RED DEVILS SLIDE INTO QUARTERFINALS

BJF GungHo Photos

Tied one game a piece, the Red Devils' Braden Miller stared down the batters from Pleasant Valley as he pitched a complete game. With 73 pitches in 5 innings, he gave up no runs, 9 first pitch strikes and only allowed 3 hits with 2 walks.  However, a pitcher is only as good as his defense.  The Red Devils only made 1 error while Pleasant Valley fell apart with 9.

Stephen Gross/Anniston Star

Elkmont jumped out to a demoralizing lead early, pushing 7 runs across the plate in the second inning. The Red Devils led by 11 by the end of the fourth. The game was run rule called after Pleasant Valley couldn't score in the fifth inning.  Elkmont moved to the quarterfinals of the 3A state playoffs with their 12-0 win.

Brian Rios led the Red Devils with 3 hits. Jackson Cook and Patrick Jobman each finished with a hit. Several of the Elkmont players collected walks, Bryce Tyler with three, Cook had two and Brady Garris rounded it out one. Jackson Cook had two RBIs; Garris and Hunter Pittman contributed 1 RBI each.

 Stephen Gross/Anniston Star

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
ELKMONT	0	7	1	3	1	X	X	12	5	1
PLEASANT VALLEY	0	0	0	0	0	X	X	0	3	9

Elkmont (20-19) hosts Colbert Heights next Friday in the quarterfinals. It is Elkmont’s first baseball quarterfinal appearance.

“There’s a lot of excitement around here right now about baseball,” second-year Elkmont coach Zack Standridge said. “That excitement is warranted. These guys are making something special happen. It’s pretty awesome to sit back and watch it happen.”



To read complete article, click on Decatur Daily

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK WITH THE LITTLE DEVILS DIAMONDS

SOFTBALL
Monday:

12U beat East, 11-4; Way to go ladies!!!!

TUESDAY:
6U
 

Proud of my Diamond Divas today with their 13-5 win over West. Also thanks to Kasey N Menefee for our new hair bows to support #prayersforashleigh


THURSDAY:

6U
Elkmont 2  played for Ashleigh Jones tonight. We brought home the win 17-12 against Ardmore 3. So proud of these girls and their heart!!

12U
Elkmont beat Lindsay Lane, 8-3. Way to go girls!!!! 

SATURDAY:
6U 


Congrads to the Diamond Divas on their 11-9 win over Ardmore 1.  They played extra hard today and came out on top.

8U

Super proud of these girls, Elkmont 2. Bats were HOOOOTTTTTT today.Had a good win today over East,13-7. Love watching these girls come together.

12U
Lady Devils beat Ardmore 20-1.

RED DEVILS SPLIT PLAYOFF SERIES

Elkmont traveled to Pleasant Valley yesterday for the first two games of the second round of the state 3A playoffs.  

The Red Devils dropped the first game 6-4 as Pleasant Hill hit a two run homers to the win. Elkmont's pitcher, Brett Parker threw 6 complete innings with 15 first pitch strikes and 3 strikeouts.  Jackson Cook had 2 hits and Ryan Boyd contributed 1 hit.  Patrick Jobman walked to first two times and Jonathan Craig walked once.  Craig and Bryce Tyler had 1 RBI each.

Photo by Anniston Star

 

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
ELKMONT	0	1	2	1	0	0	0	4	4	4
PLEASANT VALLEY	2	0	1	1	0	2	X	6	7	1

In a must win second game, Elkmont pulled it together for the win, 5-3. Jackson Cook was the winning pitcher and pitched a complete game with 19 first pitch strikes and 5 strikeouts.  Pleasant Valley's pitching walked three Red Devils with Ryan Boyd, Bryce Tyler and Brian Rios each collecting a free trip to first. Patrick Jobman and Bryce Tyler each contributed 1 RBI each. 

 
 

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
PLEASANT VALLEY	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	3	7	4
ELKMONT	2	0	0	0	3	0	X	5	4	2

They will be back in Pleasant Valley this afternoon  at 2 pm for the final and deciding game. 

RED DEVILS START SECOND ROUND OF STATE PLAYOFFS TODAY

Fresh off an upset of No. 3 Oakman in the first round of the state baseball playoffs, Elkmont is eager to build off that momentum when they travel to Pleasant Valley for a second round series Friday.

Elkmont's win over the third-ranked team in Class 3A couldn't have come in more dramatic fashion Saturday in the deciding game of the series. Oakman scored a run in the top of the seventh inning to pull within 4-3 and had runners on second and third with one out.

Elkmont pitcher Jackson Cook forced one batter to pop out to center field and got the final out on a ground ball to shortstop Hunter Pittman, allowing Elkmont to hang on for a dramatic first-round playoff victory.

“The guy (Curry) hits probably the hardest hit of the whole series and for whatever reason the runner on third didn't tag,” said Elkmont head coach Zach Standridge. “Our center fielder, Patrick Jobman, made a great play. If he doesn't catch that, they go up 5-4 and probably win the game.”

Elkmont upset No. 3 Oakman 3-2 in the opener, then lost the second game 14-2 Friday night to force a third game. In Saturday's deciding game, Elkmont jumped out to an early lead and held on for a 4-3 victory to advance.

Elkmont saved its best for last, putting Cook on the mound when it mattered most. Cook struck out seven batters and allowed three runs in a complete game win.

“Jackson made a lot of good pitches and we made some plays when we had to,” said Standridge. “He made some great pitches in some clutch positions. Can't say enough about how well he played.”

Not many people gave Elkmont (18-18) a chance on the road against an Oakman team that racked up 26 victories this season. With Cook or Brett Parker on the mound, however, Standridge said he knew his team would have a chance.

“We knew they would be good. They probably have the best pitching staff of any 3A team we've faced,” he said. “But we also knew our pitchers would give us a chance to win. If we could hold them, we thought we could win a few low scoring games.”

Elkmont's strategy worked to near perfection. The Red Devils ground out a 3-2 victory in Friday's opening game and started Cook in the second game. After several errors led to two Curry runs in the second inning and with Curry's best pitcher on the mound, Standridge opted to save Cook for Saturday's deciding game.

“We felt like we could win if we scored four or five runs. We got some clutch hits and were ahead in every game.” said Standridge. “I think they played a little tight because they were the favorite and us being ahead in those games helped.”

Elkmont did not know if they would even be in the playoffs until its final area series of the season. The Red Devils needed a win over rivals Clements in their final area game April 13 to secure a playoff berth.

“We beat Clements to get into the playoffs and then beat Ardmore earlier in the week at their place,” said Standridge. “We carried that momentum into Oakman. The kids are playing with a lot of confidence right now.”
First pitch from Pleasant Valley in Jacksonville is 5 p.m. Friday.

Jonathan Deal

Athens News Courier

LAST WEEK IN LITTLE DEVIL DIAMONDS

Rain was an issue for last week's game.  Hopefully, some games will get played this week.

MONDAY
SOFTBALL
6U
Congrats to Elkmont Diamond Divas on their 15-9 win over East 1 in extra innings! They never gave up!

NO RAIN ON ELKMONT'S PARADE

As rain clouds dumped an inch on the Hilltop, the Elkmont Red Devils traveled to Oakman High for the sunny final and deciding game of the first round playoff series against the Wildcats. 

It was a close game but Elkmont won 4-3 and will move on to the next round of the state playoffs.  They will be traveling to Pleasant Valley (9-19) on Friday for the series.

 

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
OAKMAN	0	1	1	0	0	0	1	3	9	4
ELKMONT	1	3	0	0	0	0	X	4	7	3

 

Winning pitcher, Jackson Cook had an outstanding performance on the mound today for a complete game.  He had 24 first strike pitches and 7 strikeouts.  

Mountain Eagle Link: Missed Opportunities

RED DEVILS - FIRST ROUND OF STATE PLAYOFFS

Elkmont traveled to Oakman High in Walker County for the first round of the 3A state playoffs against the Area 12 champions.  The Wildcats had an overall 24-5 record and were 8-1 in their area before the Red Devils rolled into town.

Winning the first game 3-2, the Red Devils weren't able to put Oakman away in the second game. They lost 14-2 and travel back for game 3 at noon today!

ELKMONT PLAYS IN THE FIRST ROUND OF STATE PLAYOFFS TODAY

The Red Devils clinched the runner-up spot in 3A Area 15 by winning an area series with Clements last week. Elkmont (14-15) will travel to Oakman (23-5) TODAY for a doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m. Elkmont will be the home team for the second game at 6:30 pm.  If the doubleheader is split, the final game will be on Saturday @ 11 am

RED DEVILS ON A ROLL

After clinching the area series with Clements, Elkmont was still riding that wave when they washed into Ardmore last night. The Red Devils wouldn't give up and it took an extra inning but the win was theirs, 6-3.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	R	H
ELKMONT	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	3	6	10
ARDMORE	0	0	0	2	0	0	1	0	3	10

 

Brett Parker and Jackson Cook teamed up for 6.2 innings. Braden Miller finished up the 1.1 inning that added up to 8 for the total game.  Parker had 1 strikeout and 8 first pitch strikes.  Cook threw 11 first pitch strikes and also had 1 strikeout.

 

 

On offense, the Red Devils' hit leaders were Bryce Tyler with 3 hits and Hunter Pitman with 2.  Patrick Jobman, Brady Garris and Brian Rios had 1 walk each. Rios was at the top of the RBI board with 3 and Brady Garris followed with 2.

Our Red Devils have one more game before playoffs on Friday.  They are traveling to St. John Catholic High in Huntsville today.  First pitch is scheduled for 4:30 PM.

RED DEVILS IN STATE PLAYOFFS

Elkmont earned a playoff spot in the Alabama State Playoffs by taking the series against Clements, April 13.  They will be playing at Oakman High School in Walker County on Friday.  This is the Red Devils' first appearance in the playoffs since 2012.

Earlier in the week, the first game of the series was played at Clements.  The Red Devils were able to put together an error free game to beat the Colts,  5-0.

On Thursday, the deciding games were played at Elkmont and were part of the Senior Night festivities.   

FIRST GAME:

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
CLEMENTS	0	0	4	2	0	0	5	11	13	4
ELKMONT	0	0	0	2	5	1	1	9	5	2

 

 

Hunter Pittman led the Red Devils with a single, a walk and three RBIs. Patrick Jobman had a hit, two walks and two runs scored. Brett Parker pitched four complete innings with eleven first pitch strikes and five strike outs.  

 

 

Jackson Cook (two strike outs) and Clay Hunt also had mound appearances.  The Red Devils led 8-6 going into the last inning but couldn't hold the lead.  Clements scored five runs to take the game, 11-9. 

 

SECOND GAME:

Clements and Elkmont were now tied 1-1 in the series, the state playoffs were on the line.  Post season play of either team depended on this all important deciding game. 

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
CLEMENTS	3	0	0	1	0	0	x	4	9	2
ELKMONT	2	3	0	1	1	7	x	14	9	3

After a depressing first game, the Red Devils recouped and ran out on the field, ready for a rematch. Jackson Cook put together a complete game to help Elkmont clinch the final game of the series. He had 22 first pitch strikes, and 2 strike outs.  

The Red Devils led going into the sixth inning and held the Colts scoreless. The flood gates opened at the bottom of the seventh as Elkmont scored seven runs and won the game, 14-4.