By Robert Carter

The North Jefferson News



In a case of the little guys taking on the big guys, the little guys hung tough, but not long enough.

Fultondale held host Gardendale to as little as a one-run lead in the fourth inning, but the Rockets broker the game open with five runs in the fourth and four more in the fifth to beat the Wildcats 13-3 in five innings Monday.

Cody Belcher (2-0) went the distance and picked up the win for Gardendale, scattering five hits while striking out nine on a bone-chilling afternoon.

Wesley Horn got the loss for the Cats, struggling with defensive problems but still throwing some impressive strikes along the way, enough for Rockets coach Pat Keedy to take notice.

“I was impressed,” Keedy said. “When he started throwing strikes, he threw well. But when it’s 25 degrees out there, it’s hard to concentrate. They were pretty adverse conditions, and they affected all of us.”

The Rockets jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, thanks to an Andrew Busby double that scored two runs, then successive RBI singles by Jeffrey Lankford and David Roberts.

But Fultondale crept back into the game a run at a time.

In the second, center fielder Corbin McCrary scored on an error, a passed ball and another error. In the third, he drove in Daniel Farrell, who had singled to get on base, then moved to third on two straight hit batsmen.

Shortstop Landon Robinson came home in the fourth on an error, and Gardendale’s lead was down to 4-3.

But that’s as close as the Wildcats got, as Horn’s arm started to tire when he gave up two walks and two singles. Coach Scott Sisk pulled him on a pitch count.

Conner McCain added a run-scoring double in the fifth and Busby brought home another on a hit, then scored the game-ending run on a wild pitch.

Despite his late trouble, Sisk was still fairly pleased with Horn’s outing.

“Horn has potential. He’s battling with Robinson for the number-one spot in the rotation,” Sisk said.

For Gardendale, Lankford had four RBIs on two hits and two walks. Busby was 3-for-4 with a double and three runs driven in. David Roberts was 2-for-2 with three RBIs.