Class 6A baseball battle of top 10 Hartselle, Homewood headed for Monday Game 3 after split

Homewood pitchers Jack Ross and Levi Nickoli limited Hartselle’s big hitters to a pair of runs while the duo combined with Will Dobbins on offense to power the Patriots to a 3-2 Game 2 victory on Saturday.

The win in the best-of-3 series between Class 6A top 10 teams forced a deciding game on Monday after Hartselle won the first game 3-1.

Ninth-ranked Homewood (30-8) scored all its Game 2 runs in the pivotal third inning.

Nickoli coaxed a 2-out walk and Ross slammed a line drive double to center field, setting the stage for Dobbins. The first baseman belted the first pitch he saw for a 2-run double that proved the eventual game-winner.

Second-ranked Hartselle (28-8) struck back for 2 runs off starter Ross in the bottom of the inning, Chris Hutson’s single sandwiched between outs to start the rally. Easton Nelms doubled home Hutson and Cole Miles stroked a single to left field.

That was it for the scoring, Homewood pitchers holding Hartselle to 2 hits the rest of the way. Ross allowed a fourth inning single and Nickoli gave up a single in the fifth.

Hartselle provided drama in the bottom of the seventh when Keaton Nance walked to start the inning and was sacrificed to second for the first out. Nickoli got a strikeout for out 2 and Nelms was intentionally walked.

Nickoli got 2 quick swinging strikes on Miles, who fouled off 2 more pitches then watched 2 balls before a flyout to left field.

Ross and Nickoli combined to scatter 5 hits with 5 strikeouts and 4 walks.

Hartselle starter Connor Stiles gave up 5 hits and 4 walks with 7 strikeouts in 5-2/3 innings while reliever Asher Doepel walked 3 and struck out 2 with no hits in 1-1/3 innings.

Homewood’s Dobbins was 2-for-4 with the game-winning double while Cooper Mullins and Jack Bland also had hits.

Hartselle Game 1 starting pitcher Jace Meadows allowed a run on 4 hits with 8 strikeouts and 2 walks in the complete-game win.

Meadows got all the run support needed when Miles’ 2-run double in the third put the Tigers ahead for good. Hartselle added a run-scoring double by pinch-hitter Lance in the sixth for a 3-0 lead.

Miles was 2-for-4 with a run and 2 RBIs while Nelms and Braden Weathers each added a double.

Homewood’s Ross stroked an RBI-double for the only run. Ross was 2-for-3 while George Brockwell was also 2-for-3.