By Johnny Sanders, Sports Editor
MOODY – The Moody Blue Devils took the momentum from back to back wins at Hoover last week and used it to put together two wins over the Ramsay Rams on Tuesday and Wednesday to punch their ticket to the 2023 Alabama State Playoffs.
It all got started on Tuesday as the Blue Devils got the 11-1 win over Ramsay. The Rams struck the first blow, getting the 1-0 lead after the opening inning. Moody would answer in the second and tie the game at 1 apiece before two scoreless innings. In the fifth inning, the Moody bats would get really hot, scoring 3 runs followed by 4 in the sixth and 3 more in the seventh, all while Bryant Hardin pitched lights out and the Blue Devils allowed no more runs the rest of the game and sealed the 11-1 victory. Hardin allowed just 1 run on 1 hit in the complete game while striking out 13 Ramsay batters in the process. Payton Isbell and Chase Marshall led from the plate driving in 2 RBI each but it was a team effort as 6 others would get a single RBI in the winning effort.
Blue Devil coach Eamonn Kelly said, “Tough start, to be honest. Their pitcher threw really well. We had to kind of wait him out. It took us a few innings to get rolling. I can’t say enough about freshman Bryant Hardin. He pitched well giving up 1 hit in 7 innings. Their team made routine plays and kept it close. I’m glad we were able to pull it out in the end.”
Originally scheduled for Thursday, the second game of the series was moved to Wednesday night due to weather, but that seemed to have no affect on the Blue Devils as they got the playoff-clinching win over the Rams 13-3. Moody jumped out to a 3-1 lead after one inning and then put 2 runs on the board in both of the next two innings, building a 7-1 lead heading into the fourth. The fourth inning would be scoreless by both teams but the Moody bats were not finished. In the fifth, Ramsay attempted a comeback in the top by scoring 2 runs, but Moody answered with 4 of their own, taking an 11-3 lead into the sixth. Moody would tack on 2 more runs in the sixth to end the game at 13-3 and get the Blue Devils to the playoffs. Isbell pitched 5 of the 6 innings, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits, striking out 9 batters. Brady Dodd came in to finish the game in the sixth, allowing not hits and no runs and striking out one. At the plate, Isbell and Marshall once again had 2 RBI each.
“Winning game 2 punched our ticket to the playoffs,” said Coach Kelly. “We just keep focusing on ourselves and some of the goals we have set. Most of those goals are in game goals. Making routine plays, sticking to our offensive plan and pitching it well. Ramsay is being coached well. Those kids are in good hands. They are playing good ball. I am glad we were able to do the little things right and set up a big area matchup with a good Leeds team.”
Moody, now riding a 4-game winning streak, will take on a Leeds team that is riding a winning streak of their own at 6 games straight on Tuesday at Moody.