Huntland Hornet Baseball Competes in Mountain Valley Classic

The Huntland Hornets wrapped up their weekend at the Mountain Valley Classic with a strong 9-5 win over Grundy County on Saturday, finishing the tournament undefeated at 3-0 and extending their overall winning streak to four games.

Huntland came out swinging in the first inning, putting three runs on the board right away. Matthew Dickson got things going with a two-run double and later came home on a wild pitch. The second inning was even more productive, as the Hornets piled on six more runs. Grant Jernigan knocked in two with a single, Caleb Maxwell brought in a run with a groundout, and Jed Ashley, Dickson, and Bryant Mooney each added RBI hits to stretch the lead to 9-0.

With a comfortable cushion, Huntland subbed in several bench players to give them some reps. Grundy County made a push late, scoring twice in the fourth and three more in the sixth, but couldn’t complete the comeback. Maxwell, who went the distance on the mound, got out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the sixth with a flyout. The game ended there due to a time limit.

Maxwell threw a complete game, striking out four while allowing six hits, five walks, and five runs — only two of which were earned.

That win pushed Huntland’s season record to 5-9.

Earlier in the day, Huntland battled past the Tennessee Heat in a wild 11-10 game. After jumping out to a 5-0 lead through the first two innings, things got dicey as the Heat rallied to take an 8-7 lead heading into what turned out to be the final inning.

Jernigan and Dickson helped set the tone early with a pair of quick runs in the first. In the second, Ashley, Riley, and Maxwell helped extend the lead. Maxwell drove in two more runs in the third, but errors cost the Hornets in the fourth as the Heat surged ahead.

Down by one, Huntland loaded the bases in the fifth with two outs. Dickson tied the game with an infield single, and Ashley came around to score on an error during the same play to give Huntland the lead back. Maddux Riley followed with a clutch two-run double that made it 11-8.

The Heat answered with two runs in the bottom half and had the tying and winning runs on base, but Eli Fitch shut the door with a big strikeout to lock down the win.

On the mound, Tyler Guess started and struck out three in two innings. Carter Walker pitched 1.2 innings in relief, followed by an inning from Dickson, and Fitch got the final out.

With both wins, Huntland improved to 5-9 on the season. They’ll be back in action Monday at home against Fayetteville City, with first pitch set for 6 p.m. You can hear that game on ESPN Radio Winchester WCDT+ Alternate Stream. Download the App or go to espnwinchester.com and click the stream from there.