Three weeks into the season and the defending state champion Columbia Academy Cougars (3-6) are still trying to figure out what it will take to win ball games but are playing better than their record indicates.
Playing against elite competition in the Adidas Deep South Tournament, the Cougars held their own at home over the course of the three-day tournament but suffered a pair of losses.
They got the ball rolling with a 7-5 win over St. Stanislaus Thursday night, breaking a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning on a Slade Wilks two-run home run and then shutting it down in the seventh.
Colby Thompson drove in two runs on a single, and Aaron Thomas had 2 RBI despite going hitless. Tate Duncan tossed four strong innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits and four walk while striking out four. Thomas got the win with three relief innings, allowing one earned run on five hits and one walk.
Friday night the Cougars ran into a very talented Spanish Fort (Ala.) ball club that has four 6A state titles in seven years and fell just short of a comeback win, falling 5-4. Columbia Academy entered the bottom of the sixth inning down 4-0 but scored two runs in the frame and two more in the seventh, but the Toros added an insurance run in the top half of the seventh that turned out to be the deciding run.
“By the beginning of district play we’re hoping to have (our identity) completely dialed in, but we saw a lot of good things this past weekend, especially Friday night,” head coach Heath Smith said. “Being able to play with a very talented Spanish Fort team coming down to the last inning against them, we saw a lot of different people step up at different moments. We saw people bounce back from some bad plays, and at the end of the game we were able to compete at a high level.”
Duncan drove in two runs on a pair of singles, Drew Havard had an RBI double and Wilks drove in a run in a 2-for-2 with three walks showing. Chance Forbes was solid on the bump, striking out nine in six innings and allowed four runs, two earned, on five hits and two walks. Wilks pitched the seventh inning and struck out two but allowed a run on two hits and two walks.
Columbia Academy hosted a powerful Walker (Ala.) squad Saturday afternoon and couldn’t keep pace in a 10-6 loss. The Cougars turned to eighth-grader Chandler Carver on the mound, who kept Walker off balance for a couple of innings, but the Vikings got to him in the fourth inning for six runs that put the game out of reach despite Havard cranking a grand slam in the bottom half of the frame.
Ethan Stringer had an RBI single and Harrison Hartzog, Ras Pace and Duncan each reached on singles. Wilks was strong pitching in relief, holding the Vikings scoreless through 3 1/3 innings and struck out four.
The Cougars have struggled to find consistency in the rotation behind Forbes, but Smith was encouraged by what he saw in the tournament.
“Spanish Fort is used to seeing guys in the mid 80s, and (Wilks) was able to go out there and hold them to one run and keep it close for us. Tate has been able to go deeper and deeper into the ball game, coming in late from basketball. We’re really waiting on him and Aaron Thomas both,” he said. “Their first two outings I’ve had to limit them to three or four innings.”
On offense Smith has moved Wilks, who is one of the best pure hitters in the state with 20 career home runs and 78 RBI as a sophomore, up to the leadoff spot to force opposing teams to pitch to him. He has been walked in 41 percent of his plate appearances and leading off will also allow him to take advantage of his speed. Behind him, Havard, Duncan and Pace, though, the Cougars have struggled finding consistency at the dish. Comparing the bottom half of the lineup this season to last, Smith said the focus is more on handling the bat well and playing small ball, making contact, laying down bunts and executing hit-and-run calls rather than trying to get guys on to score off home runs from the top of the lineup.
“The bottom half is going to be able to hit some doubles here and there, but the main thing they are going to have to do is keep playing small ball and just put pressure on the defense consistently.”
The Cougars will be heading down to the Coast this week to play in the Battle at the Beach, but the schedule has changed with Faith Academy (Ala.) dropping out of the tournament. The Cougars will play Amite School Center Thursday at 2:30 p.m. and Pascagoula at 7 at St. Martin then Christian Brothers (Tenn.) Friday at 2 p.m. at Ocean Springs.
“We’re going to play three quality teams down there. We feel more comfortable every time we put a lineup out there. We’re getting closer and closer to peaking,” Smith said. “We’ve lost a few nail biters, and it’s like last year’s team — we always talked about adversity and how we were going to bounce back within the games. This group is facing the same thing, but they’re showing up for every game and hopefully that can continue.”
Pictured Above: Columbia Academy third baseman Ras Pace throws to first base. | Photo by Joshua Campbell
