WALLACE STATE ROUNDUP: Men’s tennis wins 4th straight match; Baseball, men’s golf updates

Published 6:58 pm Monday, March 18, 2019

HANCEVILLE — Wallace State’s 16th-ranked men’s tennis team has won four consecutive matches after notching a conference victory over Gadsden State last Friday and over East Central Mississippi on Sunday.

The Lions won both matches, 9-0, sweeping singles and doubles action.

For Wallace State, No. 1 Sebastian Arce, No. 2 Ethan Aycock, No. 3 Nick Hester, No. 4 Andrew Bizilia, No. 5 Zach Mastin and No. 6 Will Brackin each prevailed in singles in both matches.

In doubles action, the WSCC duos of Arce and Brackin, Aycock and Hester, and Bizilia and Hicks won in both matches.

The Lady Lions’ 24th-ranked squad defeated East Central Mississippi, 6-3.

Nicole Barron (6-3, 6-3), Emily Perry (6-2, 7-6), Haley Putman (4-6, 6-2, 10-2), Maggie Taylor (6-2, 6-2) and Kailee Upchurch (6-1, 6-0) each notched singles victories for Wallace State.

In doubles, Putman and Crissy Cruz won 8-3 for the Lady Lions.

Both Wallace State tennis teams travel to Meridian (Miss.) on Friday as they embark on a three-match Mississippi trip.

MEN’S GOLF

Wallace State men’s golfers Cody Maddox and Anthony Lumpkin each made the Ron Marshall Spring Fling All-Tournament team at Goose Pond Colony in Scottsboro over the weekend. The Lions finished tournament runner-up.

Maddox carded a 2-over par 218 (73-74-71), finishing three strokes behind low medalist Mac Murphy of Calhoun.

Lumpkin was fifth overall, carding a 7-over 223 (75-72-76).

Wallace State, playing in its first tournament since the death of Hall of Fame coach Dan York, finished 15 strokes behind Calhoun.

Connor Bruce, who won the Coastal Alabama Invitational last month, was 11th overall at Goose Pond Colony with a 13-over 229 (78-73-78) for the Lions. Wallace State’s Matt Smith and Carter Goodwin each finished tied for 14th.

Wallace State heads to Foley on March 24-26 for the Glenlakes Invitational.

BASEBALL

Wallace State’s baseball team has won seven of its first eight conference games after capping a series win against Lawson State over the weekend.

The Lions (11-6, 7-1 ACCC) earned wins of 7-5 and 10-6 in Birmingham on Saturday after splitting the first two games of the series with the Cougars at home on March 13. 

In the 7-5 victory, Jack Haney finished 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs, Kevin Dowdell was 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored, and Ty Hill was 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Brady Sherrill contributed an RBI double as Wallace State pounded out 11 hits, and Easton Kirk, Noah Fondren and Collin Rogers each added a single.

Robert Coleman (3-1) was the winning pitcher, and Trevor Houston tallied his first save of the season.

In the series finale, Kirk was a perfect 4-for-4 with a double and two RBIs, raising his average to a robust .542.

Dowdell added two more hits and had an RBI, Brennan McCollough was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs and two runs scored, and Collin Rogers finished 2-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Hill and Haney each had run-scoring hits, and Fondren and Nate Lloyd each had a single and scored.

Dalton Hall (3-0) was the winning pitcher, and Houston registered a second save.

Wallace State continues conference play at Southern Union on Thursday. The Lions return home on Saturday at 2 p.m. for a doubleheader.