Handley sweeps Dale County in round one; Wadley, RCHS eliminated

The Handley Tigers got a pair of shut-down pitching performances and just enough timely hitting to put together a two-game sweep of Dale County in the first round of the state playoffs in Roanoke Friday.

Handley won 3-1 and 7-0 behind complete games from Rhett Fetner and Jaxon Whaley.

The Tigers are in the second round for the second time in the last three seasons, and will look to advance to round three for the first time in school history.

Fetner went the distance in game one and scattered six hits while striking out 11. He surrendered a two-out RBI single in the third inning that proved to be the only run of the day for Dale County and gave the Warriors a 1-0 lead.

Handley finally broke through in the fifth thanks to a two-out RBI single off the bat of Clayton Owens. The Tigers then claimed the lead with two runs in the sixth courtesy of back-to-back RBI hits from Dre Watkins and Colby Cagle.

Cagle held the hot bat in game one as he went 3-for-3 and scored a run as well.

In game two Whaley picked up right where Fetner left off, pitching-wise. Whaley earnd the shutout as he allowed just four hits and recorded three strikeouts.

Handley got the only run it needed in the first inning when Malik Meadows scored on misplayed fly ball off the bat of Jay Brown.

Shortstop Cagan Hamby delivered some insurance in the fourth with a two-run single that put Handley on top 3-0.

Fetner provided the decisive final blow in the sixth inning when he cranked a three-run home run that gave Handley a 7-0 cushion.

Fetner finished the game 3-for-4 with a double and four RBI. Hamby and Watkins had Handley’s only other two hits in the game.

Handley will take on the winner of the UMS-Wright vs. Hale County series in round two. That series will begin next Friday.

Wadley

Wadley suffered a defensive meltdown in the deciding game three of its series with Millry Friday, and the result was a 13-0 loss in five innings.

Wadley committed six errors in a six-run second inning for Millry as the Wildcats built an 8-0 lead.

The Bulldogs were unable to muster any offense, as Ryan Fulghum’s two-out single in the third inning was the team’s only hit in the game.

RCHS

RCHS was swept in a pair of one-run games against Bayside Academy in Wedowee Friday. Bayside won 7-6 in the first game and 11-10 in the second, after RCHS had rallied to a take a 10-9 lead in the seventh inning.

It’s the first time RCHS has lost in the first round in the past five seasons and the first playoff series they have lost at home in that time.

Look for complete coverage of each of these first-round playoff series in Wednesday’s print edition of the Randolph Leader.