot put.

— What else would you like to see mentioned? For any suggestions, feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnespublishing.com.