Sneads Wins Five Straight on the Diamond
By: Shelia Mader
The Sneads Pirates baseball team is off to a red‑hot start this season, winning six of their first seven contests, including an impressive five straight. Solid pitching and timely, productive at‑bats have been the keys to their early success. This past week alone, Sneads run‑ruled Liberty County 11–1 on Tuesday, handed Aucilla Christian a 5–1 loss on Thursday, and capped things off Friday with a nail‑biting 4–3 victory over Blountstown.
In the win over Liberty County, Coach Andy Shelton handed the ball to Dylan Chester, who delivered three shutout innings, allowing just two hits with two walks and a pair of strikeouts. JJ Harrell followed with a flawless inning, striking out two without allowing a hit or walk. John Loftus closed the game, surrendering just one unearned run on one hit while striking out one.
Offensively, Khalil Garrett continued to shine with two hits, a run scored, and two RBIs. Traivon Danzey added a walk, a hit, two runs, and two RBIs. Both Connor McSpaddin and Creed Whitworth contributed a hit, a walk, a run scored, and two RBIs apiece. Griffin Pickron chipped in with a hit, a run, and an RBI to round out the attack.
Thursday night’s matchup saw the Pirates’ pitching staff dominate once again, holding Aucilla Christian to a single unearned run in the 5–1 victory. Whitworth impressed on the mound, working six and two‑thirds innings while giving up just one unearned run on five hits, three walks, and striking out nine. Harrell came in to finish the final two‑thirds inning, keeping the board clean with no hits, walks, or runs allowed.
At the plate, Garrett again led the charge with a hit, a run scored, and an RBI. Alex Gaines added a walk and an RBI, and Whitworth helped his own cause with a hit, two walks, and a run scored. McSpaddin notched a hit, a walk, and a run, while Danzey contributed a hit and a run as well.
In their final game of the week, Sneads edged out Blountstown 4–3 in a tight, hard‑fought win. Pickron got the start and went five and two‑thirds innings, allowing three unearned runs on seven hits, striking out six. Chester came on in relief, tossing a strong one and one‑third innings with no runs allowed, one hit, three walks, and three strikeouts.
Garrett kept his bat sizzling with two hits and two RBIs. Gaines added a hit and drove in a run, while Hoke Harkrider recorded a hit and a walk. Pickron also contributed a hit to his day’s work.
The Pirates were scheduled to be on the road Monday at North Bay Haven before traveling to Tallahassee to take on Rickards. They will return home tonight to face the Munroe Bobcats, with first pitch set for 6 p.m.
